I AM intending to get married in the late fall. LIFESTYLES The terms of a marriage agreement can vary My boyfriend was married before and had a really bad experi- ence with his first \wife. After much legal expense he finally settled with her several years ago, but IY have always felt that she cheated him. He has-no children from that relationship. I have never been married and have a really good job. My boyfriend is also employed and makes a somewhat higher salary than me. He also has more assets than I do. The problem is that he wants me to sign a marriage agreement. I don’t really have any dispute with that as long as we don’t have children. He says if we have children, he might feel differently about the matter, too. Can we enter into a marriage agreement that only applies as long as we have no children? “Yes, you can enter into a mar- tiage agreement. that terminates upon the birth of a child. You can also have a marriage agreement which provides for different prop- erty rights depending upon whether you have children. For example, the agreement may state that if you have no children, all property remains the property of the spouse purchasing ‘it. However, if there are children ’ of the marriage and one spouse has given up a job, the agreement might provide for a sharing of certain assets such as assets ac- quired after the marriage. I separated from my wife about four years ago and through our lawyers we were able to reach an agreement dividing up our assets and dealing with custody of our children. We have joint custody, although the children reside the majority of the time with my former wife. My. former wife and I had trouble at first getting along, but now we can get along pretty well. It is particularly important to me that we can.be flexibie as I have a job that is fairly unpredictable as far as hours of work are concern- ed. . ‘Lately, however, my former wife has been doing some things that are really aggravating and it BYE "GEORGE". HUGH | STARK KIASTIE MACLISE seems to be getting worse. For ex- ample, she has been bringing my daughter to her swimming lessons late. The lessons are only a half hour long so it is particularly im- portant that-my daughter be there on time. She took my son to a friend’s garden party instead of bringing him to his last baseball game or letting me have him so I could take him there. On Father’s Day, she refused to let me have the children at ail as ber family was having a barbecue reunion and she said that I had the children the year before. However, ske has the children each Mother’s Day as I believe she should. There are numerous other ixci- dents, but that is a sample. F hesi- tate to involve my lawyer again as things were quite acrimonious for some time after our initial settle- meut, and I don’t want to destroy the communication that we have built. Bo you have any sugges- tions? There are several options avail- able to you, particularly if your wife will cooperate. You have not told us if you have tried to discuss the matter with your wife. It may be that the two of you could work out things by merely sitting down together without the children present and discussing the various problems that have arisen in the past and planning how they could be avoided in the future. Alternatively, it might be helpful to use the services of a neutral third party such as a fami- ly counsellor or a mediator. If the matter could be resolved the agreement could then form an amendment or addition to your separation agreement. If your wife is not agreeable to these options, it may be that your lawyer could work together with your wife’s lawyer to arrive at some mutually acceptable solutions. You could advise your lawyer of your con- cern that the matter be approach- ed in a conciliatory manner. E am an only child. My mother died when I was 18 and a few years later my father remarzied. ’ Over the years my father has gen- erally ignored me and has avoided contact with my children and myself, My two children are now in their early 20s. I raised them alone through most of their teenage years as I was divorced and a single father. However, my children are on their own now. My father is in his 80s and has an estate that he will leave to his second wife of 30 years. My ques- tion is, can he ignore me and my children in his will? Assuming that your father does die, leaving a will naming his se- cond wife as the sole beneficiary, there is a statute that may be of . some assistance to you. It is called the Wills Variation Act and it allows a spouse or. a child to apply to court to vary the terms of a will where a testator has failed to make adequate provision for the proper maintenance and support of a child or spouse in his or her will. The statute does not apply to gtandchildren, only to children and spouses. Unfortunately, we cannot give you any specific advice with respect to how a court might deal with your particular circumstances as there are many factors that WE'VE GOT IT! "GET HAPPY" BRAND NEW 1992 HONDAS CIVIC VX, 75 mPa, macs ACCORD LX, From ACCORD EX,. From ACCORD S/Wagon, From ACCORD EX-R, From PRELUDE, From PD! & FRT. INCLUDED 1993 Del Sol. - _ HONDA'S NEW TARGA 7 from.: shenneenecoccoesnnescacaccvonseorsscaes, $4 0,688. Taxes $4 25 98s”. Taxes $4 6, "588" + Taxes $4 8, 08s” + Taxes $4 9, "388" + Taxes $4 6, "988" + Taxes 46, 795". ~ HAPPY — _ x o|nf|D/A 4780 E. HASTINGS ST. (sust 10 blocks E. of PNE) PERSONAL SHOPPING ONLY * Above prices — in stock units only ¢ Prices apply to N.S. res. only Ds5692 they will look at. For example, a court would look at the size of the estate, the financial circumstances of the widow, your financial cir- cumstances, and your relationship with your father. It should be noted that the Wills Variation Act only deals with assets that fall into a per- son’s estate. Therefore, assets that pass automatically to a person on death by operation of law would not form part of the estate for this purpose. For example, if your father held a property with his new wife as joint tenant, that property wouid pass to his widow by operation of law and not fall into his estate. You should also be aware that there are very strict time limita- tions with respect to an applica- tion under the Wills Variation Act. Currently, an action under the Wills Variation Act must be commenced within six months of the date of issuance of the grant of probate. The questions and answers given in this column are for gen- eral information only. If you have matrimonial prob- lems you should seek legal advice so that your advisor can assess your particular circumstances and give you the best advice. Questions about family law. and estates can be directed to Stark & MacLise c/o Family Affairs, North Shore News, 1139 Lonsdale Ave., North Vancouver V7M ‘DECK IS OPEN... JOIN US! For Dinnerx or for Snacks in the Sun - on cooler days or evenings, our “heat lamps” will take the chill out of those waterfront breezes. 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