You may find that ongoing contact between your children and their father can be challenging.
Some of this is because the kids may be anxious about seeing their father or worried about the impact on you if they have a good time with their dad.
But most of it is because the abuser knows that the best way to get to you is through the children.
- He may come early to pick them up and harass you about not having them ready.
- He may come late and leave you and the children waiting and wondering if he is going to show up.
- He may call and threaten not to return them, then bring them back late. He may bring them back early and interrupt whatever you were doing.
- He may not show up for several weeks in a row, ignore your communications about it, and then suddenly appear at a time not set out in the order demanding to have time with his children.
A clearly written, detailed order can help reduce these kinds of challenges, but it cannot eliminate them if your ex-partner is determined to let you know that he is still in charge of the family.
Whenever you can, be flexible with your ex-partner while maintaining firm boundaries. If he wants to change the usual schedule for a special event in his family and doing so will not interfere with an important activity that you have planned with the children, agree. The kids will appreciate it, and you may want the same consideration some time in the future.
Common issues
You may have concerns about what happens when the children are with their father, and these concerns are more difficult to manage. You may be worried about the safety and well-being of your children when they are with him. At times, you may want to deny the children’s time with their father because of these concerns.
This is a tricky area, because courts do not take it lightly when either parent attempts or appears to attempt to interfere in the relationship between the children and the other parent or to act contrary to a court order.
The law expects you to support and encourage the children’s time with their father, even if they do not want to go or you have some concerns about what goes on during the visits. It also requires both you and your ex-partner to comply with the court order.
Concerns about children’s safety
If you believe your children are being harmed or are at risk of being harmed, especially physically or sexually, you should alert the authorities (police/CAS) and take steps to ensure the safety of your children. You should also speak to your lawyer as soon as possible about other steps you can take. For example, your concerns may justify a change being made to the existing order on an urgent basis.
If your ex-partner has threatened in a believable way that he will not return the children, you may be able to deny or limit his time with them. Again, you should seek legal advice immediately in these circumstances.
When kids won’t go
If your kids don’t want to go, this can place you in a difficult situation. There is no specific age written in the law at which children can make their own decisions about whether or not to spend time with their father. However, judges will rarely force adolescent and older children to engage in visits they are opposed to.
What may happen if the children don’t see their father
If you withhold or appear to withhold the children from your ex-partner without a supporting court order, you may be accused of attempting to alienate them from him, which can make things even more complicated. You can face contempt of court charges, fines and jail time if you act contrary to a court order or, in an extreme case, primary care could be transferred to your ex-partner.
Even if your ex-partner has not paid his court-ordered child support payments, you cannot stop him from seeing the children as set out in the parenting order.