2021 Divorce Act Changes
What principle must guide all parenting decisions under the amended Divorce Act?
The best interests of the child.
Give one example of emotional or psychological abuse courts must consider.
Gaslighting, degrading comments, threats, intimidation, etc.
What major power does Bill C-92 give to Indigenous Nations?
Authority to run their own child and family services.
Who are contact orders for?
Non-parents (e.g., grandparents).
What two old terms were replaced by parenting time and decision-making responsibility?
Custody and access.
What type of behaviour involves monitoring, isolating, controlling, or threatening a partner?
Coercive control.
When Indigenous law conflicts with provincial law, whose law prevails?
Indigenous law.
What do parenting orders assign?
Decision-making responsibility and parenting time.
One major criticism of the 1968 Act was that it trapped people in unsafe marriages. Why?
One major criticism of the 1968 Act was that it trapped people in unsafe marriages. Why?
True or False: The amendments require judges to consider family violence even if the child was not directly harmed.
True
Should parenting time be restricted even when violence wasn’t directed at the child?
Yes, exposure counts.
What historical harms is Bill C-92 a response to?
Residential schools, Sixties Scoop, birth alerts, overrepresentation in foster care, etc.
What problem were the new terms trying to fix?
The idea that parents “win” or “lose” custody.
What major shift did the 1985 Divorce Act create in terms of divorce grounds?
It introduced no-fault divorce (one-year separation).
Name one factor judges must consider when determining the impact of family violence.
Severity, frequency, pattern, coercive control, child’s exposure, risk of future harm, etc.
What is one reason courts treat coercive control as dangerous as physical violence?
It predicts future physical harm, traps victims, harms children emotionally, etc.
What concept is now a legal right for Indigenous children?
Cultural continuity.
Why did lawmakers change the old terminology?
To shift focus from parental rights and “winning custody” to child-focused responsibilities.
True or False: Courts can order supervised visits when family violence is suspected but not proven.
True — they can act to prevent risk.
What can courts order when a parent poses a risk but the relationship should not be severed?
Supervised parenting time.