The words the law uses for parenting
BC’s Family Law Act replaced the older vocabulary with four ideas, and every parenting agreement or order is built from them:
- Guardianship. While parents live together, and after they separate, each parent is the child’s guardian. A parent who has never lived with the child is not a guardian unless they regularly care for the child, the guardians agree, or another listed exception applies.
- Parental responsibilities. The decisions about a child’s life: day-to-day care, schooling, health care, religion, activities and so on. Unless an agreement or order divides them differently, each guardian may exercise all of them, in consultation with the other where that is reasonable.
- Parenting time. The time a child spends with each guardian. During that time the guardian makes the day-to-day decisions.
- Contact. Time a child spends with someone who is not a guardian, such as a grandparent.
Married parents who also apply for a divorce will see the federal Divorce Act’s terms, “decision-making responsibility” and “parenting time”, which cover similar ground. Our co-parenting responsibilities page has more on both.
What decides the arrangement
Every parenting agreement and order turns on the child’s best interests, and only on those. The Act lists what must be considered, including the child’s health and emotional well-being, the child’s views where appropriate, the strength of the child’s relationships, the history of the child’s care, the need for stability at the child’s age, each person’s ability to meet their responsibilities, and the effect of any family violence.
There is no starting assumption. The Act says expressly that it must not be presumed that parental responsibilities should be shared equally, that parenting time should be divided equally, or that decisions should be made jointly or separately. A schedule that suits one family may be wrong for another, and what matters is the evidence about this child.
When agreeing is hard: parenting coordinators
Some parents reach an agreement, or obtain an order, and then struggle to make it work week to week: handovers, holidays, school choices. The Act allows them to appoint a parenting coordinator, by written agreement or by court order, once a parenting agreement or order is in place. The coordinator’s job is to help carry out the arrangement, not to rewrite it. A coordinator can build consensus, set guidelines for communication, and make binding determinations on the matters the regulations allow, but cannot decide anything about dividing property or debt. The appointment lasts up to two years unless it ends sooner, and can be renewed for further periods of up to two years. Both parents must give the coordinator the information they ask for. For parents caught in repeated disputes over small decisions, it is an alternative to going back to court each time.
If you need a court order: which registry
Guardianship, parenting arrangements, contact and child support can be decided by the Provincial Court as well as the Supreme Court. For a new Provincial Court case, rule 7 of the Provincial Court Family Rules decides the registry: the one closest to the home where the child lives most of the time, or, if no child is involved, closest to the home of the person who files first. Once a case exists between the same parties, later filings go to the same registry.
East Vancouver sits between three family registries: Robson Square downtown (800 Hornby Street), Richmond (7577 Elmbridge Way) and New Westminster (651 Carnarvon Street). For most of it the answer is clear. From Commercial-Broadway, Robson Square is about 4.5 km away in a straight line, against 11 km to Richmond and 13 km to New Westminster; from Trout Lake and Hastings-Sunrise the gap is similar. In the south-east it is not clear at all. Around Champlain Square, Robson Square and Richmond are both about 9.1 km away and New Westminster 9.6 km; near Killarney Community Centre the figures are about 8.3, 9.3 and 10.0 km. The rule does not say whether “closest” means a straight line or a road route, and by road the order can change. If the child lives in the south-east of the city, around Killarney, Champlain or Collingwood, confirm the registry with the court before you file.
Some matters can be brought in any registry with the court’s permission: protection orders, and priority parenting matters such as urgent consent to medical treatment, a passport where delay would put the child at risk, or a planned move of the child’s home where no agreement or order is in place.
The early resolution steps
All three of those registries are early resolution registries. Before most applications can be filed, the person starting the case must:
- file a notice to resolve (Form 1) and give a copy to the other party;
- complete a needs assessment with a family justice counsellor;
- complete a parenting education program; and
- attend at least one consensual dispute resolution session, such as mediation.
The other party completes the same assessment, program and session before filing a reply. The steps do not apply to an application only for a protection order, a priority parenting matter, relocation, a consent order, a case management order or enforcement, and protection orders and priority parenting matters can be applied for before the steps are done. A counsellor can excuse the parenting program or the mediation in situations the rules list, including where mediation is not appropriate. For a Robson Square case, the Province directs people to the Vancouver Justice Access Centre at Robson Square for these services.
Divorce and property: the Supreme Court
Only the Supreme Court can grant a divorce, divide property and pensions, or deal with all of a family’s issues in one case. The Vancouver registry is at the Law Courts, 800 Smithe Street; the New Westminster Law Courts, near our second office, also has a Supreme Court registry. A divorce needs a year of living apart (or proof of adultery or cruelty), and the court must be satisfied that reasonable arrangements have been made for the children’s support before it grants one. See Divorce in BC and our divorce lawyers page.
What you owned before the relationship
One property rule needs attention early. Property a spouse owned before the relationship began is excluded property and stays with that spouse, as do inheritances and gifts from someone outside the relationship. What is shared is the increase in its value since the relationship began (or since it was acquired, if later). A condo bought before you moved in together stays yours, but its growth in value over the years usually goes into the family pool.
The spouse who says something is excluded has to prove it. That means records: the purchase documents and an appraisal or assessment close to the date the relationship began, statements showing where an inheritance went, and evidence of any refinancing since. Gathering these early avoids an argument about numbers later. See our property division page.
Support for the children
Child support follows the Federal Child Support Guidelines: a table amount based mainly on the paying parent’s income and the number of children, plus a share of special expenses such as child care. Where each parent has the children at least 40% of the time over a year, the calculation changes. Any parent can apply, married or not, and there is no deadline. See child support and spousal support. Our articles on whether spousal support is tax deductible and on avoiding spousal support cover common questions.
Time limits
Parenting arrangements and child support can be raised at any time. A claim to divide property, debt or a pension, or for spousal support, must be started within two years: for married spouses, of the divorce order; for unmarried spouses, of the date they separated.
Our family lawyers
Judith A. Janzen, called to the bar in 2000, leads our family law group and has been a principal since she and Candace Cho, KC joined forces in 2012. On parenting cases she works with Mason Heller, who has acted in contested parenting time and guardianship disputes, Louisa Ledesma, whose work includes parenting arrangements and family violence, Rupinder Shoker, Susan Kim, Rasjovan Dale and Shivleen Sidhu, who also speaks Punjabi. Katya Richardson offers limited-scope help to people who want to handle parts of their own case. All profiles are on the team page.
For wills and estates, see our East Vancouver estate lawyers.
Common questions
We have just separated. Do we have to go to court to set a parenting schedule?
No. A written parenting agreement made after separation is binding, and filed with the court it can be enforced like an order. The Family Justice Centre on Commercial Drive offers free mediation.
Will we get 50/50 parenting time?
The law presumes nothing. The arrangement depends on the child’s best interests, looking at the child’s needs, relationships, care history and stability.
Our daughter lives with me near Killarney. Which courthouse do I file at?
For a Provincial Court case, it is the registry closest to where she lives most of the time. Near Killarney, Robson Square, Richmond and New Westminster are all similar distances away, so confirm with the registry before filing.
My ex-partner owned the condo before we met. Do I get anything?
If you were married or lived together in a marriage-like relationship for two years or more, the increase in its value during the relationship is family property and is usually shared. The condo’s value when the relationship began stays with your ex-partner.
How do you charge?
Family work at Onyx is billed hourly. Consultation terms are explained when you call (604) 900-2538.
