What happens if someone breaches a restraining order while a family court case is still ongoing?

Breaching a restraining order is a criminal offence, regardless of whether the underlying family court case is still ongoing — it can be reported to police, who can investigate and lay charges separately from whatever is happening in the family proceeding. The family case and any resulting criminal charge run on separate tracks: a breach doesn't automatically resolve the family case, but it is generally significant evidence in it, since it speaks directly to the risk the original order was meant to address and can affect decisions about parenting time and decision-making responsibility.

Someone who experiences a breach should document what happened as soon as possible, report it to police, and let their family lawyer know promptly, since the breach may support bringing the family matter back before the court quickly, including on an urgent basis if the safety concern is ongoing. Waiting to see how the criminal process unfolds before addressing the family court side of things isn't usually the right approach, since the family court doesn't need a criminal conviction before responding to evidence of a breach.