When a couple agrees to separate or divorce in Ontario, one of the most important issues to be decided is each person’s custody and access rights with respect to their children (now referred to as decision-making responsibility and parenting time). These arrangements can have a tremendous impact on children’s well-being. In addition, custody decisions may also end up influencing spousal support, child support and division of property.
For these reasons, it is beneficial to seek legal advice about custody and access arrangements early on in the process of separation to ensure you understand your obligations and to protect your legal rights.
At Gelman & Associates, our Toronto child custody and access lawyers provide effective legal representation during legal disputes, tailored to the individual needs of the client. We strive to empower parents to make informed decisions, while also litigating firmly when required.
To find out how we may be able to help you today, call us at (844) 736-0200 or contact us online.
Custody vs. Decision-Making Responsibility: New Terminology in Ontario
In everyday language, many parents still speak about “custody” and “access.” However, family law in Ontario, under the federal Divorce Act, now uses updated terms:
- Decision-making responsibility instead of “custody”, which refers to the right to make significant decisions about a child’s life, including health, education, and religion.
- Parenting time instead of “access”, which refers to the time a child spends in the care of a parent or other person, and usually includes the right to receive information about the child’s well-being.
These changes, introduced through the Moving Ontario Family Law Forward Act, 2020, are designed to reduce conflict and focus everyone on the child’s best interests.
Our Toronto custody lawyers will help you understand how the traditional language you may be familiar with maps onto this newer terminology, so you can navigate forms, court documents, and negotiations with confidence.
Types of Parenting Arrangements Common in Ontario
No single parenting arrangement is right for every family. Courts and lawyers primarily focus on the best interests of the child when determining final court orders. They will look at factors such as safety, stability, the child’s relationships, and their own views and wishes to come to a decision.
Some common arrangements for separated couples who share children include:
- Sole decision-making responsibility, with parenting time afforded to the other parent
- Joint decision-making responsibility, with varying parenting time schedules and parenting plans, including week-on / week-off or 2-2-3 schedules
- Primary residence with one parent and regular parenting time with the other
- Parallel parenting or more structured regimes for high-conflict cases
- Contact orders obtained through the court for non-parents, such as grandparents, where appropriate
Our Toronto child custody and access lawyers can help you work out detailed parenting plans that cover holidays, travel, communication, dispute-resolution mechanisms, and more, so that expectations are clear for everyone after your separation.
How Do Courts Decide Parenting Arrangements?
In Ontario, any decision about parenting must be based on the best interests of the child. The law does not automatically favour one parent over the other based on gender, income, or marital status. Instead, courts look carefully at the circumstances of the child and the family.
Judges consider a wide range of factors. For example, they may look at the child’s physical, emotional, and psychological safety and well-being, including the stability of each proposed home and the ability of each parent to meet day-to-day needs.
They might also examine the strength and quality of the child’s relationships with each parent, with siblings, and with other important people such as grandparents or extended family members. They assess each parent’s willingness to support the child’s relationship with the other parent, because cooperation on basic parenting issues is almost always in the child’s best interests.
If there is any history of family violence or abuse, the court must weigh this very carefully and may need to put additional protections in place to keep the child and the non-abusive parent safe. This can influence decision-making responsibility and parenting time in the long-run.
When children are old enough and mature enough to express their own views and preferences, the court may take those wishes into account, often with the assistance of tools such as assessments or reports through the Office of the Children’s Lawyer. The goal is not to make children choose between parents, but to ensure their voices are heard in an age-appropriate way.
Our Toronto child custody and access lawyers can help you understand which factors are likely to carry the most weight in your situation and how to present your position in a way that is clear, child-focused, and supported by evidence.
