Ministry of the Attorney General
You are here
Home > Legal Topic > Family Law > Child custody, access, and parenting > How do I bring a motion to change a court order for child custody, access, or parenting?
How do I bring a motion to change a court order for child custody, access, or parenting?
Question
How do I bring a motion to change a court order for child custody, access, or parenting?
Find services
Family Law - Child custody, access, and parenting
Learn more about this topic
CLEO (Community Legal Education Ontario / Éducation juridique communautaire Ontario)
Ontario Court of Justice
Ministry of the Attorney General
Department of Justice
The Superior Court of Justice
Was this information helpful?
How do I bring a motion to change a court order for child custody, access, or parenting?
Reviewed:
September 1, 2020
Answer
You or your partner may want or need to change your court order because of changes to your situation. For example:
- Your child's living arrangements have changed.
- Your child has new medical needs.
- Your child has new education needs.
- Either you or your partner would like to move.
- Your partner is not allowing you to see your child.
If you and your partner agree to change your parenting plan or separation agreement, you can make a new agreement that deals with the changes to your situation.
If you agree to change a court order, you can go to court and get a new order on consent.
If you and your partner cannot agree, you may have to go to court to bring a motion to change. A motion to change is the name of the court process used to ask a judge to make changes to support in your separation agreement or court order.
You must show a material change in circumstances. This means you have to show that your situation has changed so much that your agreement or order needs to be changed to deal with those changes.
There are Family Law Rules that tell you what is needed at every step in a court case. Rule 15: Motions to change a final order or agreement tells you what you need to do.
You can talk to a lawyer who can tell you if facts exist that may convince a judge that your separation agreement or court order should be changed.
If you can't afford to hire a lawyer for your whole case, some lawyers provide "unbundled services" or "limited scope retainer" services. This means you pay them to help you with part of your case.
If you can't afford to hire a lawyer at all, you may be able to find legal help in other places.
1. Figure out if there has been a significant change
Look to see if you or your partner's situation has changed.
If you have to go to court, the court will only make an order changing your custody and access arrangement if there has been a significant change in circumstances.
You have to show the judge:
- There has been a change that affects your child or the ability of you and your partner to meet the needs of your child.
- The change must greatly affect your child.
- The change is something that could not have been predicted at the time the original order was made.
Some examples may include:
- The conflict between the parents has gotten worse over time.
- The parent with custody is always interfering with the access parent's ability to spend time with the child.
- The child's new school schedule conflicts with access arrangements.
If you cannot prove a significant change in your or your partner's situation, the court will not make the change.
You May Also Need
Reviewed:
September 2020
2. Fill out your court forms to start the motion
You can get family law court forms from the courthouse or online. They are available in French and English.
You need to fill out:
- Form 15: Motion to change, where you tell the judge the orders you are asking for.
- Form 25: Draft Order, where you write the orders you want the court to make. Be specific about which terms of the existing order you're asking to change.
- Form 35.1: Affidavit in Support of a Claim for Custody and Access, where you answer some personal questions about your family situation and tell the court about your suggested parenting plan.
- Updated table of contents that lists the documents you're adding to your continuing record.
If you're also asking for a change to support, you may need to fill out:
- Form 13: Financial Statement, where you give information about your finances such as your income, living expenses, and assets and debts.
- Form 13A: Certificate of Financial Disclosure, where you list all the documents that prove what you said in your financial statement.
- Support Deduction Order.
- Support Deduction Order Information Form.
- Confirmation of Assignment form, if you don't know whether your support payments are or was assigned to a social services agency. This means the payments go through an agency such as Ontario Works or the Ontario Disability Support Program.
- Statement of Arrears Form, that gives information about the amount of unpaid support.
Give your forms to the court
Once you have filled out your forms, you must have your motion to change issued by the court. This means the court clerk signs, dates, applies the court seal to your motion, and gives you a court file number.
Rule 1.1 Electronic filing and issuance of documents tells you how to issue your documents.
You can now submit most family law forms and supporting documents online, including a motion to change. For more information, read the question How do I file court forms for my family law case online?
If you can't use the online service or if you don't want to file your forms or documents online, you can file them in person at the same level of court that made your court order. So, if the Superior Court of Justice made the order, you must go back to a Superior Court of Justice in the jurisdiction that your child currently lives to change it.
You May Also Need
Ministry of the Attorney General
Superior Court of Justice
Reviewed:
September 2020
3. Serve your partner
You must serve your partner with a copy of your documents by special service within 30 days of having it issued.
Rule 6: Service of documents tells you how to serve your documents. There is also a guide on how to serve documents.
