Claudia Bordes

Helping You Protect Your Children And Your Family

If the Children’s Aid Society has become involved with your family, this is probably a very scary time for all of you.

The Society gets involved for all kinds of reasons. The police may become involved if there is an incident and the children are present. A neighbour or family member may call the Society. Sometimes parents who are feeling overwhelmed contact the Society themselves.

As with other areas of family law, the most important consideration in child protection law is the best interests of the child.

Levels of Involvement

• Investigation: The Society may come in and talk to you, your children, and possibly to teachers, doctors and neighbours, to see if the children are in any danger. If the Society finds that there is not enough information to indicate that the children need protection, they will close your file.
• Voluntary agreement: Sometimes the Society finds that there are concerns, but feels that they can help you through a written agreement. Often this agreement will include you consenting to having a Society worker drop into your home or talk to your children. It may also include conditions such as counselling for you or your children.
• Application: Sometimes the Society will begin an Application at court, and ask a judge to make Orders about your children. You may have your children living with you under a Supervision Order, or your children may be placed in the care of the Society for some time.
• Foster care: When your children are taken from your care, they may go to a foster family for a time.
• Crown Wardship: In very difficult cases, the Society may ask for your children to be taken from your care permanently. This is no longer officially called Crown Wardship, but “extended care.”

The aim of the Society is always supposed to be to protect the children with as little disruption as possible to your family.

That doesn’t always happen.

Navigating Through Child Protection

My goal is to help you decide what you want to do to deal with the Society’s concerns, so that your family can get back to normal as soon as possible. We will talk about your options:

• Going along with what the Society is asking
• Mediation
• Going to trial

If your children are older, we may also ask for the Office of the Children’s Lawyer (OCL) to become involved. The OCL lawyer will meet with your children, ask their opinion about what they would like, and speak for them in court.

This is often a very painful and very personal area of law, and different parents have different needs. If my approach and yours don’t match, I also know many other child protection lawyers who may fit your needs more closely. I will be happy to get you in contact with them.

Contact Claudia Bordes

If the Children’s Aid Society has become involved with your family, email me at bordescj@gmail.com or call 613-807-2673. If you live in Almonte, Pakenham, Stittsville or surrounding areas, I may be able to meet you in the community.