In Ontario, the governing legislation is the Children’s Law Reform Act. This legislation provides Court’s with the law to follow in dealing with child related family law issues. The term ‘custody’ is now called ‘Decision-making Responsibility, and refers to a parent or guardian’s legal responsibility and authority to make major decisions for a child related primarily to health, education and religion. Custody/Decision-making responsibility is distinct from ‘access’, which is now referred to as ‘parenting time’.

Parenting time refers to the time parents spend with the child. Most custody and access arrangements are made between the parents themselves with the assistance of professionals. If parents are unable to agree on custody and access, either on their own or with the assistance of lawyers or mediators, then the courts will make that decision for them. The courts are required to place the best interests of the child as the primary concern, but of course, two people will often have very different perspectives on what may be in the children’s best interests. Having the assistance of a lawyer who exclusively practices family law will help ensure you always take the right approach, which in the end will help ensure the best outcome possible.

Before travelling with a child within the country or abroad, a parent should check the agreement or court order to see if she/he needs the other parent's permission for the child to travel and if she/he needs to obtain the other parents’ consent about the travel plans.

Sometimes the other parent may not cooperate, or there may be a restraining Order in place, or a history of abuse, and therefore obtaining that parent’s consent to travel, or to apply for a passport, will be difficult or impossible. A Court, in appropriate circumstances, can make an Order that enables the requesting parent to both obtain documentation such as passport for the child without the other parent’s consent, or to travel abroad without the other parent’s consent.

This can often be critical to ensure you and your child or children can enjoy vacations without it being unreasonably obstructed by a belligerent party.

Children are entitled to support as an established legal right of their own. Child Support is paid to the recipient parent, but it is the right of the child and often provides substantial assistance to a parenting providing primary care to the child or children.

Child Support is calculated using the payor parent’s income, and the Child Support Guidelines. Sometimes determining the amount of child support is simple. For example, if the payor parent is a T4 employee working full time, that person’s tax return will likely provide an accurate assessment of their income. Sometimes however, a person is self-employed, and their income is more difficult to determine due to deductions that lower their income. These deductions are permitted for income tax reasons, but many allowable deductions are not allowed in Family Law.

In other, more complicated scenarios, a person earns substantial income by way of cash. As such, determining this person’s income requires a more thorough review of financial disclosure, which could include disclosure of a persons’ bank and credit card statements, previous applications for loans they may have submitted, and other documentation.

A payor parent is responsible for making timely payments according to a schedule and amount set either by a court or by an approved agreement of both parents. While there are various considerations that may affect, or would seem to affect child support, such as a new partner, spouse, being laid-off of employment, etc., knowing when a change is relevant is important to know before you go to Court. Whether you’re the payor parent, or recipient, knowing how to pursue this properly and take positions a Court will view as reasonable is critical to your case. We can help you in this regard.

Unlike child support, which is governed by the Family Law Act and the Child Support Guidelines, spousal support is more discretionary, and Courts are informed by, but not obligated to comply with the Spousal Support Advisory Guidelines.

These guidelines provide a range of spousal support that could be paid, depending on many factors, including both parties’ incomes, or income earning ability, the roles the parties played during the marriage or cohabitation, the health of each party at the time of separation, any sacrifices made by either party during the marriage or cohabitation, the ages of the spouses, how long they’ve been married or lived together, the parties’ employment history and/or future employment prospects, among others.

The purpose of spousal support is to give a lower-income spouse, who may have sacrificed income and career opportunities during the marriage, time to get back on his or her feet, and compensation for the lost income and career opportunities. In general, the shorter the marriage, the shorter the duration of spousal support. For marriages that have lasted 20 years or more, spousal support may be for life.

Resentment, anger, and misunderstandings of each spouse’s rights and responsibilities can make this a very emotional subject to try to resolve. It’s important to have a steady, knowledgeable professional to help you come to an agreement, or present your case to the Court in a proper manner, to maximize your ability to achieve the outcome you need.

When two people are married, property acquired during the marriage is family property, regardless of whose name any particular property may be in. His toaster is your toaster, your RRSP is his RRSP. Division of property and equalization is an instrument of law that looks at what each party had on the day they got married, then looks at what each party had on the date of separation. The difference is called Net Family Property. If one party’s Net Family Property is higher than the other party’s, splitting the difference is called equalization, which requires the party with the higher Net Family Property to pay to the other half the amount of the difference. In short, this is complicated. Sometimes it can be very complicated. Making a mistake may result in losing thousands, or millions of dollars.

