What does the Office of the Children's Lawyer do in an Ontario parenting case?

The Office of the Children's Lawyer (OCL) is an independent law office in Ontario's Ministry of the Attorney General. In a court dispute over parenting time, contact or decision-making responsibility, a judge can ask it to step in, and if it accepts the case it may give the child a lawyer, assign a clinician (usually a social worker) to investigate and report, or both. It does not decide the case: the judge does.

Parents often first hear about the OCL at a case conference, when a judge says the court "may involve the Children's Lawyer". This guide explains what that means for your child, the steps from the court order to the report, the reasons the OCL declines cases, and what you can do if you disagree with what it tells the court. For the wider picture of how judges decide parenting arrangements, see our main page on parenting decision-making in Ontario.

What can the OCL provide in a parenting case?

The OCL's family law work is limited to cases about parenting time, contact and decision-making responsibility that are already before a court. According to the Ministry, it offers four kinds of help, and the court order says which one is being requested.

The legal basis is the Courts of Justice Act. Section 89(3.1) lets the Children's Lawyer act as the legal representative of a child at a court's request. Section 112 lets the Children's Lawyer investigate parenting issues, meet the child to learn their views and preferences, and report to the court with recommendations, either on its own initiative, at the request of a court, or at the request of any person.

How does a case get to the OCL, step by step?

A Voice of the Child request runs faster. The intake form is due within one business day of the order, and court staff can send it with the order if you complete it before leaving the courthouse. Once a clinician is assigned, the child has two interviews on separate days, and the report goes to the court and the parties within 30 days.

The intake form does not need to be filled in by a lawyer. The Ministry asks parents to answer every question, write "not applicable" where a question does not fit, keep answers short, and include a mailing address, email and phone number. It also asks parents not to call to find out when a decision will be made.

What happens once a clinician investigates?

For a full Children's Lawyer Report, the clinician meets each parent, usually for about an hour and a half, meets the child as often as needed, and observes the child with each parent, normally first in the child's main home. If parenting time already happens at a supervised access centre, the observation visit takes place there. The clinician asks you to sign release forms so they can speak with teachers, doctors and daycare staff, and may also speak with a few family members or friends who know the child well.

Three points surprise many parents. First, what you, the child or anyone else tells the clinician is not confidential, except in very special circumstances, and it may appear in the report. Second, once a report is filed it can be reviewed by members of the public unless the court restricts access. Third, the clinician will not ask the child which parent they want to live with or ask them to choose sides. At the end, the clinician may hold a disclosure meeting to summarize what they learned and their recommendations, which sometimes helps parents settle.

For families who speak Persian at home, it is worth knowing that the Ministry says third parties should not sit in on parent interviews except in special circumstances, such as helping with translation. If you would be more comfortable explaining your family's history in Farsi, raise it with the clinician when they first contact you.

What changes the answer?

Whether the OCL gets involved, and how much weight its work carries, depends on several factors set out in its own policies and in the statutes:

• Whether the OCL accepts the case. It may decline if the child lives outside Ontario, if a parenting assessment was completed in the past year or another is pending, if support or property is the real focus and the parenting arrangement has been stable, if both parents still live in the matrimonial home, if a children's aid society is investigating, or if the main purpose is to gather evidence for the litigation. A declined party may write to ask the OCL to reconsider.
• The child's age and maturity. Under the Divorce Act (s. 16(3)(e)) and the Children's Law Reform Act (s. 24(3)(e)), the court considers the child's views and preferences, giving due weight to the child's age and maturity, unless they cannot be ascertained.
• Safety concerns. The child's physical, emotional and psychological safety, security and well-being is the primary consideration (Divorce Act, s. 16(2); CLRA, s. 24(2)). Where violence is alleged, see how family violence affects parenting decisions in Ontario.
• A judge's own interview. A judge may interview the child directly; the interview is recorded and the child may have their lawyer present (CLRA, s. 64).
• A private assessment instead. Under CLRA section 30, a court can appoint a professional to assess the child's needs. The parties pay that person's fees in shares the court sets, the court can relieve a party facing serious financial hardship, and refusing to attend can lead the court to draw inferences.

What if you disagree with the report?

Rule 21 of the Family Law Rules sets the timeline once the OCL serves notice that it will investigate and report:

• from that point, you must serve the OCL with every document in the case about parenting, contact, support or education of the child;
• the OCL must serve and file its report within 90 days after serving its notice;
• you have 30 days after being served with the report to serve and file a statement disputing anything in it;
• no trial and no final order can happen until those 30 days pass, unless the parties give up that time in writing.

