Two courts in one building, and what each can decide
- Provincial Court makes orders on guardianship, parenting arrangements, contact with a child, child support, spousal support and protection from family violence. Section 193 of the Family Law Act stops it from dividing family property or debt (a companion animal aside), dividing a pension, or managing property held for a child.
- Supreme Court can hear any Family Law Act matter and is the only court that grants a divorce under the federal Divorce Act.
A parent who needs a parenting schedule and child support can often stay in Provincial Court. A married couple who want a divorce, or any couple with a home, savings or a pension to divide, will need the Supreme Court. Choosing where to start is worth advice.
Which Provincial Court registry a file belongs in
Living in Port Coquitlam does not by itself put a case in the Port Coquitlam registry. Rule 7 of the Provincial Court Family Rules sets the order of priority:
- An existing case between the same parties keeps every later document in its registry, wherever that is.
- With no existing case and a child-related issue, the file starts at the registry nearest the child’s usual home, meaning where the child spends most of their time.
- With no child-related issue, the starting point is the registry nearest the residence of the party who files first.
So when the children live mainly in Port Coquitlam and nothing is on file elsewhere, the Port Coquitlam registry will usually be the one. It may not be if the children live mostly with a parent in another city, or if an earlier case sits in New Westminster or Surrey. With the court’s permission, protection orders and priority parenting matters can be started in any registry. Rule 7 does not say how distance is measured, so where the answer is not obvious, ask registry staff before anything is filed.
The early resolution steps at the Family Justice Centre
Port Coquitlam is listed as an early resolution registry in Appendix 1 of the Provincial Court Family Rules, as is New Westminster. In an early resolution registry, a person who wants a Provincial Court order on a family law matter must, unless the rules provide otherwise, complete these steps before filing an application:
- File a Notice to Resolve a Family Law Matter (Form 1) and give a copy to each other party.
- Take part in a needs assessment with a family justice counsellor, which covers legal and practical needs and screens for family violence.
- Complete a parenting education program.
- Attend one or more consensual dispute resolution sessions; mediation is the usual form.
A party served with the notice must complete the assessment, the program and the session before a reply can be filed.
Each step has limits, and the rules spell them out:
- Orders that skip the steps. Nothing on the list is required where a party applies only for one or more of these: case management, protection, priority parenting, relocation, consent or enforcement orders. A protection order or priority parenting application can also be made before the steps are finished, even if other issues are in the same case.
- Assigned support or a transfer. The steps do not apply to a support-only application where support rights have been assigned to the government under the income or disability assistance legislation, and they stop applying if the file is transferred to a registry that is not an early resolution registry.
- Parenting program. Exemptions come from the needs assessor, for example where the person finished the program within the past two years, the dispute concerns only spousal support or a companion animal, every child has turned 19, or language, literacy, lack of online access or a serious medical condition stands in the way.
- Dispute resolution session. It falls away if the assessor finds the service cannot be accessed, or if the assessor or the dispute resolution professional judges it unsuitable. It also does not apply when the Director of Maintenance Enforcement or a child protection director is a party.
An applicant who has completed the steps may proceed even if the other side refuses to engage; and the rules bar a party who disregards a notice to resolve from taking part in the case unless a judge allows it.
The Port Coquitlam Family Justice Centre (604-927-2217) provides these services free of charge, in person or by phone and video. Tell the counsellor at the needs assessment, and us when you first call, about any safety worry. Our work at this stage is advice before the assessment, preparation for mediation, and a review of any proposed agreement before signature. Our family mediation lawyers also act as counsel in private mediation.
The Supreme Court registry that opened in June 2025
The Supreme Court’s spring 2025 announcement set out the essentials. From June 9, 2025, the Port Coquitlam Law Courts offered full Supreme Court registry services. A notice of family claim can be filed on Mary Hill Road, and the claim may give Port Coquitlam as the place of trial. Judicial case conferences, trial management conferences, family trials and family summary trials can be scheduled there under the assize system. Parties with a family trial set in Abbotsford, Chilliwack, New Westminster or Vancouver were invited to apply to move it, by desk order where both consent, without any promise of the same dates.
That announcement left the regular chambers day to be decided later. When we checked the court’s scheduling page on October 26, 2026, it posted a 2026 short chambers schedule for Port Coquitlam and arrangements for booking long chambers. Schedules change: confirm chambers dates with Supreme Court Scheduling in Port Coquitlam (604-927-2255) before planning an application, and take filing questions to the registry (604-927-2100).
The registry is an option, not an obligation. Our review of the Supreme Court Family Rules found no rule linking a home address to a particular registry, and New Westminster is still open to Port Coquitlam families. The rules fix three narrower points: trial takes place where the claim names unless a judge orders otherwise, a notice of trial goes to the registry that opened the file, and a judge can move a file to another registry on application. Where the other spouse lives and which building suits everyone are the practical tests.
Under Rule 7-1 of the Supreme Court Family Rules, most contested applications wait for a judicial case conference; exceptions include an application under Family Law Act section 91 to restrain disposal of property, consent orders and applications without notice. The conference is booked on 30 days’ notice with a financial statement (Form F8) where one is required, so gather tax returns and notices of assessment early.
