Court orders cannot be ignored or disobeyed, and complying with a court order is not optional. In a recent case, an Ontario court considered whether or not the mother of a young child was in contempt for refusing to grant access to the child’s paternal grandmother in accordance with a previous order. What Happened? The …
Read MoreAn Ontario court recently dismissed a same-sex parent’s application for temporary access. What Happened? The parties, S and H, were both 18 years old. They had an intermittent, same-sex romantic relationship since at least 2014. S became pregnant with a child while she was in a relationship with her then boyfriend. The child was …
Read MoreIn a recent Ontario case, the court considered the interesting question of whether parental consent is required for, and whether a parent is entitled to notice of, an application to adopt an adult. What Happened? The adult child, D, was born in October 1991. D had a mother and a stepfather. He had not …
Read MoreIn a recent Ontario case, the court had to determine whether a father should have interim custody of his two children or whether the children should continue to live with their grandparents. The Facts The parties were married in November 2010 and separated in November 2016. They had two children, born in 2011 and …
Read MoreA Nova Scotia court recently explored a dispute between two divorced parents, in which the father claimed that the mother had forged his signature on a government form and changed the last name of their child without his permission. The Name Change: What Happened? The child in question was born in 2009. At the time, …
Read MoreThe Ontario Court of Appeal recently upheld the dismissal of a claim filed by a man who sued his former sexual partner after she became pregnant with his child. The man had alleged that the woman had deprived him of being able to choose when to have a child and wanted more than $4 million …
Read MoreA Manitoba Court recently examined the relationship between mental illness and parenting when it was asked to rule on the issue of custody with respect to the children of a divorced couple who were dealing with the mother’s Delusional Disorder diagnosis and the father’s violent temper. In Ulloa v. Ulloa, the parties each took the position that the …
Read MoreWe recently highlighted a CBCNews article that discussed the plight of grandparents who have been denied access to their grandchildren after the separation or divorce of their child. An estimated 75,000 Ontario grandparents have been denied access to about 112,000 children. A private member’s bill that aims to ensure courts give grandparents a chance to make their case …
Read MoreThe term “co-parenting” generally refers to a situation where two parents work together to raise a child even though they are divorced, separated or no longer living together. Co-parenting can be very challenging, even when there is little or no acrimony between the parents. Managing a child’s appointments, activities, schooling, health, chores, playdates, etc. under one …
Read MoreCherished fathers will be celebrated and pampered this coming weekend. Hugs, cakes, and coupons for lawn-mowing will rule the day on Sunday, June 19th. But, what about stepfathers? And, what about stepfamilies (or “blended” families) in general? In what way are special days like Father’s Day different for them? Is there a special day just for …
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