The Child-centred Family Justice Strategy: Baseline Information from Family Law Practitioners

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Presented to:
Family, Children and Youth Section
Department of Justice Canada

The views expressed in this report are those of the authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the Department of Justice Canada or the Canadian Research Institute for Law and the Family.

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This report may be reproduced, in part or in whole, and by any means, without charge or further permission from the Department of Justice Canada, provided that due diligence is exercised in ensuring the accuracy of the materials reproduced; that the Department of Justice Canada is identified as the source department; and that the reproduction is not represented as an official version of the original report.

©  Her Majesty the Queen in Right of Canada,
 represented by the Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada, 2005

Table of Contents

• Executive Summary
• Acknowledgements
• 1.0  Introduction
  • 1.1  Purpose of the Project
  • 1.2  Methodology
  • 1.3  Limitations
• 2.0  Survey on the Practice of Family Law in Canada
  • 2.1  Demographics of Survey Respondents
  • 2.2  Case Characteristics
  • 2.3  Services
  • 2.4  Best Interest Criteria
  • 2.5  Child Representation
  • 2.6  Custody and Access
  • 2.7  Federal Child Support Guidelines
  • 2.8  Spousal Support
  • 2.9  Family Violence
  • 2.10 General Comments
• 3.0  Workshops
  • 3.1  Parenting Arrangements
  • 3.2  Family Violence
• 4.0  Summary and Conclusions
  • 4.1  Summary of Survey and Workshop Findings
  • 4.2  Conclusions
• Appendix A Advisory Committee Membership
• Appendix B Survey on the Practice of Family Law in Canada

List of Tables

• Table 2.1
  Respondents' Continuing Education or Training on Family Law Issues in the Past Five Years
• Table 2.2
  Characteristics of Respondents' Family Law Cases in the Past Year
• Table 2.3
  Proportion of Respondents' Cases in the Past Year Resolved by Various Methods
• Table 2.4
  Respondents' Reports as to Which Issues in Divorce and Variation Cases are Most Likely to Require a Trial and Judicial Decision to be Resolved
• Table 2.5
  Respondents' Perceptions of How Well Informed Their Clients are at the Outset of Their Case
• Table 2.6
  Respondents' Reports of How Often They Inform Clients About or Refer Clients to Various Family Justice Services
• Table 2.7
  Extent to Which Respondents Agree that Unified Family Courts Accomplish Specific Objectives
• Table 2.8
  Respondents' Perceptions of Whether Parenting Arrangements Made Through Specific Processes are Consistent with the Best Interests of the Child
• Table 2.9
  Respondents' Perceptions of How Often Parents Share Decision Making in Specific Areas
• Table 2.10
  Respondents' Perceptions of What the Circumstances are When Parents do not Comply with their Custody/Access Orders and How Frequently it Occurs
• Table 2.11
  Proportion of Respondents Recommending Supervised Access or Exchange Under Various Circumstances
• Table 2.12
  Respondents' Perceptions of How Often Specific Reasons are Given in Cases Where Parental Relocation is an Issue
• Table 2.13
  Respondents' Perceptions of What the Circumstances are in Cases Where Parental Relocation is an Issue and How Frequently it Occurs
• Table 2.14
  Respondents' Opinions Regarding Objectives of the Federal Child Support … Guidelines
• Table 2.15
  Respondents' Perceptions of What the Circumstances are in Cases Where Spousal Support is an Issue and How Frequently it Occurs
• Table 2.16
  Respondents' Reports on How the Court Addressed the Issue in Cases Involving Spousal Violence and How Frequently it Occurred
• Table 2.17
  Respondents' Reports on How the Court Addressed the Issue in Cases Involving Child Abuse and How Frequently it Occurred

List of Figures

• Figure 2.1
  Percentage of Respondents from Each Province or Territory
• Figure 2.2
  Respondents' Views on How Much Weight Should be Given to the Preference of Children at Specified Age Ranges

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