Common Law for Three Years in Ontario — Do We Split Property Like a Married Couple? Mississauga Chinese-Speaking Divorce Lawyer: No

A lot of people ask: the internet says that after three years of living together, property gets split just like in a marriage. Is that true?

The answer: what you read online may be about BC. Family law is different in every Canadian province. In BC, common law is close to marriage and property can be divided — that’s where the internet talk comes from. But you’re in Ontario, and Ontario plays by different rules.

So the first thing about finding a lawyer: check which province you’re in. Applying BC rules to an Ontario case — or the other way around — will get you the wrong answer. Everything below is Ontario.

How does property get divided for common-law couples in Ontario?

In Ontario, there is no equalization of property for common law. Simply put: what’s in your name stays yours. The house belongs to whoever owns it — three years, five years, ten years of living together doesn’t change that. Cohabitation doesn’t turn it into 50/50.

The exception: constructive trust

But there’s one exception, called constructive trust.

Say you live in your partner’s house and pay for renovations, and the two of you never agreed the money was a gift. After you split, you can ask for that money back. Why? Because legally, your contribution wasn’t a gift — it’s treated as held in trust for you.

And it’s not just renovations. Managing money together, joint investments — those count too. In Ontario, constructive trust is where most common-law property fights come from.

How to use a joint account safely

Opening a joint account, both depositing paycheques, using it for living expenses — that’s fine. After you split, whatever’s left gets divided 50/50. What’s spent is spent. Even if one person deposited more, the court won’t do any rebalancing.

But there’s one red line: never use the joint account to pay either party’s mortgage. The moment you do, half of those mortgage payments arguably came from the other person — it gets murky, and that’s where disputes start. Don’t mix the joint account with property tax, insurance, or investment accounts either. Joint account is for living expenses. Nothing else.

When does spousal support start counting?

This part works the same as marriage: it counts from the first day you started living together — not from the wedding day.

Whether there’s support, and how much, comes down to two things: the income gap and the number of years together. There’s a free website called supportcalculator — plug in both incomes and the years, and it tells you if there’s support and how much. Similar incomes? Probably none.

While we’re at it: the idea that divorce means supporting your ex for life is wrong too. Spousal support isn’t guaranteed, and the duration isn’t fixed — it depends on the judge and on both sides’ situations.

What about debts?

Yours is yours — unless you signed as a guarantor. Bank loans, credit cards: signed as guarantor, you’re on the hook together; didn’t sign, not your problem.

Should we sign a cohabitation agreement?

You can, and it’s genuinely useful. The agreement can say there’s no spousal support. And it doubles as a prenup — if you get married later, it stays in force, and property keeps being divided the way the agreement says: yours stays yours.

If you’re planning to have kids, I strongly recommend signing a cohabitation agreement or prenup.

How do you protect money from your parents?

Keep a separate account just for money from your parents — don’t deposit your own earnings into it. Use it for investments or to buy property, just don’t mix it with your own money. That’s called ring-fencing.

Keep the transfer records: one slip when your parents send it, one when you receive it, and store them yourself. Ontario banks only keep records for seven years — after that, they’re gone. Done right, that money stays out of the split even after marriage.

Before you get married, talk to a lawyer again

If you’re planning to marry, go see a lawyer again before the wedding — it could save you a lot.

Why? Advice fades over time. And things change — incomes, assets, the whole picture can go through a material change, and the old plan no longer fits. Time for new planning.

Getting a lawyer’s advice is the most effective way to protect your own interests. Don’t wait until after the wedding — by then it’s late.

Years together, whose property is whose, whether support is owed, whether to sign an agreement — get each step right and you save yourself trouble down the road. Book an initial consultation (30 minutes, $220+HST). Call 647-930-6688.

This is general legal information only. Not legal advice. No lawyer-client relationship.