What Is a Consent Order and How Do I Get One After Mediation in BC?
This answer covers the law of British Columbia.
A consent order is a court order that records terms you and the other person have already agreed on. A court may incorporate all or part of a written agreement into an order. Where the agreement and a later order differ, the order replaces the part of the agreement that provides differently.
In the Supreme Court, you file a requisition in Form F29, a draft order in Form F33 and evidence of consent. Applications for a consent order are exempt from the judicial case conference requirement. In the Provincial Court, you apply in Form 17 with a draft consent order in Form 18 signed by the parties or their lawyers. A judge may approve and sign without attendance, ask for more information, change the draft with your consent, or reject it with reasons.
Parenting-arrangements agreements stay open to review: the court must set aside or replace all or part of one if satisfied it is not in the child's best interests. Whether a consent order or a filed agreement suits you depends on the terms, so a lawyer can confirm which route fits.
Key takeaways
- A court may incorporate all or part of a written agreement into an order, and the order replaces any part of the agreement that provides differently.
- In the Supreme Court you file a requisition in Form F29, a draft order in Form F33 and evidence of consent.
- In the Provincial Court you apply in Form 17 with a draft consent order in Form 18 signed by the parties or their lawyers.
- A court must set aside or replace all or part of a parenting-arrangements agreement if it is satisfied the agreement is not in the child's best interests.