Nearly three months after Ahluwalia v. Ahluwalia recognized a new tort of intimate partner violence, the case law shows how fast — and how far — courts are running with it. Four provinces, five decisions, and one open question Saskatchewan hasn’t answered yet.
Legal Fees: What you need to know about your investment in legal services As with many unexpected things in life, few prepare for legal fees. Legal fees can be high, even for what might seem like simple matters, and because of people’s financial situations, they may not be prepared. The other difficult reality with legal…
What Canada’s New Tort of Intimate Partner Violence Means — and How a Saskatchewan Family Lawyer Can Help For years, the hardest part of representing someone in an abusive relationship hasn’t been trying to prove that something happened. It was being heard that the pattern of what happened mattered. A client could describe a marriage…
The Cree word wâhkôhtowin — kinship, the interconnected nature of relationships — offers a powerful lens for anyone working in family law. On National Indigenous Languages Day, we reflect on what this concept asks of lawyers and mediators: to remember that even in conflict, people remain connected, and that how we end disputes matters as much as that we end them.
Panko Collaborative Law received two national honours at the Canadian Business Awards 2026: Best Family Law Firm in Saskatchewan and the Client Service Excellence Award. Founded by Charmaine Panko, K.C., and staffed alongside four of her children, this family-owned practice has spent over a decade proving that family law can feel genuinely human.
Panko Collaborative Law received the WESK Growth & Innovation Award for 2025, recognizing vision, innovation, and measurable impact in a women-led Saskatchewan business. See what this award means to the Panko team, and the bold future we’re building toward, including a Collaborative Law Centre and vocational mediation training program.
Charmaine Panko, K.C. is teaching a new University of Saskatchewan micro-credential in family justice. This course covers conflict engagement, resolution, and communication for practitioners preparing for mandatory early dispute resolution. If you work with families in law, social services, or education, this course was built for you.
Named as a finalist for Family Law Firm of the Year at the 2025 Canadian Law Awards, Panko Collaborative Law received recognition for an approach to family law that is, in the words of one client, “family welcoming me and keeping my best interest at heart.” We’re honoured, and grateful.
Charmaine Panko, K.C. joined the Three Wisemen of Divorce: Money, Psych & Law podcast to talk about why traditional litigation doesn’t serve families well, and what a better process looks like. If you’re considering separation, this conversation is worth your time.
