Contracts for Couples

Virginia Gillham is university librarian and archivist at Wilfrid
Laurier University library. She is also a judge of national and
international figure skating competions.

Alison Sawyer, who has been called to the bar in both Ontario and
British Columbia, specializes in family law and immigration issues and
has had considerable experience in public legal education. Contracts for
Couples, which applies in all provinces except Quebec, discusses when a
domestic contract should be made and how to write one; what can and
cannot be covered by such a document; and how to negotiate a contract in
order to ensure its legality.

According to Sawyer, “every couple, whether married, engaged, or
living together … should put their agreements in writing. A written
contract is a valuable document that can help … define and clarify
expectations and goals, avoid surprises and strengthen …
[relationships].” Her book covers pre-nuptial, marriage, common-law,
and same-sex agreements. It contains relevant checklists, drafting tips,
and more than 50 pages of sample agreements that can be also be accessed
in Word and PDF Acrobat formats from the disk included with the book.

Contracts for Couples is a valuable resource that should be used in
conjunction with the services of a practising professional who has
expertise in legal agreements.