Toronto Lawyer’s Foreign Divorce Legal Opinion Letter
The Onus:
In order to apply for a Marriage Licence in Ontario after a divorce that occurred in a foreign country/ out-of-country divorce, you will need to submit various documents to the Government of Ontario evidencing that:
For more information visit https://www.ontario.ca/government/getting-married
Documents to Submit:
You will need to send the following documents to:
ServiceOntario
Marriage Office
PO Box 4600
189 Red River Road
Thunder Bay, ON P7B 6L8
My fee for a Legal Opinion Letter of a Foreign Divorce Decree/ Court Order depends on urgency:
3 to 5 business days =$200 tax included.
1 to 2 business days =$250 tax included.
Within Several Hours to a Day = $300 tax included (depending on my schedule).
The fee includes the following:
The Onus:
In order to apply for a Marriage Licence in Ontario after a divorce that occurred in a foreign country/ out-of-country divorce, you will need to submit various documents to the Government of Ontario evidencing that:
- you are no longer married to your ex-spouse(s),
- you now are eligible to get married or remarried legally in Canada
- the divorce decree/ court order/ divorce certificate was properly obtained (as opposed to illegally obtained or obtained by fraud or coercion and duress etc.) and that such court divorce order appears to correspond to the requirements of the Divorce Act and therefore should be recognized as if it was legally obtained and valid in Canada.
For more information visit https://www.ontario.ca/government/getting-married
Documents to Submit:
You will need to send the following documents to:
ServiceOntario
Marriage Office
PO Box 4600
189 Red River Road
Thunder Bay, ON P7B 6L8
- Marriage licence application: this document contains questions regarding personal information about yourself/applicant and your fiancé/joint applicant which will need to be executed by the applicants.
- The Foreign Divorce Decree/ Court Order/ Divorce Certificate/ Annulment: an original or court-certified copy. If the decree or court order is in another language, you will need to include an English translated copy and an affidavit sworn by a certified translator.
- Statement of Sole Responsibility: for each divorce (signed by you/applicant and fiancé and a witness or by a lawyer/notary public): in other words, for every divorce that either you/applicant or fiancé/joint applicant had previously, there must be a separate Statement of Sole Responsibility form acknowledging that even if the Government of Ontario were to issue a Marriage Licence to you both pursuant to section 8 of the Marriage Act, it does not necessarily mean that the foreign divorce decree/annulment will be recognized and interpreted as valid by the Courts in the Province of Ontario; and that is it still the sole responsibility of the applicants to ensure that the stated divorce(s) have completely severed any former marriages. The following is a step-by-step instruction to completing the Statement of Sole Responsibility form and to clarify the confusing wordings within the form:
- State your name/name of applicant and city of residency
- State your fiancé name /joint applicant name and city of residency
- State the name of the city, province and country that granted the divorce (this information is within the divorce decree/court order)
- State the official date the divorce was granted (this information is within the divorce decree/court order)
- Re-State your name or your fiance's name (person's whose name is on the divorce degree/court order)
- State the name of the ex-spouse to the previously divorced person (this information is within the divorce decree/court order).
- Sign by the applicants and a witness or by the lawyer/notary public
- Legal Opinion Letter of the Foreign Divorce Decree/ Court Order/ Divorce Certificate/ Annulment by a registered and insured Ontario lawyer. You will need to retain the services of a lawyer to inspect and review the original divorce decree/court order in order to determine its authenticity. Further, the lawyer is legally obligated to seek clarification surrounding the foreign divorce to determine the legitimacy of the foreign divorce. When the lawyer is satisfied with the information provided, the lawyer will draft and issue a legal opinion letter. The lawyer’s legal opinion letter will address both applicants who are planning to get in Ontario by applying the facts to Canadian law in order to arrive at legal reasons in support of the validity of the foreign divorce and that it should be recognized in Ontario. Upon being properly retained, you will be asked to provide the following document(s) and information to my office:
- Your/Applicant information:
- Full Legal Name and any other aliases as shown on government issued photo ID’s and the divorce decree/ court order (if applicable)
- Date of Birth
- Contact: Address, Phone, Email
- Profession
- Fiancé/Joint Applicant information:
- Full Legal Name and any other aliases as shown on government issued photo ID’s and the divorce decree/ court order (if applicable)
- Date of Birth
- Contact: Address, Phone, Email
- Profession
- Photocopy of ID’s: both yours and your fiancé’s on the same page in duplicate for my certification.
- Original or Court Certified Copy of all divorce decree/ court order for my examination and inspection PLUS a photocopy of the same document for my certification.
- Ex-spouse information:
- Full Legal Name and any other aliases as shown on government issued photo ID’s or the divorce decree/ court order
- Date of Birth
- Confirmation of the wedding date and location
- Confirmation regarding the length of time and location the ex-spouse resided PRIOR to the wedding date.
- Confirmation regarding the length of time and location that you or your ex-spouse stayed PRIOR to the date the divorce was granted.
- Current Contact: Address, Phone, Email (if known)
- Profession
- Whether ex-spouse has remarried (if known).
- Name and contact information of at least two (2) verifiers, persons who can be contacted by my office or the government of Ontario, who can attest to the separation and divorce.
My fee for a Legal Opinion Letter of a Foreign Divorce Decree/ Court Order depends on urgency:
3 to 5 business days =$200 tax included.
1 to 2 business days =$250 tax included.
Within Several Hours to a Day = $300 tax included (depending on my schedule).
The fee includes the following:
- Intake: continuous communication via text/email/phone calls wherein you will provide the information required as listed above.
- Execution: Personal face-to-meeting – no virtual verification or mail courier verification. One of you must be present to have a face-to-face meeting with me:
- to sign the retainer agreement;
- to make certified true copies of your identification
- to make certified true copies of the divorce decree/ court order
- to sign and seal your Statement of Sole Responsibility
- to provide you with the Legal Opinion Letter re. the validity and recognition of a Foreign Divorce Court Order/ Decree in Ontario in duplicate
- Receipt provided
- You will walk off with all documents in duplicate properly commissioned, certified and notarized.
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