Our Family Law Workshop in Pickering

We held our free law workshop in January at Pickering Library and our 60 spots sold out quickly. The focus of the workshop was to educate people about family law: marriage, divorce and child custody in Shariah Law and Canadian law. It is important for people, especially women, to learn about their rights and freedoms.  In the Muslim community, information about family law is scarce. I knew very little about my rights when I got married and went with a Mehr, a gift from the groom decided by my elders.  Divorce is not widely accepted and there is little information about separation, divorce and child custody. While polygamy is allowed in Islam, I was interested in learning how it would be dealt with by Canadian law.  

This was a lunch and learn event where we provided individually packed meals with bottled water.  The lunch was distributed upon arrival and this allowed us to utilize the four hours in an efficient fashion. One of our members acted as the Master of Ceremonies and moderator for the event. She helped maintain the time and kept the discussion on track. CCMW provided graphics and PowerPoint presentations to introduce the topics. Two family law lawyers and a law student led the discussion and helped answer any questions. We had someone from Schiffer Clinic, who provided legal counselling, and a representative who specializes in providing services for marginalized women who survive violence.

It was also important to share this information with community partners who deal with Muslims and to provide them insight about family law issues. We also had a community liaison from Durham Police and a physiotherapist from Durham Mental Health. Representatives from the local Member of Parliament’s office and regional council also attended the event.  

The workshop was well received by the participants, who left with a better understanding of family law issues. The lawyers answered many questions asked by the attendees.  They all left with brochures prepared by CCMW with detailed information on the various topics discussed. Our chapter included a list of local resources in the handouts. The president of the local mosque was very impressed with the event and will be hosting another event about family law in the future. I still am getting questions and interest in the workshop, and I have shared the link to the brochures on the CCMW website.