Areas of Practice

Family Law

Domestic Agreements

You and your family are unique. You deserve more than a cookie-cutter template agreement. We will work with you to customize an agreement in language that is easy to understand, that reflects your individual needs and perspectives, emphasizes what is important to you and protects your interests now and in the future.

Whether you are planning to get married, moving in with your partner, reorganizing your commitments mid-relationship or after a separation, or wish to vary an existing agreement, we can help you create the agreement that is right for you.

We can help you with:

cohabitation and marriage contracts
separation agreements, including property agreements
parenting and child-related agreements

Children's Issues

Your children are important to us. At Sheridan, Ippolito we prioritize children's issues, striving to minimize the impact of family breakdown and maximize your children's potential. We help to do this by collaborating with experienced family professionals and coordinating services in order to work toward holistic family solutions. Family reorganization can be a difficult and challenging experience - let us help you work toward resolutions that put your children's needs front and centre.

We can assist you in arriving at creative and sensitive solutions regarding:

custody and access issues (including mobility issues)
parenting agreements
child support
adoption
consent to travel letters
grandparents' rights

Separation and Divorce

We can assist you with uncontested and contested divorce proceedings.

Contested divorce proceedings need not go to court and can be approached through a variety of processes, including negotiation, mediation, arbitration and the collaborative process. With over 25 years' experience in the legal profession, we can help guide you in choosing the best course of action for your unique situation, advising you with respect to the pros and cons, likely costs, and outcomes of each approach.

If you already have a separation agreement or if the only issue remaining to be dealt with is obtaining a divorce order, you may be able to proceed with a divorce on an uncontested basis. Uncontested divorces proceed without the need for a court appearance and our expert support team can assist with all aspects of these applications in a cost-efficient and timely manner.

We also provide letters of opinion regarding the validity of foreign divorces for clients wishing to marry in Ontario.

Estate Law

Wills & Powers of Attorney

We can assist you in drafting your Will and with basic Estate Planning, addressing questions and concerns related to probate, probate fees, and coordinating discussions with other professionals related to tax and other planning issues.

To provide peace of mind we can also prepare Powers of Attorney. These are documents in which you appoint substitute decision-makers to act on your behalf during times of temporary or permanent incapacity due to accident or illness, or to deal with specific matters, such as the sale of property during an absence. Powers of Attorney include Short-Term Powers of Attorney, Continuing Powers of Attorney for Property, and Powers of Attorney for Personal Care (a "Living Will").

Probate & Estate Administration

The death of a loved one can be a difficult and challenging time. If you have been appointed as an executor of a Will or if a loved one has died without a Will, our expert estate team can assist with all aspects of filing court applications, determining the value of an estate for probate purposes, completing Estate Information Returns, and handling all aspects of estate administration and distribution.

Estate Disputes

Estate disputes can be approached through a variety of processes and do not necessarily need to be dealt with in court. We can assist you with negotiating and mediating the resolution of estate-related issues and disputes and can help guide you in choosing the best course of action for your unique situation. When making process choices, we can advise you with respect to the pros and cons, likely costs, and outcomes of each approach.