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Appendix A: Key program features by jurisdiction and program

Table 1a. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: British Columbia and Alberta

Table 1a. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: British Columbia and Alberta
Program	Family Justice Dispute Resolution	Family Mediation	King’s Bench Child Support Resolution Program	Family Court Assistance
	British Columbia	Alberta
Eligibility: Must have child-related issues and/or dependent child	No	Yes	Must have a child support issue	Yes
Eligibility: Low income	No	Yes	No	No
Eligibility: Other	No	No	No	Self-represented litigants only
Locations: Province / territory wide	Yes	Yes	No	No
Locations: Specific sites			Calgary, Edmonton	11 court locations and surrounding areas
Language(s)	English; interpreters for other languages	English; interpreters may be used but are not provided by the program	English; interpreters may be used but are not provided by the program	English; interpreters for other languages
Issues: Child issues^{Footnote i of Table 1a}	Yes	Yes	Child support	Yes
Issues: Spousal support	Yes	Yes	If accompanied by child support	No
Issues: Property division	No	Some property matters	No	No
Table 1a footnote Footnote i of Table 1a Child support, parenting responsibilities, guardianship, parenting plans Return to footnote i referrer of Table 1a

Table 1b. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: British Columbia and Alberta, continued

Table 1b. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: British Columbia and Alberta, continued
Program	Family Justice Dispute Resolution	Family Mediation	King’s Bench Child Support Resolution Program	Family Court Assistance
	British Columbia	Alberta
User fees	No	No	No	No
Service limits: Hours^{Footnote ii of Table 1b}	No limits	No limits	One 60-90 minute joint dispute resolution meeting	No limits
Modes of delivery	In-person, telephone, video	In-person, telephone, video	In-person, telephone, video	In-person, telephone, video
Court requirement^{Footnote iii of Table 1b}	In Victoria and Surrey, parties must complete an assessment and at least one consensual dispute resolution session unless exempt or where not appropriate, prior to making a court application; in Kelowna and Nanaimo, parties must complete a needs assessment prior to matter being scheduled for a first appearance	Court of King’s Bench Rules state that the parties’ responsibility to manage their dispute includes good faith participation in a dispute resolution process	Child support cases in Court of King’s Bench may be directed to participate.	Required in Calgary, Edmonton and Grande Prairie at the Court of Justice (provincial); will be mandatory at both court levels in Calgary and Edmonton by March 2024
Table 1b footnotes Footnote ii of Table 1b Where hours of service are limited, several programs allow some discretion to provide additional hours if progress is being made. Return to footnote ii referrer of Table 1b Footnote iii of Table 1b Where court requirements exist, exemptions on various grounds are also available. Return to footnote iii referrer of Table 1b

Table 2a. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Saskatchewan and Manitoba

Table 2a. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Saskatchewan and Manitoba
Program	Dispute Resolution Office Family Mediation Program	Legal Aid Saskatchewan	Family Resolution Services	Legal Aid Manitoba
	Saskatchewan		Manitoba
Eligibility: Must have child-related issues and/or dependent child	No	No	No	No
Eligibility: Low income	No	One party must qualify financially for legal aid	No	Must be financially eligible for legal aid
Eligibility: Other	No	No	No	No
Locations: Province / territory wide	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Locations: Specific sites			In-person service in 4 sites
Language(s)	English; interpreters for other languages	English; interpreters for other languages	English and French; interpreters for other languages	English; interpreters for other languages
Issues: Child issues^{Footnote i of Table 2a}	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Issues: Spousal support	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Issues: Property division	Yes	No	Yes	Some property matters
Table 2a footnote Footnote i of Table 2a Child support, parenting responsibilities, guardianship, parenting plans Return to footnote i referrer of Table 2a

Table 2b. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Saskatchewan and Manitoba, continued