The Matrimonial Home has a special place in family law however, and is distinct from other property equalized by way of equalization. The Matrimonial Home is presumably divided equally, subject to reapportionment in consideration of many factors, such as the presence of a marriage contract, an equalization payment owing which can be satisfied from that party’s share of the Matrimonial Home, or a scenario where it would be unconscionable to divide the value of the home equally. But what you think is unconscionable, is likely not unconscionable in law. This is where having a family law lawyer is very important.

It is always better for you and your partner to resolve all legal issues outside of Court. A Judge is a stranger to your family, you and your former partner will be in the better position to know what is best for your family and children. If negotiations are unsuccessful, an application to Court may be appropriate. Often when both parties are represented by experienced family lawyers, some or all issues can be resolved without ever seeing the inside of a courtroom.

Factors that contribute to a successfully negotiated resolution are both parties’ willingness to place their children’s interests ahead of their own, parties being forthcoming about their finances and providing financial disclosure, the dynamic between the parties, including whether there is a history or presence of domestic violence, etc.

An experienced family law lawyer will be able to guide you as to whether negotiating a separation agreement is the right approach.

Marriage contracts are different from Separation Agreements for one glaringly obvious reason: Marriage contracts are contracts between two people who are getting married, or who are already married, in which they agree to how many legal issues would be resolved in the event the marriage is unsuccessful at some point in time. A marriage contract, or pre-nup as it is commonly understood, can be used to protect each party’s assets in the event of breakdown of the marriage, or lay out how issues of support, property division, equalization, etc., will be resolved. Similarly, cohabitation agreements do the same thing, but for people who are not married, where property issues can be more complicated to resolve.

Child protection matters are the most serious and potentially consequential matters in Family Law. The Children’s Aid Society, or other applicable child protection agency in your area, has the statutory authority to remove a child or children from your care if there is a risk of emotional or physical harm. Defining emotional or physical harm can be difficult, and is not instinctive. Knowing how to respond when contacted by a child protection agency, and knowing how to conduct yourself while involved with any agency, is critical in these circumstances.

Child Protection Matters refer to the specific circumstances when Children Aid Societies (CAS) in Ontario takes away from his/her parents in the belief that the child may require protection from their caregivers or parents. CAS may have reason to apprehend any child if they suspect there is emotional or physical abuse, alcohol or drug abuse, mental health issues and/or neglect issues, or domestic violence that may be exposing the children to harm.. The safety and well-being of the child are the primary factors guiding the actions and beliefs of the Society.

The Society apprehends the children only if they think that their concerns are not able to be resolved. The respondent caregivers or parents need to respond to the Society’s concerns and submit a plan of care for the child. There are many possible plans of care that can be submitted. Another family member or respondent can be considered for placement in the plan of care if returning to the parent is not possible.

It is critical this is done right, and the importance of having the assistance of an experienced child protection lawyer cannot be overstated

Hellen is a licensed Paralegal, Accredited (OAFM) Family Mediator and Voice of the Child Reporter.

Coupled with her extensive experience in Civil Litigation, Hellen possesses a wealth of experience and knowledge in the Family Law forum. Understanding first-hand the gut-wrenching effect of litigation on families, Hellen is a huge supporter of collaborative divorce and collaborative parenting. She is an advocate at heart for the best interest of the child and the child’s voice.

Hellen is in the unique position of appreciating the nuclear family break-down and its emotional and financial consequences on all involved. Her passion in the Family Law forum is fueled by her compassion and understanding for each families’ unique circumstances. Hellen is committed to resolving decision-making (custody) and parenting time (access) disputes in a holistic manner.

In her previous life, Hellen was a partner in a mortgage brokerage and possesses the unique insight of understanding the dynamics as they relate to lending, borrowing, real estate, market valuations, appraisals, finance and equalization.

*Languages Spoken: English and Russian

Hellen's Designations Include:

• Paralegal
• Accredited Family Mediator (OAFM)
• Voice of the Child Reporter
• Mortgage Agent (non-practicing)

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