Moving with a child: two sets of rules
- Family Law Act, sections 65 to 71. This Division is engaged when a guardian plans to move and the child is already covered by a written parenting or contact agreement or order. It catches a move that can reasonably be expected to significantly affect the child’s relationship with a guardian or someone else important in the child’s life. Written notice of at least 60 days, naming the date and the new location, goes to every other guardian and to each person with contact. A judge, asked without the other side present, can excuse some or all of that notice if it would put anyone at risk of family violence or the child has no ongoing relationship with the person. Opposing guardians get 30 days after receipt to seek an order prohibiting the move, and without such an application the move can proceed from the date given.
- Divorce Act, sections 16.9 to 16.96. A person who has parenting time or decision-making responsibility for a child of the marriage must give at least 60 days’ notice in the prescribed form, including the new address and a proposal for how parenting time or contact could work. A person with parenting time or decision-making responsibility who objects does so within 30 days, in the prescribed form or by application; otherwise, and absent an order prohibiting it, the move may go ahead on the notified date.
Whether a move within the Tri-Cities is a “relocation” depends on its effect on the child, not the kilometres. Where both Acts are in play, for instance an older provincial order and a pending divorce, get advice on which notice rules govern before sending or responding to a notice.
Divorce, property and deadlines in brief
A divorce only ends the marriage; the other issues are decided separately and are often more urgent. The court has jurisdiction where one spouse was habitually resident in the province throughout the year before the proceeding began, and the ground is marriage breakdown, shown by a year apart or by proven adultery or cruelty. If the claim is not defended, the order can be sought on affidavit evidence by requisition. For the filing steps, read how to file for divorce in BC or, where everything is agreed, uncontested divorce; our divorce lawyers take on both kinds of file.
The Family Law Act starts from equal shares: from separation, each spouse has a claim to half the family property and carries half the family debt, subject to an agreement or court order. What a spouse brought into the relationship, inherited, or received as a gift from a third party may be excluded, though any increase in its value over the relationship is divided. Couples who lived in a marriage-like relationship for two years are covered too, and separation can happen without either spouse moving out. More on property division, inheritances and common-law status.
The time limit for property, pension and spousal support claims is in section 198(2) of the Family Law Act:
“A spouse may start a proceeding for an order under Part 5 [Property Division] to divide property or family debt, Part 6 [Pension Division] to divide a pension, or Part 7 [Child and Spousal Support] for spousal support, no later than 2 years after, (a) in the case of spouses who were married, the date (i) a judgment granting a divorce of the spouses is made, or (ii) an order is made declaring the marriage of the spouses to be a nullity, or (b) in the case of spouses who were living in a marriage-like relationship, the date the spouses separated.”
Under section 198(5) the clock stops during family dispute resolution with a professional the Act recognises, or a prescribed process. The other side may later dispute whether particular talks counted, so note the dates and get advice before treating the extra time as available. See how long after separation you can claim assets.
Children and support in brief
Parenting decisions rest on the child’s best interests alone (see the best interests test and co-parenting). Child support follows the Federal Child Support Guidelines, based on the paying parent’s income and the number of children; the hard part is often what that income really is. For spousal support, entitlement comes first; the Spousal Support Advisory Guidelines then often guide amount and duration. See child support and spousal support.
Agreements
Many Port Coquitlam families never need either courtroom. A separation agreement can settle most issues, and a marriage or cohabitation agreement can decide them ahead of time. Complete disclosure and separate advice for each side make an agreement much harder to overturn; see challenging a BC marriage agreement.
Who you will work with
- Judith A. Janzen, principal lawyer and leader of the family law practice, called to the BC bar in 2000; she and Candace Cho, KC joined forces in 2012.
- Rupinder Shoker, associate counsel (2011), with appearances in the Provincial Court, the Supreme Court and the Court of Appeal.
- Susan Kim, associate counsel (2000), who also acts in estate litigation and speaks Korean.
- Rasjovan Dale, associate counsel (2018), in English or Punjabi.
- Katya Richardson, associate counsel, who also accepts limited-scope (unbundled) retainers.
- Mason Heller and Shivleen Sidhu, associate lawyers (2019); Shivleen speaks Punjabi.
- Louisa Ledesma, associate lawyer, who works in Tagalog and conversational Mandarin as well as English.
The full list is on our team page.
Common questions
Is a Port Coquitlam family’s case always heard on Mary Hill Road?
In Provincial Court, usually, if the children live mainly in Port Coquitlam and no case exists elsewhere; an existing file or a child living mainly in another city can point to a different registry. In Supreme Court, the address is not decisive: the place of trial is whatever the notice of family claim states, New Westminster is also open, and a judge can later change the place of trial or transfer the file.
Do I have to go through the Family Justice Centre before applying?
For most Provincial Court applications in Port Coquitlam, yes, unless an exception applies. Protection orders, priority parenting matters, relocation, consent, case management and enforcement orders do not need the steps, and the rules list situations in which the assessor may waive the parenting program or the mediation session.
Are Supreme Court chambers applications heard in Port Coquitlam?
The court posts a Port Coquitlam chambers schedule, but dates and booking rules change. Check with Supreme Court Scheduling before relying on a date.
How do I book a consultation, and what will it cost?
Phone (604) 900-2538 or use the contact page, and ask about the cost of a first meeting when you book. Family files at Onyx are billed hourly.