You can't give them your documents directly. You have to get a family member or friend who is at least 18 years old or a professional process server to give your partner the documents. Or, you can leave them with your partner’s lawyer.
Whoever serves the documents on your partner must fill out Form 6B: Affidavit of Service. In it, they say when, where, and how they served your partner. The form proves that your partner got a copy of your documents and knows that they have to respond to them.
File your documents
You need to file your court forms, supporting documents, and Form 6B: Affidavit of Service with the court.
Rule 1.1 Electronic filing and issuance of documents tells you how to file your documents. There is also a guide on how to file documents.
You can now file most family law forms and supporting documents online. For more information, read the question How do I file court forms for my family law case online?
If you can't use the online service or if you don't want to file your forms or documents online, you can file them in person at the same level of court that made your court order. So, if the Superior Court of Justice made the order, you must go back to a Superior Court of Justice in the jurisdiction that your child lives.
But before you file your documents, you must remove all financial account numbers and personal identifying information. You do this by blacking out information like:
- social insurance numbers
- bank account numbers
- credit card numbers
- account numbers for mortgages, lines of credit, and other loans
You must keep the original documents that shows this information. A judge might ask to see it.
Reviewed:
September 2020
4. Get your partner's response
Your partner has 30 days (or 60 days if they live outside of Canada or the United States) to fill out, serve, and file their response. If they don't respond, the court may make an order based on your documents alone.
Your partner agrees with you
They fill out a Form 15C: Consent Motion to Change.
To get a consent order, you need to fill out and file with the court:
- Form 15C: Consent Motion to Change which sets out the new terms you and your partner agree to. You and your partner have to sign the form in front of a witness. You cannot witness each other's signatures. Attach a copy of your existing order or agreement.
- Form 35.1: Affidavit in Support of a Claim for Custody and Access, with information about your family situation and your suggested parenting plan.
- Form 14B: Motion Form, where you can write “I am asking the court to change child support in accordance with Form 15C, dated _________, which is filed with the court with this motion form.”
- Form 25: Draft Order, where you write the orders you want the court to make. Be specific about which terms of the existing order you're asking to change.
And if you're also agreeing to change support, you may each have to fill out a Form 13: Financial Statement and Form 13A: Certificate of Financial Disclosure unless you both agree not to. But, you and your partner may need to provide proof of income in some circumstances.
You can now file most family law forms and supporting documents online, including a motion to change. For more information on how to file online, read the question How do I file court forms for my family law case online?
If you can't use the online service or if you don't want to file your forms or documents online, you can file them in person at the court.
The court clerk gives your forms to a judge to sign the consent order. In most cases, you do not have to see a judge unless they need more information.
If your partner doesn't agree with you
They fill out:
- Form 15B: Response to Motion to Change, where they tell the court why they don't agree with you or ask the court to make additional or different changes.
- Updated table of contents, that lists the documents they are adding to the continuing record.
If you're also asking for a change to support, your partner may also fill out:
- Form 13: Financial Statement, that gives the court information about their finances such as the amount of their income, living expenses, and assets and debts.
- Form 13A: Certificate of Financial Disclosure, where they list all the documents that prove what they said in their financial statement.
You May Also Need
Ministry of the Attorney General
Reviewed:
September 2020
5. Continue with the court process
The court process for motions to change is similar to starting a family law case.
This family law court process flowchart explains each step in a family law court case. It tells you what happens and what you have to do if you start a court case or if you're responding to a court case your partner started.
A motion to change may involve a first appearance if your case is at the Ontario Court of Justice or the Family Court Branch of the Superior Court of Justice.
At a first appearance, a court clerk meets with you and your partner to check that all of your documents are complete and have been properly served. There may also be mediation services available to help you and your partner to resolve your issues. If you can't reach an agreement, the court clerk will set a date for a case conference.
The goal of a case conference is to get you and your partner to agree on some or all of your issues without going to a motion or a trial.
Dispute Resolution Officers
Some locations of the Superior Court of Justice and Family Court Branch of the Superior Court of Justice have dispute resolution officers (DRO). They are not judges but are experienced family law lawyers trained to help people resolve their issues.
In locations where the DRO program is offered, motions to change come before a DRO first, instead of a judge. DRO's cannot make orders. But they can help you and your partner talk about the issues and come to an agreement that can be confirmed by a judge.
A judge looks at your situation and the best interests of the child test to make decisions about custody, access, and parenting. Judges usually assume it's better for a child to have a relationship with both parents after they separate or divorce.
You May Also Need
CLEO (Community Legal Education Ontario)
Reviewed:
September 2020