Creating Parenting Plans After Separation
A parenting order or agreement does more than simply state that parenting time is “shared” or that one parent has “primary” time. Effective arrangements should address the details that affect your children every day. A parenting plan may set out:
- Where the children will be on weekdays and weekends
- How holidays and school breaks are divided
- How special occasions, such as birthdays or religious celebrations, will be handled
- Provisions about travel outside Ontario or outside Canada
- How and when children can speak to the other parent by phone or video
- How parents will share information about school, health, and extracurricular activities
- And much more
In many families, parents also choose to include a method for resolving future disagreements about the parenting plan. For example, you might agree that if a dispute arises, you will first try to talk directly, then use mediation with a neutral third party, and only go to court as a last resort. Building these ideas into a written parenting plan can reduce misunderstandings, lower conflict, and make the arrangement more durable over time.
At Gelman & Associates, our child custody lawyers in Toronto work closely with parents to draft parenting plans that are specific enough to give clarity but flexible enough to handle the normal changes that occur as children grow older. We can also review an existing agreement or draft proposal from the other parent, explain the legal and practical implications, and suggest changes so the plan better reflects your child’s needs.
How to Resolve Child Custody and Access Disputes in Toronto
Alternative Dispute Resolution Methods
Not every parenting dispute has to be decided by a judge. Many parents are able to reach parenting agreements through negotiation, mediation, or other forms of alternative dispute resolution. For some families, this can be faster, less expensive, and less stressful than going to court, particularly when both parents are committed to focusing on their children’s best interests.
Our Toronto child custody and access lawyers can negotiate on your behalf in these circumstances. We can either support you in mediation or guide you through collaborative approaches if they are appropriate in your circumstances.
Court Orders
In other situations, court involvement is necessary. This may be the case where there are:
- Serious safety concerns
- Allegations of abuse or domestic violence
- Entrenched high conflict
- A history of one parent refusing to follow previous agreements or orders
- And other difficult situations
In these cases, we are prepared to bring or respond to applications in both the Ontario Court of Justice and the Superior Court of Justice. We prepare thorough court materials, marshal the evidence needed to support your position, and present your case in a clear and persuasive way.
Whether your matter is resolved inside or outside the courtroom, we keep you informed at every step. Our role is to provide you with realistic advice and to pursue options that align with both your goals and your child’s well-being.
How to Change or Enforce Existing Parenting Orders
Parenting arrangements are not always static. As children grow older, move schools, develop new activities, or as parents’ work schedules change, existing orders or agreements may need to be updated. This is often referred to as a variation.
Ontario law allows for changes when there has been a material change in circumstances that affects the child, such as a significant move, a shift in parenting capacity, or new information about the child’s needs.
If you and the other parent are able to agree on new arrangements, you may be able to update your parenting plan through a new separation agreement or a consent court order. If agreement is not possible, you may need to ask the court to vary an existing order. Our Toronto child custody and access lawyers can help you assess whether the change you are seeking is likely to meet the legal test for variation and assist you in gathering the necessary evidence to support your request.
Unfortunately, there are also situations where one parent does not comply with an existing order or agreement. For example, they might consistently deny another parent the parenting time which they are entitled to legally, withhold information about the child, or refuse to return the child when required to do so. In those cases, it may be necessary to use enforcement options through the courts.
We can advise you on the remedies that may be available in difficult situations, such as police enforcement clauses, contempt proceedings in serious situations, or adjustments to the parenting schedule, always keeping the focus on the child’s safety and best interests.
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Contact Our Child Custody and Access Lawyers in Toronto
Contact Gelman & Associates today to learn how our knowledgeable Toronto child custody lawyers can protect your rights. We strive to provide you with the information and resources necessary to make informed decisions about family law matters. To help you maintain positive mental health during a difficult period, we also offer our clients a free consultation with a psychological professional.
Conveniently located in six offices throughout Ontario, our legal services are easily accessible by transit and off-highway. To remain available to clients and prospective clients, our phone lines are open Monday to Friday from 8 AM to 8 PM. Call us at (844) 736-0200 or contact us online to schedule your initial consultation today.
