Jack thinks that Jill is unreasonable when making plans regarding the children. She refuses to be flexible when it comes to dividing the time with the children on holidays, sharing information from the school, or letting him take the children for more than a few days here and there. Jack wants to have the children with him half the time to regain his place as a parent in their lives. His friend has suggested that he should consider getting the Office of the Children’s Lawyer (OCL) involved but Jack is leery to engage the children in a process that he does not understand.
The Office of the Children’s Lawyer is a government-funded organization that oversees that justice is being served on behalf of children (under 18 years of age) through the delivery of various services in the province of Ontario. It is important to note, however, that the OCL’s involvement in custody and access cases is not automatic. Their services may be requested by a judge in the context of a court case but there is no guarantee that the OCL will provide services. If it does, then those services will be provided free of charge to the parents. In essence, the OCL steps in as an objective third party to introduce some impartiality in disputes between parents. The OCL can provide two very useful services: independent legal representation for children and custody and access assessments performed by trained social science professionals.
Independent legal representation will normally be provided when the child is older or at least sufficiently mature to express his opinion about his preferences. The child’s lawyer will be an advocate for the child and his/her role and responsibility will be to convey to the judge the child’s wishes and preferences with regards to the visitation arrangements that he would prefer. For younger children or for families that present important challenges (such as allegations of domestic violence, substance abuse, parental alienation or where a child has special needs), the OCL may become involved by carrying out a comprehensive family assessment. Following such an assessment, the OCL’s clinical investigators will report to the court to provide recommendations about the custody and access arrangements that would be best for the children.
The OCL’s services are very effective at helping parents make decisions that are in the best interest of their children, when they have not been able to do so on their own. Of course, it is always best for everybody when parents are able to agree between themselves as to what is best for their kids, as parents may not be happy with the recommendations made by an outsider, be it a judge or the professionals working for the OCL.
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