The email gives you a date, a courtroom number and about an hour of a Justice's time, and suddenly it feels very real.

The calculators find you first. Type spousal support Alberta into a search engine, often late at night with a budget that no longer balances, and page after page promises a quick figure.

By the time most people call us about separation, they have already made the list in their head. The house, the truck, the pension, the savings account that only ever had their name on it.