Child Custody or guardianship matters arise when the Court decides who the minor child lives with and which parent or guardian has the rights and responsibilities for making important decisions about the child’s life. When the parents or a parent is living with the child before separation, they’re automatically considered a guardian and have custody, unless a court order is made stating otherwise. Custody matters can be resolved by way of a written agreement between the parents or by applying for a custody order in court.

Child custody rights in BC are focused on the principle of the best interests of the child. For a custody or guardianship order, the judge must be satisfied that the best interest of the child is being considered; if not the court will not uphold already existing custody orders or agreements.

It is usually viewed by the courts that it is in the child’s best interest to have as much parenting time as possible with both parents, unless doing so will somehow harm the child. Therefore, where there is no harm to the child involved, joint custody or guardianship orders are generally more common.

Applying for Custody or Guardianship

In BC, there are two primary laws that govern child custody and guardianship: the federal Divorce Act and the provincial Family Law Act. Married or once married parents can apply for custody orders under the Divorce Act while the Family Law Act applies to all parents regardless of whether they’re married, unmarried, or in a common law partnership. It is important to note that the Divorce Act uses the term ‘custody’ while the Family Law Act uses ‘guardianship,’ but the underlying intent remains the same.

Types of Custody or Guardianship

There are three different types of custody or guardianship that could be agreed upon by the parents, or if a dispute exists, one of these could be ordered by the court:

• Sole Custody/Guardianship: Sole custody or guardianship is where one parent has the authority and responsibility for the caring and nurturing of a child. This parent is the one who the child primarily resides with and who makes the important decisions pertinent to the child.
• Joint Custody/Guardianship: Joint custody or guardianship, as the word indicates, is where both parents have parenting responsibility for the child even though the child may principally live with one parent.
• Shared Custody/Guardianship: Shared custody or guardianship refers to a parenting arrangement whereby both parents have parenting responsibility and the child lives with both parents equally.
• Split Custody/Guardianship: Split custody or guardianship is where there is more than one child and where the children are split up with one child living with one parent and the other child living with the other parent.

We hope this article provides insight into Child Custody Rights in BC. Should you have any questions or require help with applying for child custody, divorce or, drafting a separation agreement, please contact us at 604-449-7779.