Author Archives: Hilary Linton

The recent decision of Davies J. in Lange v Lange & Tait (2022 ONSC 6412) is a good example of how child-focused mediation can help parents resolve disputes in the best interests of the children. Ms. Lange and Mr. Tait had a child together as a result of a brief relationship. By the time the child was born, Ms. Lange …
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A recent decision by Shore, J., in Czyzewski v Fabro (2022 ONSC 4883) is a helpful guide for family mediators and arbitrators when helping parents determine the best interests of a very young child. The case is about a father with relatively limited parenting time seeking a week-about parenting schedule. The father was unable to accommodate a different time-sharing arrangement …
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Screening for power imbalances and family violence is mandated by Regulation 134/07 under the Arbitration Act. That Regulation requires family arbitrators, including parenting coordinators, to certify that they have screened both parents separately for power imbalances and family violence before they conduct any arbitrations and also throughout their retainer. Lawyers, parents, judges, and even some PCs are not always aware that …
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A recent Alberta Court of Appeal decision has confirmed that a court cannot order parents to retain a parenting coordinator. In SSG and SKG (2022 ABCA 379 CanLII) the trial judge had, after a lengthy trial, ordered the parents to “retain a parenting coordinator with arbitration powers to resolve day-to-day conflict that may arise related to the detailed parenting plan …
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We recently surveyed our family mediation and parenting coordination clients. Too often we are focused on the day-to-day pressures and challenges of each file. We don’t take enough time to ask “how did I do?” or to say “thank you!” The results were both rewarding and informative. Here is a summary of what our clients had to say about our …
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I recently was interviewed by Dr. Roisin O’Shea, the Chair of the Irish Professional Mediators’ Organisation. (IPMO) The interview was one of several commemorating International Mediation Awareness Week. It is fascinating to learn the different ways jurisdictions tackle the access to justice and court backlog challenges of our times. And to see how the way in which family mediation has …
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This is part one of a two-part series, originally published in The Lawyer’s Daily on October 18, 2022. By Hilary Linton and Lindsay Kertland.   It is common these days for lawyers to recommend to their clients, when negotiating parenting plans, that they agree to retain a parenting co-ordinator (PC) to help resolve future disputes. We have found that in some …
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As a parenting coordinator, I often want to learn more about how the child is feeling about the things the parents disagree on. In fact, I have a responsibility under the law to do so. One way to do this is to retain a professional to interview the child and prepare a Voice of the Child Report. In my experience, …
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