Varying or Cancelling a Restraining Order in Ontario

A restraining order was necessary when it was made. Circumstances change — years pass, contact resumes around a shared child's milestones, or a relationship shifts and the order no longer reflects reality. Whatever the reason, a restraining order doesn't simply fade away because both people have moved on informally; it stays in force, and enforceable, until a court says otherwise.

This article explains how someone — whether the person protected by the order or the person restrained by it — can ask a court to vary (change the terms of) or cancel (end) a family law restraining order in Ontario.

What a Restraining Order Actually Restricts

A family law restraining order typically limits or prohibits contact, communication, or coming within a certain distance of the protected person, and sometimes their home, workplace, or children. It's a civil family court order, separate from any criminal charges that might arise from related conduct, and it remains in effect on its own terms — including any expiry date the original order specifies — until it's varied, cancelled, or it lapses according to its own wording.

Who Can Ask the Court to Change It

Either party can bring the request:

• The protected person may want the order narrowed — for example, to allow limited contact about a shared child — or cancelled entirely.
• The restrained person may want the order lifted, arguing the original grounds no longer apply.

The Legal Test the Court Applies

There's no single rigid formula, but courts generally look at:

• Whether the circumstances that justified the order in the first place have genuinely changed
• Whether there's still a reasonable basis to fear for the protected person's safety, or the safety of any child
• Any history of compliance — or breach — since the order was made
• Whether cancelling or loosening the order would put the protected person or children at renewed risk

The court's focus stays on safety, not on how inconvenient the order has become for the restrained person.

The Process, Step by Step

1. Bring a motion. You ask the same court — or a court with jurisdiction over the existing family case — to vary or cancel the order, following Ontario's Family Law Rules.
2. Serve the other party. The other person named in the order must be given notice and an opportunity to respond; this isn't a decision either side can make unilaterally.
3. File supporting evidence. An affidavit explaining what has changed, and why that change justifies varying or cancelling the order, is central to the motion.
4. Attend the hearing. A judge reviews the evidence from both sides and decides whether to leave the order as-is, narrow it, or cancel it.
5. Get the new order in writing. Any change only takes legal effect once the court issues a new or amended order — an informal agreement between the parties to "ignore" the order doesn't change its legal force.

What to Gather Before You Bring a Motion

• [ ] A copy of the original restraining order
• [ ] A clear, honest account of what has changed since it was made
• [ ] Any evidence supporting that change — correspondence, records of resumed contact, professional reports, and similar documentation
• [ ] Details of any breaches, by either side, since the order was made
• [ ] Legal advice on whether your specific facts meet the threshold a judge will look for

If the Court Denies the Motion

A judge who isn't satisfied that circumstances have genuinely changed, or who remains concerned about safety, will simply leave the existing order in place. That isn't necessarily the end of the road — if circumstances continue to evolve, a further motion can be brought later, though repeatedly bringing motions without a real change in facts is unlikely to succeed and can be viewed unfavourably by the court. Getting the evidence right the first time matters more than trying again quickly.

Frequently asked questions