Settlement Conferences in Ontario Family Court: What to Expect

Most Ontario family law cases that head to court are resolved before they ever reach a trial — and a settlement conference is one of the key steps designed to make that happen. If you've been told your case has a settlement conference date, it's worth understanding what the appearance is actually for, because it's a very different experience than the trial many people picture.

A settlement conference is a required step under the Family Law Rules in most contested family court cases, held before a judge — but not the judge who would hear your trial. Its entire purpose is to help you and the other party resolve some or all of the issues in your case without going to trial.

This guide walks through who's in the room, how the conference typically unfolds, and what happens next depending on the outcome.

What a Settlement Conference Is Meant to Accomplish

A settlement conference isn't a hearing where the judge decides your case. Instead, the presiding judge's job is to:

• Help identify which issues are genuinely in dispute, and which aren't
• Explore whether the parties can narrow or resolve some or all of those issues
• Give each side a candid, informal sense of the strengths and weaknesses of their position
• Encourage a settlement that avoids the cost, delay, and uncertainty of a trial

Because the goal is open, practical discussion, what's said at a settlement conference is generally treated as without prejudice — meaning it typically can't be used against you later if the case doesn't settle and proceeds to trial.

Who Attends

Both parties are expected to attend, along with their lawyers if they're represented. The judge presiding over the conference is not the trial judge — a deliberate design choice that lets the judge speak candidly about the case's strengths and weaknesses without that view following you into trial.

Before the Conference: What to Prepare

Courts typically expect both sides to file a settlement conference brief — a short document setting out each party's position, the issues still in dispute, and the outcome they're proposing — before the conference date. Preparing generally means:

• [ ] Reviewing all financial and parenting disclosure exchanged so far, and making sure yours is complete
• [ ] Identifying which issues you're prepared to compromise on, and which matter most to you
• [ ] Preparing, with your lawyer, a settlement conference brief that reflects your current position
• [ ] Thinking through a realistic range of outcomes, not just your ideal result

What Happens During the Conference

1. The judge reviews the materials filed by both sides, including each party's settlement conference brief and the disclosure on file.
2. The judge hears from both parties, usually through their lawyers if represented, about the issues still outstanding and each side's position.
3. The judge offers a candid view of how the issues might be resolved, often including an informal opinion on how a trial judge might see certain aspects of the case.
4. The parties discuss settlement, sometimes with the judge actively involved, sometimes stepping outside the courtroom to negotiate directly.
5. The outcome is recorded — a full or partial settlement, a narrowed list of contested issues, or a referral to the next procedural step if no agreement is reached.

What Can Come Out of It

• A full settlement, resolving every issue in the case
• A partial settlement, resolving some issues while others remain contested
• No settlement, but a narrower, more focused list of what actually needs to go to trial
• Procedural directions from the judge about disclosure gaps or next steps

If You Don't Settle

An unresolved case generally proceeds toward a trial management conference and, eventually, trial. Even a settlement conference that doesn't produce a full agreement is rarely wasted — narrowing the live issues tends to shorten and simplify whatever comes next, and often sets the tone for later negotiation.

Frequently asked questions