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Difference between revisions of "Family Violence in the Family Law Act and the Divorce Act"
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Family Violence in the Family Law Act and the Divorce Act (view source)
Revision as of 21:52, 6 March 2021
, 21:52, 6 March 2021→Family violence and the best interests of the child analysis
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A finding of family violence can greatly impact a court's decision around parenting arrangements and how to allocate parental responsibilities in keeping with the best interests of a child. A court could decide the person responsible for family violence should have no parenting time, supervised parenting time, or no parenting time or responsibilities. | A finding of family violence can greatly impact a court's decision around parenting arrangements and how to allocate parental responsibilities in keeping with the best interests of a child. A court could decide the person responsible for family violence should have no parenting time, supervised parenting time, or no parenting time or responsibilities. | ||
This said, there are cases where the court granted equal parenting even where one parent was responsible for family violence. It is simply impossible to predict what a court will consider to be in the best interests of a child in any particular case as the analysis is very fact specific. | This said, there are cases where the court granted equal parenting even where one parent was responsible for family violence. It is simply impossible to predict what a court will consider to be in the best interests of a child in any particular case as the analysis is very fact-specific. | ||
According to section 37 of the ''[[Family Law Act]]'', when undertaking the best interests analysis, a court must consider, among other things, the following: | According to section 37 of the ''[[Family Law Act]]'', when undertaking the best interests analysis, a court must consider, among other things, the following: | ||
* the impact of any family violence on the child’s safety, security, or well-being, | * the impact of any family violence on the child’s safety, security, or well-being, | ||
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* whether the actions of a person responsible for family violence indicate that the person may be impaired in their ability to care for the child and meet the child’s needs, | * whether the actions of a person responsible for family violence indicate that the person may be impaired in their ability to care for the child and meet the child’s needs, | ||
* the appropriateness of an arrangement that would require the child’s guardians to cooperate on issues affecting the child, and | * the appropriateness of an arrangement that would require the child’s guardians to cooperate on issues affecting the child, and | ||
* any civil or criminal proceeding relevant to the child’s safety, security, or | * any civil or criminal proceeding relevant to the child’s safety, security, or wellbeing. | ||
Where specific facts are important, the evidence you produce is important. As such, if you are asking a court to make an order respecting guardianship, parenting arrangements, or contact with a child and there has been family violence, or if you are defending such an application, it is important to focus on evidence that addresses these factors. | Where specific facts are important, the evidence you produce is important. As such, if you are asking a court to make an order respecting guardianship, parenting arrangements, or contact with a child and there has been family violence, or if you are defending such an application, it is important to focus on evidence that addresses these factors. | ||
<span style="color:#D2691E">'''Important changes'''</span> <br /> | |||
Under the changes to the ''Divorce Act'', judges now have a long list of best-interests factors to take into consideration when making decisions about children. The factors include things like the history of the children's care, the children's views and preferences, each spouse's plan for the care of the children, and the extent to which each spouse will support the children's relationship with the other spouse. Family violence is another important factor, and when family violence is present, the ''Divorce Act'' now includes a list of additional factors for judges to consider, including the nature and frequency of the violence. | |||
==Conduct orders== | ==Conduct orders== | ||