If a party disputes the facts in the report, the court can direct the OCL to attend the hearing and bring the person who did the investigation as a witness (Courts of Justice Act, s. 112(7)). Your lawyer may cross-examine the clinician at trial, or before trial at a special examiner's office. The report and the affidavit verifying it form part of the evidence, but the judge makes the final decision.

A worked example

For example, imagine two parents in Willowdale who separated last year, with a nine-year-old and a fourteen-year-old. The father, who moved to Toronto from Tehran, says the children want more time with him; the mother disagrees. Their case is at the Ontario Court of Justice at 47 Sheppard Avenue East. At the case conference, the judge orders a request for the OCL's involvement. Within 14 days, each parent sends a separate intake form. Several weeks later, the OCL accepts the case and assigns a lawyer for the older child and a clinician for the younger one.

The lawyer meets the fourteen-year-old a few times and tells the court the teenager's position. The clinician interviews both parents, observes each home, speaks with the school and files a report with recommendations. The father thinks the report misstates when he moved out, so within 30 days of being served he serves and files a statement disputing that part. The judge then decides parenting time, weighing the report, the teenager's views and everything else in evidence. This is a hypothetical illustration of the process, not a prediction of any outcome. For how that courthouse works, see our page on the North York family court at 47 Sheppard.

What mistakes do parents make with the OCL?

1. Missing the 14-day intake deadline, or sending one joint form instead of one per party.
2. Refusing to sign release forms. The OCL may end its involvement or ask the court for an order to get the information.
3. Coaching the child. You cannot be present at the child's interview, and what the child tells the clinician is not kept confidential.
4. Treating the clinician as an advocate. The OCL does not give parents legal advice and does not decide what is in the child's best interests.
5. Letting the 30-day dispute window pass after the report is served, then trying to challenge it at trial.
6. Sending recordings or messages to the clinician only. The Ministry says anything you give the clinician, such as texts or emails, must also go to the other party or their lawyer.

What to do this week

1. Read the court order carefully: note which OCL service is requested and who must send the order.
2. Diarize 14 days from the order for your intake form (or one business day for a Voice of the Child request).
3. List the people who know your child well: teachers, the family doctor, daycare staff, coaches.
4. Collect school records and any medical information the clinician may ask about.
5. Decide whether you need help in Persian or French during interviews, and say so early.
6. Talk to a lawyer about your position before the clinician's first call.

Frequently asked questions

Does the OCL charge parents for its services?

The OCL's public pages do not describe a charge to parents for its family law services. A private assessment ordered under section 30 of the Children's Law Reform Act is different: the court requires the parties to pay the assessor's fees and expenses.

Can the OCL get involved before a court case starts?

Not in a family parenting dispute. The OCL says it does not get involved before a case goes to court, except in some child protection, civil and estates matters.

Will the OCL tell the judge what my child wants?

An OCL lawyer generally takes a position consistent with the child's views and preferences. A clinician writing a Children's Lawyer Report recommends what they believe is in the child's best interests, which may or may not match what the child wants.

How long does a full report take?

The Ministry says the investigation takes about 90 to 120 days once the clinician contacts you. Rule 21 of the Family Law Rules requires the OCL to serve and file the report within 90 days after it serves its notice.

Can my child talk to the clinician in Farsi?

The Ministry's pages do not promise a clinician who speaks a particular language, but they do recognize translation as a special circumstance for interviews. Raise language needs with the clinician as early as possible.

What if the OCL declines our case?

The case returns to court at the next appearance. You may send the OCL a letter asking it to reconsider, explaining why it should be involved and what has changed, with a copy to the other side. A judge can also consider a private assessment under section 30 of the Children's Law Reform Act.

Is the report public?

Once filed, a report can be reviewed by members of the public unless the court orders that access to the file or the report is restricted. If privacy matters to your family, ask your lawyer about a restriction order.

Related questions about children and parenting

Whatever route your case takes, the judge sets the final arrangement, which may include conditions such as supervised parenting time. For schedules and day-to-day arrangements, read our page on parenting time. Families worried about travel can read whether a parent can take a child to Iran or abroad without consent. If your case is still at the start, our guide to which Toronto family court handles your case explains where it will be heard. York Region families can read how York Region family cases work.

Sarbazevatan Law helps parents in Toronto, Thornhill and Richmond Hill with parenting cases, including cases where a judge is asked to involve the OCL. Consultations are available in English, Persian (Farsi) and French. Call +1 (416) 628-2041 or write to us through the contact page.