Let the CAS worker take your child

A Children's Aid Society (CAS) worker can enter your home by force if necessary, to search for and take your child. They can do this if they have good reasons to believe that your child is a child in need of protection. They can bring the police to help them.

Sometimes, the CAS worker may have a warrant to take your child. A warrant is a legal document from the court that allows CAS to remove your child from your care.

To get a warrant, CAS had to give the court evidence to show that there's an immediate risk of harm to your child.

The CAS worker can enter your home and take your child without a warrant too. They do this if they think that your child's health and safety would be at risk during the time it takes to get a warrant. This means CAS can take away your child first, and then go to court.

If you don't allow the CAS to take your child, the CAS worker can get the police to help.

Things you can do

If a CAS worker comes to take your child and you haven't met them before, you can ask them for:

1. photo identification from CAS to prove who they are, and
2. a CAS business card with their name, phone number, and extension.

If the police also come, you can ask for the names and badge numbers of the police officers.

You can ask the CAS worker where they're taking your child. But they don't have to tell you.

Think about close friends or family who your child could live with for a short time, if needed. Give their names and contact information to the CAS worker. Living with someone they know may be better for your child than living with someone that they don't know.

The CAS worker can make notes of everything you say and do. The information in those notes can be used in court later. Find out how to ask for a copy of their notes.

If CAS takes your child, try to:

• keep calm
• focus on your child's needs
• keep your child calm
• get the things your child needs for the next few days, like clothes, toiletries, and medication

After CAS takes your child, you should call a lawyer who has worked on child protection cases right away. You should also make your own notes about what happened. Your notes should include details such as the date and time, how your child acted, who else was there, and what each person said.

If your child is First Nations, Inuk, or Métis, see Step 3.