Trends: Census Data on Families, Households and Marital Status

By Fareen L. Jamal

On September 19, 2012, Statistics Canada released the 2011 Census data on families, households and marital status.  This event occurs only once a decade and it discloses important lessons regarding Canadian families and their living arrangements.  The new data reveals that individuals are choosing family structures that result in more complicated personal and legal relationships.

Some of the highlights of the families, households and marital status survey for family law professionals are:

• Between 2006 and 2011, the number of common-law couples rose 13.9%; more than four times the increase for married couples, which as 3.1%.
• Same-sex couples account for 64,575 families in Canada, a 42.4% increase from 2006.  43,560 of these couples are in common-law relationships.
• For the first time, common-law couples outnumbered lone-parent families in 2011.
• 3,684,675 couples have children and approximately one eighth (12.6% or 464,335 families) are step families with one or more children and not biologically related to one of the parents.
• 41% of step families are “complex” step families, whre there is at least one child or both parents as well as at least one child of one parent only.
• Married couples declined from 91.6% of all families in 1961 to 67% in 2011.
• 42.3% of young adults aged 20 to 29 live with their parents either because they never left it or because they returned home after living elsewhere.  This proportion was relatively unchanged from 2006, although it was well above the share of 32.1% in 1991 and 26.9% in 1981.  The proportion of young adults living with their parents was higher for those in their early 20’s compared with those in their late 20’s.  Young men were more likely to live at home than young women.

These trends demonstrate an increase in competing family interests.  The families, households and marital status survey is rich with facts and analysis that will be of interest to family law professionals.  Click here to link tot he Statistics Canada Families, Households and Marital Status Report and data analysis: 

http://www12.statcan.gc.ca/census-recensement/2011/as-sa/98-312-x/98-312-x2011001-eng.cfm

Fareen Jamal
Bales Beall LLP
2501-1 Adelaide Street East
Toronto, ON
M5C 2V9

Tel:  416-203-4538
Fax: 416-203-8592
fjamal@balesbeall.com