SHARED PARENTING under the new Divorce Act.
As many might know, we live in a Confederation where the responsibility for our different laws is assigned by the 1867 BNA to either our Provinces or our Federal government. In March 2021 the parenting provisions in our Federal Divorce Act were finally updated like different Provincial family laws such as the 2013 BC Family Law Act (FLA).
A recent Ontario decision 2022 ONSC 2599 confirms at para 20 that the new Divorce Act requires a "rigorous assessment of the child's specific situation as part of determining their best interests." And "subsection 16(3) sets out the factors related to the 'circumstances of the child".
Many parents argue there is now a presumption of equal parenting meaning an equal amount of parenting time as well as equal decision making but the Supreme Court of Canada (SCC) confirmed in the 1993 case of Young v Young that it is the best interests of the child, not the preferences or alleged rights of the parents, which prevail. Section 16(6) confirms the "maximum contact" principle, "that a child should have as much time with each spouse as is consistent with
the best interests of the child".
However, it is wrong to interpret s16(6) as saying there is any default or presumption for equal parenting. "The most one can say...the child deserves to have a meaningful and consistent relationship with both of their parents." What is best for each child depends on their circumstances.
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