---
title: "Anne-France Goldwater ✦ Founding Partner ✦ Goldwater Droit"
meta:
  "og:description": "Me Anne-France Goldwater, senior partner at Goldwater Droit & renowned family and constitutional lawyer. Fluent in English, French, Spanish, & Yiddish."
  "og:title": "Anne-France Goldwater ✦ Founding Partner ✦ Goldwater Droit"
  description: "Me Anne-France Goldwater, senior partner at Goldwater Droit & renowned family and constitutional lawyer. Fluent in English, French, Spanish, & Yiddish."
---

![Anne-France Goldwater](https://goldwaterdroit.com/_vercel/image?url=%2F_composites%2Fv1%2Fprofile%2Fanne-france-goldwater%2Fportrait@2x.webp&w=1280&q=100)

###### Our Team

# Anne-France Goldwater

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[Email](https://goldwaterdroit.com/mailto:afg@goldwaterdroit.com) [Download vCard](https://goldwaterdroit.com/_content-assets/profiles/anne-france-goldwater/attachments/me-anne-france-goldwater.vcf) [LinkedIn](https://www.linkedin.com/in/anne-france-goldwater-a66a8411/)

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- ###### Bar Admission
  - Quebec, 1981
- ###### Education
  - B.C.L., McGill University, 1980
- ###### Languages Spoken
  - English, French, Spanish, Yiddish
- ###### Honours & Distinctions
  - SOGIC Ally Award, Canadian Bar Association (2003) — for contributions to equality for lesbian and gay couples
- ###### Groups & Associations
  - The Family Law Lawyers Association (AAADFQ)
- ###### Media
  - Host, L'Arbitre (The Arbitrator), V Télé

##### Practice Areas

- [Family Law](https://goldwaterdroit.com/en/services/family-law)
- [Divorce & Separation](https://goldwaterdroit.com/en/services/divorce-separation)
- [Child & Spousal Support](https://goldwaterdroit.com/en/services/child-spousal-support)
- [Parenting, Custody & Access](https://goldwaterdroit.com/en/services/parenting-custody-access)
- [Asset & Property Division](https://goldwaterdroit.com/en/services/asset-property-division)
- [Constitutional & Appellate Litigation](https://goldwaterdroit.com/en/services/constitutional-appellate-litigation)
- [Marriage & Cohabitation Agreements](https://goldwaterdroit.com/en/services/marriage-cohabitation-agreements)
- [Religious Divorce & Faith-Based Marriage](https://goldwaterdroit.com/en/services/religious-divorce-faith-based-marriage)
- [Youth Protection (DPJ)](https://goldwaterdroit.com/en/services/youth-protection)
- [Civil Law](https://goldwaterdroit.com/en/services/civil-law)
- [Estate & Succession Disputes](https://goldwaterdroit.com/en/services/estate-succession-disputes)
- [Animal & Pet Defense](https://goldwaterdroit.com/en/services/animal-pet-defense)

**Anne-France Goldwater** is the Founding Partner of Goldwater Droit and one of Quebec's preeminent family law practitioners. She is widely regarded as among the most recognizable lawyers in the province. She founded the firm in 1981, the year she was called to the Quebec Bar. Frequently sought out by major media for commentary on legal and social issues, she has built a reputation as a fearless and exceptionally direct advocate, known for her sharp courtroom skill, strategic intensity, and willingness to take on the most difficult cases.

Her practice spans more than four decades of high-stakes litigation before every level of court, from the Superior Court to the Quebec Court of Appeal and the Supreme Court of Canada. She has established precedents on parental alienation syndrome, the procedural rights of children in matrimonial litigation, same-sex marriage, and spousal support for common-law partners. She successfully challenged the federal and provincial laws prohibiting same-sex marriage in _Hendricks v. Québec (Procureur général)_, as well as the laws that prevented women from enforcing their own support orders. She holds the records for both the highest child support order in Quebec history (cumulative support exceeding $650,000 per annum) and the highest provision for costs in a Quebec matrimonial matter.

She is perhaps best known for _Eric v. Lola_, in which a unanimous Quebec Court of Appeal extended spousal support rights to common-law spouses. The Supreme Court of Canada ultimately upheld the existing laws in one of its most divided judgments in history, though five of nine justices found the complete absence of protection for common-law spouses to be discriminatory. Her Supreme Court advocacy also includes _Bruker v. Marcovitz_ on the enforceability of religious divorce promises, and an intervention in _L.M.P. v. L.S._ that contributed to the resurrection of the Willick test on child support variation.

