When Control Becomes a Civil Wrong: Court Awards Wife $40,000 in Damages for Intimate Partner Violence

When your relationship ends and child or spousal support is on the table for resolution, everything starts with one question: How much does each spouse or parent earn? It sounds simple. You’d think the answer is on your respective income tax returns. But in Family Law, the income a court uses to calculate support isn’t always the income each of you actually earns. Sometimes the...

Protecting Children in Domestic Violence Cases

When domestic violence (often called Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) or just “family violence”) occurs within a family, the protection of the abused partner is naturally a key concern. But when there are children in the mix, the impact can be profound – even when the children have not been physically assaulted themselves.  Canadian Family Law increasingly recognizes this reality. As we have...

How Much Are Courts Awarding Victims of Intimate Partner Violence?

Until recently, if you were a victim of domestic abuse then your sources for a remedy were somewhat limited:  You might look to the criminal law (to formally lay charges against the perpetrator), or you might pursue a civil action against them, for what often turns out to be a relatively modest damages award. But – in the right circumstances – that last part seems to be improving. The Supreme...

Subtle Signs of Coercive Control

When people think about Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), they often picture dramatic confrontations, physical altercations, and injuries that are usually visible. But many abusive relationships leave no physical marks at all. Instead, the abuse takes the form of coercive control, a pattern of behaviour designed to dominate, isolate, and control another person over time. We’ve been talking in...

Coercive Control: It Doesn’t Stop at Separation

We’ve talked a lot in our Blog about the recent Supreme Court of Canada decision in Ahluwahlia v. Ahluwalia, which explored the important concept of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). One of the most important lessons to emerge from that ruling, is that IPV is not always physical. It can take the form of coercive control – a persistent pattern of behaviour designed to dominate, isolate,...

Ahluwalia in Action: Ontario Court Awards $90,000 in Damages for Intimate Partner Violence

For a few months now, our Firm has been writing regularly about the Supreme Court of Canada ruing in Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia.  That groundbreaking decision confirmed an important legal principle: Survivors of intimate partner violence can use existing tort law to seek monetary compensation from their abusers. Since that time, we’ve been tracking how Ontario courts have been adopting and...

Intimate Partner Violence (IPV) – Financial Damages Awards Are On the Horizon

In the past few Blogs, we’ve been covering the landmark decision by the Supreme Court of Canada in a case called Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia, 2026 SCC 16.  In that ruling the Court recognized a new civil tort of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), and confirmed that in some cases the victims of such violence could seek monetary damages from the perpetrators. Since the decision was handed down, those...

Gathering Evidence of Intimate Partner Violence? Avoid These Common Mistakes

If you are experiencing Intimate Partner Violence (IPV), it can be difficult to think about protecting yourself, or asserting your rights. Your immediate focus is often on your safety, your children, and simply getting through each day. But as we’ve covered in some recent blogs, “Proving Your Tort Claim for Intimate Partner Violence? Here’s the Kind of Evidence You Need”  under Canadian law...

Can I Sue My Former Partner for Intimate Partner Violence? Yes — But It’s Not Always Easy

One of our recurring Blog topics recently has been the landmark decision by the Supreme Court of Canada in Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia.  And it’s for good reason. That case confirmed that under Canadian law, eligible victims of Intimate Partner Violence (or IPV – formerly known as “domestic abuse”) may now have access to a new civil remedy through the courts, and may receive monetary damages from...

Proving Your Tort Claim for Intimate Partner Violence? Here’s the Kind of Evidence You Need

Last month, we wrote about the recent landmark Supreme Court of Canada decision in Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia, which recognized a new civil tort of Intimate Partner Violence (IPV). That case is groundbreaking because it recognizes that, in the right circumstances, victims of IPV may now be able to pursue monetary damages from an abusive spouse or partner.  When awarded by a court, those damages...