Legal Question in Family Law in Canada

Re: teenage pregnancy

The questioner did not state the connection to British Columbia that this issue has; questions to this lawfirm can only be answered with reference to B.C. law, as that is the juristiction in which we are licenced to practice. The law does vary from Province to Province,and while the answer is likely the same in all Provinces and Territories, it may not be, and the questioner should consult a lawyer to ensure that it is.

Assuming he is the father (and this can be ascertained by a DNA test after the baby is born) then in British Columbia, he will be responsible for child support until the child is 19 or if the child chooses to go further with his/her education, then until the child graduates from University or college (usually with a first degree but it cn be longer under certain circumstances). The amount of child support is determined by reference to the Child Support Guidelines and is (with very few exceptions) dependant only on the gross income, which is all earned income plus money from all other sources sucha s bursaries, scholarships and student loans. If the Court feels he is capable of earning more then the court can and often does impute income to the level it thinks is appropriate and then orders child support based on that level of income.

At this point we are often asked if there is anything that can be done to either force the woman to terminate the pregnancy or if she will not, to then lay all responsibility for child support on her as she is choosing not to terminate. The answer in law is quite clear - the decision to terminate or not is that of the woman alone, and has no bearing on the father's responsibility to pay child support. The decision point is not at the point in time when the decision to terminate or not is made, but the point in time when the father and mother decided to engage in intercourse that resulted in the pregnancy. The father should consult a lawyer immediately to obtain specific advice and to see what may be done to safeguard his interests.