She has also challenged the constitutionality of the _Quebec Child Support Guidelines_, which the Superior Court declared discriminatory toward women; the Quebec Court of Appeal dismissed that finding, concluding that although the Guidelines are prejudicial and less generous than the Federal Child Support Guidelines, which are applicable across Canada, this did not amount to discrimination toward Quebec children. She has pleaded unjustified enrichment between common-law spouses following the Supreme Court's decision in Kerr v. Baranow, and obtained seizures on intra-corporate assets in inter-spousal claims against corporate shareholders.

Beyond family law, she has argued leading animal welfare cases before the Quebec Court of Appeal, including successive challenges to the City of Longueuil's authorization of a controlled deer hunt in Michel-Chartrand Park, where she invoked article 898.1 of the Civil Code of Québec to assert the recognition of animals as sentient beings with biological needs.

She has published on parental alienation, custody relocation, unjustified enrichment between common-law spouses, and the legal challenges of filiation in assisted reproduction. She was also the host of [_L'Arbitre (The Arbitrator)_](https://fr.wikipedia.org/wiki/L%27Arbitre), a weekly television program on V.

Clients turn to Anne-France not only for her courtroom skill and depth in family law, but also for her ability to act decisively under pressure, navigate emotionally charged situations, and pursue practical results with clarity and resolve. She holds a B.C.L. from McGill University and works in English, French, Spanish, and Yiddish.

Had she not become a lawyer, she would have been a medical doctor, as she is driven by a similar instinct: to diagnose complex human problems at their root, stay steady in moments of crisis, and fight relentlessly for people when the outcome will shape the course of their lives.

