Children may experience a great deal of stress and emotional challenges when parents divorce. Child custody and access cases are certainly most challenging for parents and their children.  Children often must adapt to new living arrangements, and they may be struggling with anger and confusion. As parents, you have a great deal of influence over how your child navigates this difficult time. One of the most valuable things you can do to help your child during and after divorce is making them your priority.  What does this mean? Making your child a priority means putting thei ..read more

During a child custody dispute, parents are under a microscope. Everything they have done or said, and anything they have failed to do or say, could come up. Further, personal shortcomings can be used as a weapon by a vindictive ex. Realizing this can make any parent panic. You might worry that you will not appear to be a good parent, or that you will lose time with your child because of some indiscretions in your past. However, the fact is that there is no expectation of perfection when it comes to parenting. So, what are the expectations?  Meeting parenting expectations There is no prec ..read more

After divorce or separation, many parents remain active participants in raising their children. However, challenges can arise if you share child custody and work.  Thankfully, there are steps you can take to make this adjustment a little easier.  Be realistic (and creative) with the schedule As much as you may want to spend every day with your child, having to work can make this impossible. This can be particularly upsetting if you were previously staying at home with your child but must work after a divorce. However, being realistic with your schedule allows you to create a parentin ..read more

Securing child-related agreements after divorce or separation provides parents with a sort of map for the next chapter. Parties can have a better idea of the road ahead and plan for any obstacles that might arise. However, things change over time. And that can mean you need a new map. As such, seeking a modification (also more commonly known in Ontario as a "variation") of custody or support orders can be necessary. Events that can justify modification As your child gets older, his or her needs and lifestyle change. Parents' circumstances can change. When these changes are significant, or mate ..read more

Fathers have long seen challenges in family court, especially when it comes to matters of child custody and parenting. The legal system alone presents obstacles by way of unfair processes and outdated biases. Some fathers seeking custody or access to their children can face another complication: a combative ex. Below are four tips for fathers navigating this experience: 1. Get everything in writing People misremember conversations, misinterpret tone or fabricate details. To avoid this, get important discussions in writing if the other party is unreliable or volatile. For example, if you and yo ..read more

Guest Post By Glenn Cheriton, President of the Canadian Equal Parenting Council Fathers' Rights are controversial in Canada: they don't exist according to some, they are the biggest threat to society to others, yet to others they are an essential demand. There are legal aspects to fathers' rights, to parenting rights and to family rights, but I would like to focus on the political aspects, or rephrasing fathers' rights as political rights. Gene Colman does an excellent review of fathers' rights as legal rights and his suggestions for strategy in focussing on children's rights, family rights, a ..read more

The grandparent-grandchild relationship is often strong and affectionate, but a grandparent can also provide guidance, emotional support, and a sense of family history and culture to a grandchild. These important ties can be interrupted when parents of those grandchildren separate or divorce. Ontario law gives grandparents the option to seek custody of or access to their grandchildren in situations like these. For example, a parent may not want the parent of their ex-partner to spend time with their child to which the grandparent may object, not wanting an interruption in the relationship with ..read more

Momentous times we now live in. Even scary. But life goes on and family law issues will not just go away as Ontarians hunker down. What might be the implications of this virus for those embroiled with family law issues such as custody and access, division of parenting time and the like? Sporting and cultural events have been cancelled. Conferences are on hold or exclusively online. Employees wherever possible are being encouraged to work from home. Health officials worldwide are calling on people to avoid crowds, to stay at home where at all possible, and definitely to self-quarantine if y ..read more

Rigillo v. Rigillo was a child custody/access appeal decision. At trial the judge limited the father's parenting time to the minimal amount that he had secured under a without prejudice temporary order where the mother was the primary caregiver.  The Ontario Court of Appeal held that it is mandatory for a court to consider the MPT principle.  The trial judge found as facts that prior to separation: 1. the child had a loving and strong emotional tie with both parents; 2. the parents "were a team". 3. the parents had effectively parented; 4. the father had made a contribution to raising the ..read more

R.B. v. A.H. is an interim child custody access decision from the Newfoundland and Labrador Supreme Court. It is remarkable for some startling yet what should be patently obvious observations with respect to the importance of maintaining children's bonds with both parents in a meaningful way. The child was 2.5 years old. Mom made false allegations against dad and his family. Notwithstanding a very restrictive court order of access for only 12 hours per week spread over three days with only four hours each day, this December 2018 decision greatly expanded dad's residential time to a quickl ..read more