BC Council for Families

Last Monday, BC’s attorney general released a white paper on Family Relations Act Reform, containing proposals for a new Family Law Act. The Family Relations Act, which has not been revised since it was originally introduced in the late 1970’s, has been under review for four years, and many of the changes are being called “revolutionary”. The proposed changes are intended to help the legal framework adapt to the transformation of the family landscape that has occurred over the past 30 years: the growth in numbers of non-marital unions, the increase in divorce rates and the rise of shared custody arrangements, same-sex marriage, and increase of usage of reproductive technologies and surrogacy.

While some changes are minor – for instance, the terms “custody” and “access” will be replaced by “guardianship” and “parenting time,” others are more far-reaching. In particular, the law proposes to make separation and divorce less adversarial and more collaborative, putting a new emphasis on resolving issues without going to court, and calling for more options to resolve conflict through co-operation and mediation. The Attorney General hopes the changes will discourage couples from seeing the courts as the first stop in resolving divorce and custody disputes.

One proposed change meant to keep families out of the court system is Parenting Coordination, which calls for the appointment of Parenting Coordinators to help manage high-conflict families who have ongoing difficulties implementing parenting arrangements. Disappointingly, no changes are proposed to the provincially mandated “Parenting After Separation Course” which if strengthened, could assist in lowering the number of disputes.

The proposed legislation will also make the best interests of the child the only consideration when it comes to settling parenting disputes, including asking children for their views. Determining “best interests” will now include considering whether there has been a history of family violence, how children have been cared for in the past and whether there have been any civil or criminal proceedings relevant to their safety.

Still more radical are the proposed "parenthood" changes in the government's report. While currently only a child’s biological parents are recognized as parents at birth, the new law could recognize same-sex couples and a biological mother or father as legal parents. Family law experts have described the proposal as “groundbreaking.”

You can read the Family Law White Paper online.

Want to comment on the proposed policy position changes outlined in the Attorney General’s white paper? Send your feedback to:

Family Law White Paper
Civil Policy and Legislation Office
Justice Services Branch
British Columbia Ministry of Attorney General
E-mail: CPLOFamilyLaw@gov.bc.ca