The Child-centred Family Law Strategy,
Summative Evaluation

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8. KEY FINDINGS, RECOMMENDATIONS
AND MANAGEMENT RESPONSE

The following presents the key highlights of the results of the Summative Evaluation of the CCFLS.

The three broad objectives of the CCFLS continue to be relevant.

Trends in Canadian families towards more instability in relationships and marriages as well as increasing complexity due to multi-layered blended and often multi-cultural families indicate that family life and negotiating separation and divorce is more complex today than in the past. Families need services to assist them in addressing the more complicated process of separation and divorce in order to minimize the negative impact on their children. There are key areas that require attention, such as custody and access, relocation/mobility and support.

The federal government has a legitimate and necessary role as a leader and coordinator in developing and maintaining a national perspective towards family justice.

Family law, like other areas of law, is divided between the federal and provincial/territorial jurisdictions. Therefore, an important element of the Strategy has been the collaboration between the provinces/territories and the federal Department of Justice in a number of different areas. The provinces/territories rely on the federal government as a coordinator and leader in family justice activities in order to develop a national perspective on family law and ensure that a certain level of services is available to all Canadians.

A flexible approach was taken to adjust Strategy activities when the legislative component was no longer viable.

The CCFLS originally entailed three components: a legislative reform component, a family justice services component and the expansion of the Unified Family Court model. When the legislative component could not be advanced during the lifespan of the current Strategy, activities and objectives were adjusted. Family justice services became the cornerstone of the CCFLS.

A key element of the Strategy was the continuation, development and expansion of a number of collaborative partnerships.

A key strength of the Strategy was the development and expansion of collaborative partnerships between and among the federal government, the provinces/territories, non-governmental partners as well as international partners. Enhanced and expanded communication structures, and new or expanded partnerships were identified as legacies that would continue after the sunsetting of the Strategy in 2008.

The Performance Measurement and Evaluation Strategy continues to be problematic in terms of provincial/territorial reporting.

Despite improvements in performance measurement and reporting activities by the provinces/territories, gaps in available information indicate that there continues to be room for improvements. Data collection and reporting activities need to be simplified and streamlined in order to allow for the collection of complete and meaningful data.

The budget allocated to CCFLS operations and management was adequate.

Budget information available for the evaluation indicates that sufficient resources were available for the operation, management and implementation of the Strategy. This was echoed by provincial/territorial officials, who felt that while additional funding would allow for additional services, the current resources are sufficient to run and administer the Strategy.

Parent education and parenting plans are useful tools to help parents understand and focus on the children’s needs, and to promote the use of the BIC criteria.

In general, parents utilize and are satisfied with parenting plans and other services and tools provided through the CCFLS, including parent education services and other services designed to assist parents in navigating the complicated process of separation and divorce while minimizing the negative impact on their children. Lawyers and members of the judiciary as well as secondary sources indicate that parents and children benefit from the developed services and tools.

Although not legislated, there is evidence that issues reflected in the proposed BIC criteria are increasingly considered in family justice services as well as in court decisions. Court file data indicates that in 83% of cases, one or more of the issues reflected in the proposed BIC criteria were relevant during the hearings.

Family justice services are effective in helping families resolve issues without going to court, although some issues tend to go through the courts (e.g., relocation).

In general, the CCFLS has been successful in supporting a move towards collaborative and less adversarial family law processes. Family justice services increase awareness among Canadian families of alternative dispute resolution. However, due to the increased complexity of family arrangements, specific issues such as parental relocation tend to require resolution through judicial decision.

The Guidelines continue to help create consistency in child support arrangements and need to be reviewed regularly.

The Federal Child Support Guidelines have been identified by informants as one of the most important tools in eliminating subjectivity in decisions surrounding child support. The Guidelines as well as numerous education and information materials associated with them have helped Canadian families and family law professionals in determining appropriate levels of child support in a consistent and accepted manner.

The federal government has an important leadership role in the area of support enforcement, both nationally and internationally.

In terms of support enforcement activities, the federal government has been a leader nationally in assisting the provinces/territories in developing and expanding their own support enforcement systems, as well as internationally in the development of a new Hague Convention on family maintenance matters and the establishment of new bilateral partnerships with other states.

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