Dispensing with a Parent's Consent for Counselling for Children.

• Author: Dargatz, Sarah

When parents go through a separation, the effects on children can be harsh. Often, children benefit from counselling. Usually, both parents agree and provide their consent for this to occur. But occasionally, one parent will not consent. This leaves the other parent, and the child, in a difficult spot.

Unless a court order says otherwise, both parents are most often the joint guardians of their child. This means that they both need to provide their consent for their child to participate in activities such as counselling. If a counsellor cannot get the consent of both parties, they likely are not able to proceed.

There may be some situations where counselling is not appropriate given the needs of the child. There may be legitimate concerns about the cost of counselling, whether the proposed counsellor is qualified, or if the type of counselling is appropriate. Most parents can work together to determine what is in their child's best interest. However, there are situations where counselling is in a child's best interests but one parent will not consent to it for reasons that are less legitimate. This is particularly troubling in cases of family violence. The perpetrator of family violence may not consent to counselling because they do not want the counsellor to discover more about what they have done or they do not want to admit that violence is a real issue in their family. What can the other parent do?

The parent who believes the counselling should occur can apply to the court to dispense with the other parent's consent for counselling. There are two main routes to obtaining such an order: (1) as part of a custody and access or parenting order; or (2) as part of a Queen's Bench Protection Order.

Parenting orders, or custody and access orders, can deal with all parenting issues in dispute between separated parents, including decision-making for children. A parent can apply for an order as part of a custody and access order under s. 16 of the Divorce Act, or a parenting order under s. 32 of the Family Law Act. A parent can apply for whatever terms are required such as:

* with whom the child will live;

* what access or parenting time schedule the parents will follow; and

* who makes decisions for the child, including decisions about "health-related treatment". Generally, counselling is considered "health-related treatment".

The perpetrator of family violence may not consent to counselling because they do not want the counsellor to discover...