Table 2b. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Saskatchewan and Manitoba, continued
Program	Dispute Resolution Office Family Mediation Program	Legal Aid Saskatchewan	Family Resolution Services	Legal Aid Manitoba
	Saskatchewan		Manitoba
User fees	Sliding scale fees except when ordered to attend High Conflict sessions by a judge	No	No	Legal Aid application fee of $25; can be waived in certain situations
Service limits: Hours^{Footnote ii of Table 2b}	No limits	1 hour pre-mediation meeting per party and up to 5 hours joint sessions	No limits	Tariff provides up to 42 hours of legal service
Modes of delivery	In-person, telephone, video	Video; telephone or in person only by exception	In-person, telephone, video	In-person, telephone, video
Court requirement^{Footnote iii of Table 2b}	Family law matters that come to court are required to attempt a family dispute resolution process at the close of pleadings before they may continue with any further court proceedings^{Footnote iv of Table 2b}	Family law matters that come to court are required to attempt a family dispute resolution process at the close of pleadings before they may continue with any further court proceedings^{Footnote iv of Table 2b}	The Court of King’s Bench Family Division scheduling model aims to resolve cases at the earliest point possible. If issues cannot be settled, parties must complete prerequisites, including out of court resolution, prior to obtaining a hearing date before a judge	The Court of King’s Bench Family Division scheduling model aims to resolve cases at the earliest point possible. If issues cannot be settled, parties must complete prerequisites, including out of court resolution, prior to obtaining a hearing date before a judge
Table 2b footnotes Footnote ii of Table 2b Where hours of service are limited, several programs allow some discretion to provide additional hours if progress is being made. Return to footnote ii referrer of Table 2b Footnote iii of Table 2b Where court requirements exist, exemptions on various grounds are also available. Return to footnote iii referrer of Table 2b Footnote iv of Table 2b Effective July 1, 2022 Return to first footnote iv referrer of Table 2b

Table 3a. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia

Table 3a. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia
Program	Family Mediation Services	Legal Aid Ontario	Service de médiation familiale	Conciliation through Supreme Court
	Ontario		Quebec	Nova Scotia
Eligibility: Must have child-related issues and/or dependent child	No	No	No	No
Eligibility: Low income	No	One party must qualify for legal aid^{Footnote ii of Table 3a}	No	No
Eligibility: Other	All parties must agree to mediation and a mediator	One party must have a legal aid certificate; both parties must have counsel^{Footnote iii of Table 3a}	No	Must have a Supreme Court family action or application
Locations: Province / territory wide	Yes	No	Yes	Yes
Locations: Specific sites	45 sites and surrounding areas	Central West and East Regions only
Language(s)	English and French; some mediators offer services in other languages or chose to hire an interpreter	English, French also in the East Region; interpreters for other languages	French; many mediators offer service in English and other languages	English; some conciliators can use French. Parties can bring an interpreter
Issues: Child issues^{Footnote i of Table 3a}	Yes	Yes	Yes	Yes
Issues: Spousal support	Yes	In East Region only	Yes	Sometimes
Issues: Property division	Yes	In East Region only	Yes	No
Table 3a footnotes Footnote i of Table 3a Child support, parenting responsibilities, guardianship, parenting plans Return to footnote i referrer of Table 3a Footnote ii of Table 3a With the exception that anyone with an active court file can access on-site mediation services provided at the Milton courthouse Return to footnote ii referrer of Table 3a Footnote iii of Table 3a Does not apply in Peel Family Law Services and Dufferin County Return to footnote iii referrer of Table 3a

Table 3b. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia, continued

Table 3b. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Ontario, Quebec and Nova Scotia, continued
Program	Family Mediation Services	Legal Aid Ontario	Service de médiation familiale	Conciliation through Supreme Court
	Ontario		Quebec	Nova Scotia
User fees	Free for on-site mediation at courthouse; sliding scale fees for off-site meditation	No fee for mediation	Free hours up to the maximum hours of service provided for in the Family Mediation Regulation; excludes mediator administration fees and additional hours to reach an agreement; service does not pay fees to modify an existing agreement for couples without dependent children	No
Service limits: Hours^{Footnote iv of Table 3b}	On-site mediation provides 2 hours free of charge	No information	Parents: 5 hours for an initial request and 2.5 hours for a review request; couples without dependent children^{Footnote vi of Table 3b}: 3 hours	No limits
Modes of delivery	In-person, virtual	In-person, virtual	In-person, telephone, video	In-person, telephone
Court requirement^{Footnote v of Table 3b}	No court requirement	No court requirement	No court requirement	Mandatory in Halifax and Cape Breton if directed following the triage process
Table 3b footnotes Footnote iv of Table 3b Where hours of service are limited, several programs allow some discretion to provide additional hours if progress is being made. Return to footnote iv referrer of Table 3b Footnote v of Table 3b Where court requirements exist, exemptions on various grounds are also available. Return to footnote v referrer of Table 3b Footnote vi of Table 3b Effective June 30, 2022 Return to footnote vi referrer of Table 3b

