The unusual B.C. Supreme Court hearing of Shirley Anderson, a 71-year-old woman who is suing her estranged children for parental support, was adjourned Tuesday after the four siblings found a pro bono lawyer to take the case at the last minute.
The siblings ¡ª Brian, 52, Donna, 50, Keith, 48, and Ken 46 ¡ª have been embroiled in a legal battle with their mom for 11 years and haven¡¯t spoken to her in close to two decades.
But they say they are prepared to wait longer, despite the enormous stress and financial burden.
Tuesday¡¯s hearing was originally scheduled for two days, however Vancouver lawyer Stanley Schwartz asked the judge for an adjournment so that he would have time to review the documents because he had only met with the families for the first time on Tuesday morning.
He told Justice Robert Punnett that he would take the case pro bono, along with a lawyer hired by two of the siblings and a third yet to be determined, but only if the case was adjourned.
The unusual B.C. Supreme Court hearing of Shirley Anderson, a 71-year-old woman who is suing her estranged children for parental support, was adjourned Tuesday after the four siblings found a pro bono lawyer to take the case at the last minute.
The siblings ¡ª Brian, 52, Donna, 50, Keith, 48, and Ken 46 ¡ª have been embroiled in a legal battle with their mom for 11 years and haven¡¯t spoken to her in close to two decades.
But they say they are prepared to wait longer, despite the enormous stress and financial burden.
Tuesday¡¯s hearing was originally scheduled for two days, however Vancouver lawyer Stanley Schwartz asked the judge for an adjournment so that he would have time to review the documents because he had only met with the families for the first time on Tuesday morning.
He told Justice Robert Punnett that he would take the case pro bono, along with a lawyer hired by two of the siblings and a third yet to be determined, but only if the case was adjourned.
Outside court, Ken Anderson, a logging-truck driver from Oliver who was abandoned by his mother at the age of 15, said he believes that children who have bad parents should not have to pay for them as they age.
¡°We lived in a brutal household and there was always trouble going on there and then they left me behind and I just don¡¯t believe that you should have to pay when you are left behind at 15 years old. It is just not right,¡± he said.
He did not reveal the amount, but Ken¡¯s wife Sherry Anderson said last week they received a letter from Shirley Anderson¡¯s lawyer stating that she would be asking the courts for $750 per sibling, per month.
you gals need to read the whole story. The woman abandoned her children 30 years ago. The youngest son Ken was then homeless when he was only 16, no food, no place to live, no education. Thanks god he met some good people to offer him a place to stay and job. Now he is working hard as a truck driver to make some money barely raise his family.
His "mother", the woman who never worked for a day in her pathetic life is asking for $750 a month from the poor guy. Just because she is the bio mother? No way. Now you understand why the famous lawyer would take the case pro bono.
Outside court, Ken Anderson, a logging-truck driver from Oliver who was abandoned by his mother at the age of 15, said he believes that children who have bad parents should not have to pay for them as they age.
¡°We lived in a brutal household and there was always trouble going on there and then they left me behind and I just don¡¯t believe that you should have to pay when you are left behind at 15 years old. It is just not right,¡± he said.