Family Law in Lindsay and Kawartha Lakes: Court and Process

If you live in Lindsay or elsewhere in Kawartha Lakes and your relationship is ending, you may be wondering whether you have to travel for court, and what actually happens once a case begins. The answers depend on what you are asking the court to decide.

This article walks through where family matters are heard, how the rules differ depending on your relationship, who else can apply about children, and what happens if support goes unpaid. It is general information and a lawyer can confirm how it applies to your facts.

Where family cases are heard for Lindsay residents

Lindsay is one of the 25 locations where the Family Court Branch of the Superior Court of Justice sits, and residents of those locations go to their local Family Court Branch. It is the only court in Ontario that can hear all types of family law cases.

The Ontario Court of Justice also hears some family matters, but it is narrower. It hears parenting, child and spousal support, and enforcement of support, but not divorce or property division. The Superior Court of Justice hears divorce, division of family property, claims about the family home, trust and unjust enrichment claims, parenting time and decision-making, and child and spousal support.

A family case usually starts in the municipality where you or your spouse lives, and parenting matters may instead start where the children live. Kawartha Lakes covers a large area, so if you are not sure which office applies, call the family court office in your area.

Married or common-law: the property question

Married spouses must generally split property acquired during the marriage equally when it ends, and the family home is shared at full value even if owned before the marriage, gifted or inherited. Equalization is the larger net amount minus the smaller, divided by two.

Common-law couples are not legally required to split property acquired while they lived together. A partner who contributed to property the other owns may have a right to part of it and may need to go to court to recover that contribution.

If you want a court to decide an equalization payment, you must apply within six years from the day of separation or two years from the day the divorce is final, whichever comes first.

Grandparents and other non-parents

Families in smaller communities often include grandparents who are closely involved. Non-parents, such as grandparents, may apply for a parenting order (decision-making responsibility) or a contact order. Parents apply for parenting time, and only non-parents apply for a contact order.

A non-parent applying for decision-making responsibility must file extra documents, including a Children's Aid Society report and a police record check. Parents apply using Form 8, Form 35.1 and, if relevant, Form 35.1A. In every case, the judge must make the order that is in the children's best interests.

When support is not paid

Once a support order is in place, the Family Responsibility Office (FRO) can enforce it. The tools include the following.

• Bank garnishment: up to 100% of arrears in a sole account, while joint accounts are limited to 50% and held for 30 days.
• Federal deductions: up to 50% of EI or CPP-type income and up to 100% of tax refunds.
• Credit bureau reporting after more than 60 days without payment and a 15-day notice, which stays on the record for six years.
• Driver's licence suspension, federal licence or passport suspension, property liens and writs of seizure and sale.
• Reporting to a professional body, and seizure of a lottery prize over $1,000.

FRO may charge a $400 administrative fee if it takes enforcement action. A default hearing notice gives 10 days to act, and a judge can order payment plans, change the support order, or order jail time.

If FRO gets something wrong, act quickly. Contact FRO right away if you miss a notice deadline, and notify it of any name change. If a writ was filed against you by mistake because someone has the same name, you can submit the confirmation of identity letter request form, and review takes about five business days. FRO can be reached at 416-326-1817 or 1-800-267-4330, Monday to Friday, 8:00 a.m. to 5:00 p.m..

What to do next

• Decide which issues are in play: parenting, support, property, divorce, or several of these.
• Confirm whether you were married or common-law.
• Collect financial records, including income, debts and property details.
• If you are a grandparent or other non-parent, ask a lawyer about the extra documents the court requires.
• Call the family court office in your area to confirm where to file.
• If you pay or receive support, keep your own records and contact FRO promptly about errors.

Frequently asked questions