How Do I Start?

If you are calling during regular business hours Monday to Friday it is likely that Kim will answer. Kim can answer a host of questions about our services, please feel free to ask – if she can provide some information or help you she will. Yes of course we have voicemail for outside those hours or if she is unavailable when you call, but we think the human touch is important for you and your legal matter.

You may e-mail Kim at kim@christopherarnold.ca to arrange to speak to her, or you can ask the questions in the e-mail. You can also e-mail Chris directly at chris@christopherarnold.ca but response time can be quite a bit slower.

Please be as brief as you can, tell us who you are, what your situation is, what you think you need, and any specific questions – then how best to contact you in reply.

The Law Society of Ontario requires us to advise you that sending us an e-mail does not create a solicitor/client relationship with us. For that we need to be formally retained (see STEP 3) but be assured that all communications with the office are treated with complete confidentiality.

If what you are looking for is within the services we provide, arrange with Kim to speak to Chris. You can choose phone or Zoom.

We won’t have time for a lot of detail about your relationship history, so it will help if you can distil things down to some essentials if possible – here’s an example:

“We met in 1990 and dated for 2 years then moved in together in 1991, into a home we rented (or that I/they owned). We married in 1995 and I announced the separation in July of 2020. We have three kids, Abel who is 21 and at Carleton in 4th year, Beatrice who is 19 and at Algonquin in her 1st year, and Chantal who is 16 and in 11th grade at De La Salle. We still live under the same roof, in a house we co-own, but things are getting more tense. We want to move ahead with the separation details while we can still keep things amicable.”

Focus on cohabitation and marriage dates, where you lived, who owned where you lived, any children involved and where they are now in their journey. Also what people do and what they earn annually is helpful (gross income, on line 150 of their last tax return, or best estimate if no actual evidence).

More than 25 years of these consults have taught me we almost always cover the following basics – KINDLY WATCH THESE SHORT VIDEOS AHEAD OF YOUR INITIAL CONSULT! Get the basics here, that will make our time more efficient and helpful!

CAN YOU JUST ANSWER THIS QUESTION FOR ME? What we CAN AND CAN’T cover in the call
WHAT LEGAL ISSUES ARE THERE? FOCUS on what we can resolve LEGALLY not distractions
WHAT ARE MY PROCESS OPTIONS? HOW you discuss and resolve things is KEY
WHAT ABOUT COSTS? HOW YOUR BILL is calculated – what is charged, hourly rates, what to EXPECT

Intro : Preparing for your initial consult

Video 1 : What are the “Family Issues”?

Video 2 : What are my “Process Options”?

Video 3 : Can you just telle me the answer?

Video 4 : What about the cost?

The contract governing the terms of our relationship is called a RETAINER AGREEMENT, and upon your request it will be e-mailed to you for your review. You can ask Kim, or if your question is more complicated, you can speak to Chris about any concern you may have about it.

Once you have the retainer agreement, and you have read it and are satisfied with it, you can proceed forward by SIGNING IT, and returning it to us and making a RETAINER DEPOSIT. This is a sum of money that we require be deposited with us to secure payment of future accounts. The money is deposited into our Trust Account, and stays there until an account is rendered, when, at the lawyer’s discretion, it can be applied to the account owing, or kept as continuing security. It is almost always applied to the bill, unless the client lives in another province or country or there is other reason to retain more payment security.

You can also expect that Kim will provide you with some INTAKE DOCUMENTS by which you can provide us with some important basic information about you, your spouse, your family and the chronology of events. Kim will also assist you with the important task of GATHERING the relevant DOCUMENTS.

GET ON THIS ASAP:

1.  it may take time for you to root around and locate these papers;
2. you may need to make requests of institutions or others for them; and
3.  sometimes it can help you realize what you might not want to “leave home without”.

Don’t panic if you can’t locate them or if you are unable to access them or if they are in the possession or control of your spouse. If you come across their papers in your search, keep them separate, we will take a copy then provide them with their documents.

The date of separation or “DOS” is an important thing to discuss with us before you chase down the documents relating to Assets and Debts – because balances and values on that date are key. It may not be the date you think it is – and we don’t want you to waste time collecting useless docs. The date of marriage or “DOM” is also important. That usually is exactly when you thought it was. ?

The ideal are documents in .pdf format and if you can create .pdfs through scanning please do. Photos or .jpgs of documents are not preferred. Kim will work with you to arrange for secure transfer of them from you to us – if e-mailing please attach rather than imbed image. Meaningful file names like “DOC001.2018taxreturn.James.pdf” are sincerely appreciated over “CanonScanX24R202003228.pdf”

If you cannot create .pdfs we can help, just contact Kim.