Is there free help to separate or divorce in BC?
In BC, free family law help is available from:
LegalHelpBC - Ask a Human: Each year, JES Legal Navigators respond to thousands of family law questions. If you have legal questions about separation, divorce or family violence, connect now. You can also Ask AI.
Legal Aid BC (opens in a new tab): Provides family duty counsel lawyers at many courthouses and family advice lawyers for issues involving children or violence for income qualified individuals through Legal Aid.
Family Justice Centres and Justice Access Centres (opens in a new tab): The BC government offers free mediation for separating couples, as well as legal information and referrals.
Family Law in BC (opens in a new tab): Is the primary family law website in BC. It provides plain language information and guides and practical tools on separation, divorce, and family violence.
Rise Women’s Legal Centre (opens in a new tab): Rise is a community legal centre providing accessible legal services to self-identified women and gender-diverse people in British Columbia since 2016. Rise’s programs and services are aimed at providing limited legal services to economically disadvantaged clients, who are self-representing in their family law matters in BC.
If you have children, you should take the Parenting After Separation course (opens in a new tab) or Parenting After Separation for Indigenous Families (opens in a new tab). This course is mandatory for BC Provincial Court cases. It provides useful information and resources to parents.
Others found these helpful...
- Family Law in BC (opens in a new tab)
BC’s most comprehensive family law website covers separation, divorce, adoption, protection and more.
- HowToSeparate.ca (opens in a new tab)
Provides help for separating couples on: Working it out, Separating the Finances and Going to Court.
- BC Family Justice Services (opens in a new tab)
The BC government provides a range of information and services to support people with separation, divorce, and other family law issues.
- FamiliesChange.ca (opens in a new tab)
Age-appropriate information for parents, teens and kids on how to deal with family changes due to separation.
- Legal Aid BC (opens in a new tab)
Provides a range of services to support British Columbians get legal advice on family law and other issues.
- Rise Women’s Legal Centre (opens in a new tab)
Provides legal services to women, especially regarding family law and intimate partner violence.
- BC Provincial Court (opens in a new tab)
This court applies BC’s Family Law Act and the Divorce Act to deal with a range of family law issues related to parenting arrangements, support, child protection, etc.
- Supreme Court BC (opens in a new tab)
This JES website provides a series of guidebooks to help people understand and move through family law processes in BC Supreme Court.