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Starting Today New BC Law Turns Thousands of Live-in Lovers Into Married Couples


DonLever

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Does this mean if two straight male friends live together they count as a gay couple? Or if a gay guy lives with his girl friend it counts as a relationship? Couldn't you just get around the law by saying you're "just friends"? What about friends with benefits? Where's the line?

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So let me get this straight (yes, pun intended). Gays still aren't allowed to get married in large areas of the globe but straight people are forced to simply by living together for a long enough period by the government. Have I got that right?

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The changes were a result of an extensive review of BC family law that began in 2006 and involved 4 years of public consultation resulting in Family Law Act White Paper in 2010. The White paper was then put out for comments.

http://www.ag.gov.bc...ily-law-act.htm

http://www.ag.gov.bc...White-Paper.pdf

It was a recognition that society has changed and that marriage like relationships needed to be brought under an equitable custody and asset division regime. The courts were doing it on a case by case basis using equity law and principles based on the equality provisions of the Charter so it made sense to create a legislative code and have some certainty.

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Does this mean if two straight male friends live together they count as a gay couple? Or if a gay guy lives with his girl friend it counts as a relationship? Couldn't you just get around the law by saying you're "just friends"? What about friends with benefits? Where's the line?

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Does this mean if two straight male friends live together they count as a gay couple? Or if a gay guy lives with his girl friend it counts as a relationship? Couldn't you just get around the law by saying you're "just friends"? What about friends with benefits? Where's the line?

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The requirement is a "marriage like relationship" as set out in the act - in cases that are in dispute a court well make that determination:

Spouses and relationships between spouses

3 (1) A person is a spouse for the purposes of this Act if the person

(a) is married to another person, or

(
B)
has lived with another person in a marriage-like relationship, and

(i) has done so for a continuous period of at least 2 years, or

(ii) except in Parts 5 [Property Division] and 6 [Pension Division], has a child with the other person.

http://www.bclaws.ca...eeside/11025_01

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What I was trying to say is, what exactly is a marriage-like relationship? Romantic relationships can take many different forms, hard to put a label on things sometimes, for example like a friends with benefits situation where they just happen to live with each other or an open relationship. Or what is they are in a relationship but they have other roommates.

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