Legal Insights

The following is a list of things we encourage litigants to keep in mind prior to a Zoom court appearance. This list is for guidance only and is not exhaustive. The directions of the presiding judge should always be followed. A litigant's role - Your lawyer, if any, will speak with the judge on your behalf. Please remain silent throughout the proceeding unless the judge or your lawyer speaks to you. If you address a judge in the Superior Court of Justice, call the judge “Your Honour”, “Mister/Madam Justice (last name)”. If you are called to speak, speak slowly and clearly. Be sure to say your name before you start speaking. While speaking, look into your camera lens. This gives the other participants direct eye contact with you. Do not look at the person to whom you are speaking. Communicating with your lawyer - If you need to tell you lawyer something while court is in session, e-mail your comment(s) to them. Please do not try and get their attention as this is distracting to the judge. Setting - Find an appropriate space to conduct the video conference. Do your best to participate from a private, quiet space. Find a...

Family law cases in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice (Family Branch), the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, and the Ontario Court of Justice are governed by the Family Law Rules (Family Law Rules, Rule 1(2)). Rule 2(2) of the Family Law Rules outlines that the primary objective of these Rules is to "enable the court to deal with cases justly." Dealing with a case justly includes: Ensuring that the procedure is fair to all of the parties; Saving expense and time; Dealing with the case in ways appropriate to its importance and complexity; and, Giving appropriate court resources to the case while taking account of the need to offer resources to other cases. Rule 2 continues that judges must "promote the primary objective by active management of cases," including helping parties identify the issues, encouraging alternative dispute resolution, helping parties to settle, setting timetables, and controlling the progress of a case. Under the Family Law Rules, cases are started by an Application if there has never been an order made on the issues before the court. If a previous court order has been made on the issues before the court, they are started by Notice of Motion to Vary. According...

A person starting an Ontario family law case files a document called an Application. The person in an Ontario family law case who is making the claim is, therefore, referred to as the Applicant. An Application in an Ontario family law case may contain a claim against more than one person and more than one claim against the same person. The Applicant in an Ontario family law case seeks relief from the court by checking off one or more boxes under the applicable legislation. The form requires the Applicant to set out the grounds for his/her claim(s). The Application in an Ontario family law case must be served on every other party by "special service" unless otherwise provided. Special service is carried out by: Leaving a copy with the opposing party, who is called the Respondent; Note: If the person is or appears to be mentally incapable in respect of an issue in the case, then one can leave a copy with the person and with the guardian of the person’s property or, if none, with the Public Guardian and Trustee. If the person is a child, then one can leave a copy with the child and with the child’s lawyer, if any. If the person...

The key steps in a typical matrimonial lawsuit under the Family Law Rules are: the application, answer, case conference(s), motion(s), settlement conference, trial management conference, trial, and appeal. In Ontario, three courts deal with family law matters: The Family Court branch of the Superior Court of Justice; The Superior Court of Justice; and, The Ontario Court of Justice. The Family Court of the Superior Court of Justice (also called the Superior Court of Justice or Family Court) is a specialized court dealing with all aspects of family law. These courts are located throughout Canada and provide specialized judges. In areas of Ontario that do not have a Family Law Court of the Superior Court of Justice, the Superior Court of Justice is the court of superior jurisdiction. In the realm of family law, this court deals with the following issues: property, divorce, custody, access, and support. The Ontario Court of Justice deals with custody, access, support, child protection, and adoption. This court does not deal with divorce or property issues.

When an Application is filed in the Superior Court of Justice or the Family Court of the Superior Court of Justice, whether a court date is set depends on whether the case is standard track or fast track. Applications that contain a claim for divorce or property are standard track, whereas all other cases are fast track. In a case that is standard track, the court clerk does not automatically set a court date when the Application is filed. The Applicant generally waits until the Respondent has been served with an Application and until after he or she has filed an Answer before booking the next step (being a case conference). Generally, an Applicant may obtain a case conference date when the Application is filed by serving and filing a Conference Notice (Form 17). In the Ontario Court of Justice, the first court date or the First Appearance Court (FAC) is always held before a court clerk who, among other duties: Confirms that all of the required documentation have, in fact, been served and filed; If an Answer has been filed, confirms that the case is ready for a hearing, case conference, or settlement conference and thereafter schedules it; and, If an Answer has not been filed,...