Whether you are going through a divorce or separation, the safety and well-being of a child is often at the forefront of a parent’s mind. That’s why it is important to ensure that you have all the necessary information and guidance in order to prioritize the best interest of the child. Our law office is committed to making sure you are aware of your rights and protecting your parenting time and decision-making responsibility rights.
DECISION-MAKING RESPONSIBILITY
Joint decision-making is when both parents have the right to make major decisions concerning the child’s health, education, and upbringing and are usually expected to do so together.
Joint decision-making responsibility allows both parents to share the right to make important decisions about their care and they both remain involved in making decisions about the children.
For joint decision-making responsibility to work, parents must be able to co-operate and communicate with each other even though they are not together.
PARENTING TIME
If one parent has sole decision-making responsibility, that parent will exercise all powers as the legal guardian of that child. The non-decision-making parent, who may have parenting time with the child, will not have the right to participate or be involved in major decisions affecting the child’s welfare and development. A non-decision making parent, may, in times of emergency or when the decision-making parent is not available, exercise some limited decision-making responsibilities.
4 Types Of Decision-Making Responsibility
01
JOINT
DECISION-MAKING RESPONSIBILITY
Joint decision-making is when both parents have the right to make major decisions concerning the child’s health, education, and upbringing and are usually expected to do so together.
Joint decision-making responsibility allows both parents to share the right to make important decisions about their care and they both remain involved in making decisions about the children.
For joint decision-making responsibility to work, parents must be able to co-operate and communicate with each other even though they are not together.
02
SOLE
DECISION-MAKING RESPONSIBILITY
If one parent has sole decision-making responsibility, that parent will exercise all powers as the legal guardian of that child. The non-decision-making parent, who may have parenting time with the child, will not have the right to participate or be involved in major decisions affecting the child’s welfare and development. A non-decision making parent, may, in times of emergency or when the decision-making parent is not available, exercise some limited decision-making responsibilities.
03
SPLIT
DECISION-MAKING RESPONSIBILITY
Split decision-making responsibility is not that common but can exist in scenarios where more than one child is involved, and each one lives with a different parent. This type of decision-making responsibility tends to be very rare and only arises in situations where it would be beneficial that the children are separated from one another.
04
SHARED
DECISION-MAKING RESPONSIBILITY
Shared decision-making responsibility is most concerned with the amount of time a child spends with each parent and is paramount to determining child support. When a child spends at least 40% of their time with one parent, that parent is entitled to ask for child support.
Various factors can be considered when determining whether a parent has met the 40% threshold and is entitled to seek child support. For example, in some scenarios overnights can be used to calculate time, while in others, time is calculated based on the number of hours spent with the child.
Child Support
After the decision to divorce or separate has been made and issues regarding decision-making responsibility and parenting time are resolved, the next step is determining if either parent is entitled to child support.
Typically, the parent primarily responsible for the child tends to incur the most costs and daily expenses. As a result, the other parent may have to compensate the primary caregiver to lessen the burden the other parent has to incur.
Calculating Child Support
Parents are typically responsible for any dependent children they may have and may be required to financially support them until the child turns 18 or longer. Child support is calculated using the Child Support Guidelines and the child support tables. Factors typically considered to determine child support include clothing, groceries, and school supplies. The gross annual income of the payor parent and the number of dependent children they have to support are used to determine child support.
Child Protection
The best interests of the child are paramount in any family law case. Ontario’s Children’s Aid Society is an independent organization providing child protection services. In most cases, families work together with the CAS to ensure the safety and well-being of their children. However, this process can be pretty stressful because for CAS to function correctly, the parent’s ability to take care of and meet the child’s basic needs is questioned.
To ensure the best interests and safety of the child, the CAS will assign a social worker to the family. Society can start court proceedings when they believe a child is in a harmful situation. Firstly, CAS will begin a process to determine whether the child needs protection. Under the Child and Family Services Act, the Society has the burden of proving that the child needs protection. Secondly, if they determine that is the case, the court will determine the appropriate disposition or response to ensure the safety and well-being of the child.
The Court can make a variety of dispositions based on the enumerated grounds of the CFSA to determine the appropriate response and plan for the child. The Court’s disposition can vary from placing the child in the care of the Society for a certain period to placing the child in the care of another caretaker to making the child a ward of the Crown.
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