Table 4a. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador

Table 4a. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador
Program	Child Focused Parenting Plan Mediation	Child Support Services Office	Family Justice Services
	Prince Edward Island		Newfoundland and Labrador
Eligibility: Must have child-related issues and/or dependent child	Yes	Yes	Yes
Eligibility: Low income	No	No	No
Eligibility: Other	No	Self-represented litigants	At least one party must reside in the province
Locations: Province / territory wide	Yes	Yes	Yes
Locations: Specific sites			In-person services available in nine sites
Language(s)	English; interpreters for other languages	English; interpreters for other languages	English and French; client is required to provide an interpreter for other languages
Issues: Child issues^{Footnote i of Table 4a}	Yes, excludes child support	Child support and special expenses only	Yes
Issues: Spousal support	No	No	No
Issues: Property division	No	No	No
Table 4a footnote Footnote i of Table 4a Child support, parenting responsibilities, guardianship, parenting plans Return to footnote i referrer of Table 4a

Table 4b. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador, continued

Table 4b. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Prince Edward Island and Newfoundland and Labrador, continued
Program	Child Focused Parenting Plan Mediation	Child Support Services Office	Family Justice Services
	Prince Edward Island		Newfoundland and Labrador
User fees	No	No	No
Service limits: Hours^{Footnote ii of Table 4b}	10 – 12 one-hour mediation sessions	No limits	Service standard to resolve issues in 60 – 90 days
Modes of delivery	In-person, telephone, video	Telephone, email, in-person, video	In-person, telephone, video
Court requirement^{Footnote iii of Table 4b}	No court requirement	None, though judge may order parties to work with service	Expectation that parties will attempt mediation where safe to do so
Table 4b footnotes Footnote ii of Table 4b Where hours of service are limited, several programs allow some discretion to provide additional hours if progress is being made. Return to footnote ii referrer of Table 4b Footnote iii of Table 4b Where court requirements exist, exemptions on various grounds are also available. Return to footnote iii referrer of Table 4b

Table 5a. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Northwest Territories and Yukon

Table 5a. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Northwest Territories and Yukon
Program	Family Law Mediation Program	Yukon Family Mediation Service
	Northwest Territories	Yukon
Eligibility: Must have child-related issues and/or dependent child	Yes	Yes
Eligibility: Low income	No	No
Eligibility: Other	At least one party must reside in NWT	At least one party must reside in Yukon
Locations: Province / territory wide	Yes	Yes
Locations: Specific sites	In-person service available in Yellowknife	In-person service available in Whitehorse
Language(s)	English and French; interpreters for other languages	English; interpreters for other languages
Issues: Child issues^{Footnote i of Table 5a}	Yes	Yes
Issues: Spousal support	Yes	Yes
Issues: Property division	Minor assets / debts	Yes
Table 5a footnote Footnote i of Table 5a Child support, parenting responsibilities, guardianship, parenting plans Return to footnote i referrer of Table 5a

Table 5b. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Northwest Territories and Yukon, continued

Table 5b. Key program features by jurisdiction and program: Northwest Territories and Yukon, continued
Program	Family Law Mediation Program	Yukon Family Mediation Service
	Northwest Territories	Yukon
User fees	No	No
Service limits: Hours^{Footnote ii of Table 5b}	1 hour pre-mediation/party plus up to 9 hours joint mediation	1 – 4 mediation sessions of 2 hours each (max of 9 hours mediation)
Modes of delivery	In-person, telephone, video	In-person, telephone, video
Court requirement^{Footnote iii of Table 5b}	None, though judge may recommend that parties attempt mediation	No court requirement
Table 5b footnotes Footnote ii of Table 5b Where hours of service are limited, several programs allow some discretion to provide additional hours if progress is being made. Return to footnote ii referrer of Table 5b Footnote iii of Table 5b Where court requirements exist, exemptions on various grounds are also available. Return to footnote iii referrer of Table 5b

Date modified:: 2024-08-15