Parenting Coordination

Parenting Coordinators may be of use to parents who do not want to use the courts and where:

1. Other means of conflict resolution have been unsuccessful and parenting disagreements persist;
2. Parents have great difficulty communicating and sharing child-related information in an effective and child-focused manner;
3. Transition times and transportation issues persist after the parenting schedule is in place;
4. Consents for travel are difficult to obtain;
5. Parents disagree on the children’s hobbies, extra-curricular activities, travel plans or behaviours;
6. Parents cannot agree on what constitutes a ‘major’ decision, or whether a matter is a ‘health’ or an ‘educational’ decision, or disagree on day-to-day educational or health decisions for the children;
7. Parents need help working out changes to their parenting plan as their children mature or circumstances change;
8. Parents disagree on the interpretation of their parenting plan;
9. Parents feel that the other parent is not respecting the provisions of the parenting plan.

Every set of parents and each child is different. We try to assess whether we can help each family based on their circumstances. Some situations that may not benefit from parenting coordination include where a party is fearful for their safety or the safety of their children; there is a no-contact or restraining order in place resulting from criminal charges; there are significant issues of mental health that require clinical support; there is an ongoing Children’s Aid Society file; and where one or both parents are not likely to be able to cooperate with the process and follow directions and decisions they do not agree with.

All of our PCs charge between $400-$500 per hour. We all request deposits of between $1500-$2500 and ask that they be replenished as they are used up. Each case turns on its own facts. Some PC clients hardly need us after their first couple of meetings. Others require regular assistance managing their parenting plan.

PCs offer what is known as ‘secondary arbitration’ under the Ontario Family Law Act. This is defined as:

“ a family arbitration that is conducted in accordance with a separation agreement, a court order or a family arbitration award that provides for the arbitration of possible future disputes relating to the ongoing management or implementation of the agreement, order or award.”

As such, PCs have jurisdiction to deal with any provisions of a parenting agreement, order or award that provide for how decisions will be made for the children and how their parenting time is divided. 

PC Agreements should identify the specific provisions of the parenting agreement, order or award that the PC may manage or interpret, and list the specific functions of the PC, including coaching, mediation and arbitration.

The Parenting Coordinator will be given all relevant reports, court and other documents.

The PC may speak with professionals who have been or are involved with the family. The Parenting Coordinator will meet with the parents, and may meet with anyone else they consider necessary to assist the family. The PC may interview the children and provide the parents with a Hear the Child™ Report. All such contacts will take place with complete disclosure and transparency to the parents, and the PC will report to the parents in their discretion about such conversations.

The PC will schedule online or in-person meetings for communication coaching, sharing of information and resources, review of the parenting plan terms, discussion of disagreements and for mediation of disputes. The PC will meet with the parents separately and/or together as they feel is most helpful. At Riverdale we use a secure file sharing centre and a structured meeting planning document to ensure that both parents and the PC are always working with the same, clearly-identified information.

When agreements are made, the PC will send the parents a Consent Award and invite them to secure legal advice. The Award will become binding after a defined time.

Where disputes are not resolved using these strategies, to the satisfaction of both parents, the PC will convene a hearing. The structured planning document and information in the file sharing centre, along with any further information that the parents wish to provide, will form the basis of the PC’s decision, which will be binding on the parents.

The PC may seek out further evidence from important third parties such as teachers, medical professionals, caregivers, and from the Hear the Child Report, if they feel it is necessary to make a decision in the best interests of the children. Where this is done the parents will be given disclosure of the information being relied on by the PC and an opportunity to respond to it.

The parents and the PC will work together in this fashion for the term of the PC Agreement, usually two years. Parents may renew the PC Agreement for further terms if they both agree.

Yes! Our PCs are all trained (or being trained) in the Hear the Child  TM Interview and Report process. This is a unique and affordable process whereby the PC will meet with the children, interview them and provide a Report to the parents about what the child agreed to share. We are all members of the Family Dispute Resolution Institute of Ontario which has an affiliation agreement with the BC Hear the Child Society, which designed this model. Read more about our Hear the Child process here.

The PC Agreement provides that neither parent can unilaterally terminate the process, but the parents together may dismiss their PC if they wish. And the PC may resign if they feel that the process is no longer appropriate for the family. However, it is rare for PCs to make that decision. We recommend that parents share any concerns they have about the process with their PC at the intake meeting stage when the matter is assessed for suitability.

We have found that most parents value this process. Our clients report satisfaction with our work, we think because we care about them both and treat them fairly, equally and with compassion. We believe that our structured, focused and cost-effective mediation and decision-making process helps parents have confidence in what we do.

But sometimes, one parent or the other may not comply with our procedures or decisions. In those cases we recommend speaking with counsel for further advice. We cannot enforce our own decisions or procedures other than with costs sanctions, which we will and do apply.