How to Start a Family Court Case in Ontario

What Starts a Family Court Case?

Most family law disputes in Ontario begin with a document generally called an Application. It is filed with the court by the person starting the case, known as the applicant, and it is what formally opens a family court file — nothing about your situation is before a judge until an application (or, for a simple or joint divorce, the equivalent divorce application) has been filed.

The application generally identifies the parties and sets out, in general terms, what the applicant is asking the court to decide. Depending on the case, that might include parenting time, decision-making responsibility for children, child support, spousal support, division of property, or a divorce, or some combination of these. This page assumes you already know, at least roughly, which issues you need addressed. If you are still working out the bigger picture — including which court has jurisdiction over your issues — start with Family Court in Ontario: A Getting-Started Guide and choosing the correct court before filing anything.

What the Application Generally Includes

An application in a family case generally includes, among other things:

• Identifying information for the applicant and the other party (the respondent)
• The general basis of the case — for example, that the parties have separated
• Information about any children of the relationship, where relevant
• The specific relief being asked for, such as parenting time, decision-making responsibility, child or spousal support, property division, or a divorce
• A sworn or affirmed statement that the information provided is true, since the application is generally a sworn document

Ontario's official Application (General) form is used to start most family cases that are not a simple or joint divorce application. A separate divorce application form is generally used where a divorce is the relief being sought — see Different Application Types below. Always confirm you are using the current version of a form, since forms are periodically updated.

Financial Statements: When One Is Required

If your case involves support or property, you will generally also need to complete and file a sworn financial statement alongside your application. A financial statement sets out your income, expenses, assets, and debts, generally supported by documents such as recent pay statements and income tax information, so that any decision about support or property rests on verified figures rather than estimates.

A case asking only about parenting time or decision-making responsibility, with no support or property claim, generally does not require a financial statement. Once support or property is added to a case, however, a financial statement is generally expected from both the person making the claim and the person responding to it. For a fuller look at what this involves, see financial disclosure in family court.

Filing the Application

Once your application (and any required financial statement) is complete, it is filed with the court that has jurisdiction over your issues, generally along with a filing fee and multiple copies for the court and for service on the other party. Filing generally happens at the courthouse serving your area — in person at the court office, or, in some locations, through an available online filing option — but exact requirements can vary by location, so confirm current procedure with the courthouse or the Ontario Court Forms website before filing.

Filing in the wrong court, or without a required supporting document, can cause delay. If you have not already confirmed which court applies to your situation, review choosing the correct court first.

Serving the Other Party

After filing, the applicant generally must formally serve the application (and any financial statement) on the respondent, following Ontario's Family Law Rules. Service is the formal, rule-governed way of giving the other party actual notice of the case and a real opportunity to respond — simply telling them about it informally, or assuming they already know, is generally not enough.

The Family Law Rules set out particular methods of service depending on the document being served, and generally require that service be carried out by someone other than a party to the case. Some documents generally require more formal, direct methods of service, while others may allow a more flexible method depending on the circumstances. Because the specific method required can depend on the exact document and situation, confirm the rule that applies to your documents before serving them, rather than assuming any method will do.

A joint divorce application, where both spouses are applying together, generally does not need to be served on anyone, since both spouses are already parties to the application.

Proof of Service

Serving the application is not the end of the step — the applicant generally must also file proof of service with the court. This is typically a sworn document completed by the person who carried out service (not the applicant, if the applicant is a party), confirming what was served, on whom, when, and by what method.

Courts generally will not move a case forward without proof of service on file, since it is how the court satisfies itself that the other party received proper notice. If you cannot locate the other party to serve them despite genuine efforts, Ontario's rules generally allow a request for an alternative method of service, but a court will generally expect to see what steps you already took before granting one.

Different Application Types

Not every family court application looks the same. Broadly, Ontario's family applications fall into a few general categories.

Simple or Joint Divorce Applications

Where a divorce is the only relief being sought — often because parenting, support, and property issues are already resolved — a simple divorce (filed by one spouse) or joint divorce (filed by both spouses together) is generally used instead of a general application. See uncontested (simple) divorce and joint divorce applications for how these differ from the general application described on this page.

General Applications

Where parenting, support, property, or a combination of these is at issue — with or without a divorce claim included — a general application is generally used instead. This is the type of application this page focuses on.

Contested Applications

Any application, general or divorce, becomes contested once the other party disputes part of it, or does not respond within the applicable time. See contested divorce for how that process generally differs once the divorce itself is in dispute.

What Happens Next

Once your application is filed and properly served, and proof of service is on file, the other party generally has an opportunity to respond within the applicable time. What happens after that depends on whether they respond, and what they say if they do — see responding to a family court application for a look at this step from the other party's perspective.

If the other party disputes any part of your application, most cases generally move toward an early meeting with a judge called a case conference, where the issues genuinely in dispute are identified and next steps are planned. See case conferences for more on what that involves.

Common Mistakes When Starting a Case

• Filing in a court that does not have jurisdiction over your issues
• Leaving out a financial statement when support or property is being claimed
• Serving documents informally, or using a method the rules do not permit for that document
• Forgetting to file proof of service after the other party has been served
• Using an outdated version of a court form
• Assuming a general application and a divorce application are interchangeable

Frequently Asked Questions