The living hourly wage is the rate necessary to pay for the basic needs of a family of four with two working parents. This amount is calculated by the Centre for Canadian Policy Alternatives.

For 2016, the living hourly wage in Halifax is $19.17 for a 35 hour work week, which amounts to $34,889.00 annually per full-time working parent. The current living hourly wage is nearly a dollar lower than it was in 2015 thanks to the Canada Child Benefit introduced by the federal Liberal government.

At Lenehan Musgrave we believe all employees are entitled to earn a living wage and that all families should benefit accordingly. These beliefs are reflected most strongly in our staff compensation packages and in our unique approach to providing legal services.

We recognize how difficult it can be for many individuals to earn a living wage in our current economy, so we offer limited scope legal services for clients and families on tight budgets. One such limited scope service that we offer a flat rate fee for are applications for child support: http://www.lenehanmusgravelaw.ca/set-price/

We also offer flexible hours for appointments on request so that our clients can meet with us without having to sacrifice income they could be earning.

What constitutes common law?

A common law relationship is simply the act of living together in a marriage-like relationship without actually being legally married. It does not require any kind of legal process to create a common law union. The definition of common law partnership also differs depending on the laws applied. For example, the Canada Pension Plan states that two people are in a common law relationship after a year of cohabitation. The Parenting and Support Act, on the other hand, requires two years of cohabitation before a relationship can be described as common law.