##### LITIGATION & PRACTICE HIGHLIGHTS

- [_Service Sauvetage Animal c. Ville de Longueuil (2023)_](https://canlii.ca/t/jzzp0) - Counsel to the animal-welfare advocate applicants Service Sauvetage Animal and Florence Meney in a judicial review of municipal and provincial authorization for controlled crossbow hunting of white-tailed deer in a Longueuil park. The Quebec Superior Court examined procedural fairness obligations, the standard of review, and whether the decision was reasonable under article 898.1 C.C.Q. regarding animal sentience.
- [_Société canadienne pour la prévention de la cruauté envers les animaux c. Ville de Longueuil (2022)_](https://canlii.ca/t/jtj26) - Advocated for the appellants (an animal-rescue organization and an individual) before the Quebec Court of Appeal in a judicial review of a municipal decision authorizing a deer cull; the applicants challenged the validity of the city bylaw and the legality of the wildlife-management order; the Court allowed the appeal with costs and overturned the Superior Court judgment, ordering the city to suspend the hunting authorization pending further proceedings.
- [_Crispino c. Crispino (2021)_](https://canlii.ca/t/jg1w7) - Counsel to the respondent son Claudio Crispino on appeal from a Superior Court judgment annulling a contested will executed by his elderly mother Lucia Crispino in the hospital emergency room (within two hours of admission for a hip fracture, while sedated). The Court of Appeal upheld the judgment on testamentary capacity and undue influence grounds, finding that the sisters Ada and Clelia had manipulated the vulnerable mother; their haste and secrecy were held to breach fiduciary duty.
- [_Droit de la famille — 20621 (2020)_](https://canlii.ca/t/j6wvg) - Acted for the plaintiff mother in a judicial review application before the Quebec Superior Court challenging a Child Protective Authority decision suspending her supervised physical contact with her children during the COVID-19 pandemic; the Court granted the application, suspending execution of the suspension orders and affirming her parental contact rights.
- [_Succession de Crispino (2019)_](https://canlii.ca/t/j3nb1) - Counsel to the plaintiff son in a succession dispute before the Quebec Superior Court concerning the validity and testamentary capacity of the deceased mother's final will dated December 3, 2013; the Court granted the plaintiff's demand, declaring the will null and void on grounds of lack of testamentary capacity and undue influence by the siblings.
- [_Droit de la famille — 171723 (2017)_](https://canlii.ca/t/h50h9) - Acted for the plaintiff mother in a complex contested divorce before the Superior Court involving a Mareva injunction freezing $80 million in family assets, family-patrimony division, and breach of court confidentiality. The dispute centred on the property division of a substantial family-business estate with corporations and trusts. The Court granted the divorce, upheld an unequal division of family patrimony favouring the mother, modified the Mareva order, and ordered the sale of the family residence.
- [_Droit de la famille — 172327 (2017)_](https://canlii.ca/t/hmpt4) - Appeared for the husband in a Superior Court interim-relief application within a high-net-worth matrimonial dispute. The case involved significant wealth disparity, with the defendant possessing assets valued at twenty to two hundred times those of the plaintiff. The Court issued various interim orders addressing custody arrangements including a 'nesting' arrangement and addressed provisional support obligations pending final resolution.
- [_Droit de la famille — 139 (2013)_](https://canlii.ca/t/fvpgh) - Acted for the appellant mothers before the Quebec Court of Appeal in a constitutional challenge concerning child-support guidelines under the Divorce Act. The six appellants, wives of high-income spouses (ranging from $190,000 to $4 million annually), challenged whether the Quebec guidelines prescribed under the Order in Council violated s. 15(1) of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms by providing lower support than the federal guidelines. The case turned on complex Charter analysis of equality rights and justification under s. 1.
- [_Droit de la famille — 111526 (2011)_](https://canlii.ca/t/fmxk4) - Acted for the claimant spouses in a constitutional challenge to the federal child-support guidelines (Order in Council SOR/97-237) on the argument that the Quebec guidelines produced significantly lower payments. The Superior Court examined whether the federal guidelines violated ss. 6 and 15 of the Charter, and assessed the applicable jurisdiction and the necessity of an interprovincial comparison of child-support adequacy.
- [_Droit de la famille — 112747 (2011)_](https://canlii.ca/t/fn0lb) - Acted for the respondent husband A.G. on appeal from a Superior Court rejection of a divorce petition in which the wife refused the Get (Jewish bill of divorcement) on religious grounds. The Court of Appeal affirmed that the refusal was invalid under s. 21.1(4) of the Divorce Act, but reversed the outright dismissal and granted a 15-day grace period to comply.
- [_L.M.P. c. L.S. SCC (2011)_](https://canlii.ca/t/fpddd) - Appeared for the interveners before the Supreme Court of Canada in a significant spousal-support matter; the appeal concerned the variation of spousal-support obligations and the proper test for material change of circumstances under the Divorce Act; the Court allowed the appeal with costs, addressing the interpretation of support agreements and the scope of variation jurisdiction.
- [_Montreuil c. Jasmin (Succession de) (2011)_](https://canlii.ca/t/fkg8p) - Acted for the plaintiff mother in an unjust-enrichment and succession case before the Quebec Superior Court, seeking recovery against the defendant estate administrator in the context of a common-law spousal relationship of twenty years; the plaintiff obtained partial success, recovering $250,000 in unjust-enrichment damages and $33,258.
- [_Droit de la famille — 102866 (2010)_](https://canlii.ca/t/fnbbl) - Acted for the appellant de facto spouse mother in a constitutional challenge to articles 585 and 511 C.C.Q. limiting support rights of unmarried partners; the appellant argued that the provisions violated the equality guarantees of the Canadian and Quebec Charters; the Court declared the provisions constitutionally invalid, suspended the declaration for 12 months, and remitted the matter to the Superior Court.
- [_Droit de la famille — 08162 (2008)_](https://canlii.ca/t/1vnpd) - Appeared for the applicant mother in a family-law case challenging the constitutional validity of C.C.Q. provisions denying common-law spouses alimentary rights equal to those of married spouses, involving custody, support, and patrimonial claims with constitutional questions. The Superior Court balanced privacy and public interest, keeping the file sealed with public exceptions for the constitutional debate under article 815.4 C.C.P.
- [_Droit de la famille — 082457 (2008)_](https://canlii.ca/t/212h5) - Appeared for the applicant federation (Fédération des associations de familles monoparentales et recomposées du Québec) seeking intervention rights in family-law proceedings. The federation requested permission to intervene as a third party to make representations on constitutional issues regarding distinctions between married and de facto spouses under the C.C.Q. and Divorce Act provisions, and their impact on children and single or blended families. The Superior Court granted limited intervention rights (2 hours 30 minutes) for representations on public-interest issues.
- [_Bruker c. Marcovitz (2007)_](https://canlii.ca/t/1v5zk) - Acted for the respondent husband before the Supreme Court of Canada in the landmark case concerning the enforceability of religious divorce obligations (Jewish get); the respondent opposed civil court intervention to compel consent to a religious divorce; the Supreme Court upheld the respondent's position, holding that civil courts lack jurisdiction to enforce religious divorce requirements.
- [_A c. B (2006)_](https://canlii.ca/t/1ndp8) - Appeared for the plaintiff mother before the Superior Court in a family-law matter involving common-law partners seeking modifications as to custody, child support, and spousal support. The case featured a significant wealth disparity ($3.9 million annual income) and three minor children; the plaintiff sought exclusive custody and child support of approximately $264,885 annually. The Court addressed the modification of interim agreements and complex issues relating to the Family Patrimony regime and the application of the Divorce Act.
- [_Marcovitz c. Bruker (2005)_](https://canlii.ca/t/1ln0q) - Acted for the appellant defendant before the Quebec Court of Appeal in an appeal from a Superior Court judgment concerning a publication ban and defamation. The case involved the alleged unauthorized publication of intimate nude photographs by the defendant at the request of the plaintiffs. The Court of Appeal allowed the appeal without costs, dismissing the plaintiffs' action and vacating the publication ban on the basis that there was no valid legal foundation to restrict public access to court proceedings.
- [_S. G. c. L. C. CanLII, 20139 (2005)_](https://canlii.ca/t/1kzg9) - Stood for the defendant lesbian spouses L.C. and the child M.E.C. in a complex paternity and civil-registry modification dispute following the breakdown of a same-sex marriage in which the biological father S.G. sought recognition. The Superior Court ordered in camera proceedings balancing the privacy rights of the minor child and the married spouses against the public interest in an open court, applying the C.C.Q. paternity and marriage provisions.
- [_D.W. c. A.G. CanLII (2003)_](https://canlii.ca/t/ds3) - Counsel to the appellant father before the Quebec Court of Appeal on a matter concerning child custody and the scope of parental decision-making authority following separation; the appeal challenged the interpretation of the custody judgment; the Court allowed the appeal in part, clarifying that the custodial parent's authority is limited to day-to-day decisions when the child is not in custody.
- [_H.(J.) c. F.(W.), CanLII 47187 (2003)_](https://canlii.ca/t/601p) - Acted for the appellant mother before the Quebec Court of Appeal in a case concerning alimentary support enforcement and garnishment against her former spouse; the Court allowed the appeal against the respondent's opposition to seizure, recognizing the creditor's right to pursue collection notwithstanding the intervention of the public collection authority.
- [_Hendricks c. Québec Procureur général CanLII (2002)_](https://canlii.ca/t/1cq14) - Counsel to the applicant same-sex partners before the Quebec Superior Court in the landmark constitutional challenge to the prohibition on same-sex marriage under art. 365 C.C.Q. and federal legislation; the applicants sought a declaration that the restrictions violated s. 15 of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms; the Court declared the relevant federal and provincial provisions inoperant and suspended the declaration for 24 months.
- [_S. J.S.A. c. C.(D.C.), CanLII (2001)_](https://canlii.ca/t/1fcgv) - Appeared for the appellant in a child support variation matter before the Quebec Court of Appeal; the appeal turned on the jurisdiction and procedural propriety of increasing support without a formal motion; the Court allowed the appeal in part, reducing support for the disputed period and setting conditions for future variation requests.
- Won mandatory injunction against private school to order reinstatement of student (Judge Pepita Capriolo), in 2000 (first time ever granted in Quebec).
- Successfully executed and maintained seizures on intra-corporate assets for an inter-spousal claim against one of the corporate shareholders in 1999.
- [_Droit de la famille – 2224 (1995)_](https://canlii.ca/t/1nk60) Won right of minor children to party status, as well as to independent legal representation of their choice, as well as the right to petition for support on their own behalf within matrimonial litigation (various judgments, at trial and appellate level, in several cases), 1994 to 1999.
- Established right to force disposition of matrimonial assets at provisional stage, 1996, 1998.
- Won the right of an athlete to participate on Canadian Olympic Team in Barcelona, in 1994.
- [_Droit de la famille – 1602, (1992)_](https://canlii.ca/t/1pdl0) Sought and obtained recognition from Court of Appeal of right of common law “wife” to claim provision for costs for legal fees to defend against custody claim by ex-partner (Supreme Court denied his request for leave to appeal).
- Won largest lump sum alimentary award for a spouse, in 1992.
- Established right of common law spouses to claim provisions for costs, in 1991.