Parenting After Divorce

Highlights

Resources for Children is a user friendly database which lists over two hundred Canadian and international resources in the area of separation and divorce.

The Department of Justice has a publication for children between the ages of nine and twelve. This booklet can help children learn about family law, and can also help them realize it's normal for them to have an emotional response to their parents' separation.
What happens next? Information for kids about separation and divorce

The Department of Justice Canada has also created a 2009 calendar for children based on the booklet entitled What Happens Next? The calendar encourages children whose parents are separating or divorcing to keep track of the events in their new routines. The calendar is an aid to helping them adjust to new and challenging circumstances.

The calendar is available in PDF format only on this site (PDF - 6,91MB PDF Help). If you would like to request the document in any other universal format, please let us know via our Contact Us page. We will try to accommodate you as best we can.

• Inventory of Family Justice Services
• Information and resources for parents about the current justice system; and
• Research and reports on parenting arrangements after separation and divorce.

Parenting After Separation in Canada

Children need their parents' love, attention and financial support, as well as a safe environment. The Government of Canada continues to recognise that children's needs come first after separation and divorce.

In Canada, the federal government shares responsibility with the provinces and territories for family law matters. When making decisions about children after separation and divorce it is important to know that the federal Divorce Act applies to parents who were married and are now divorced or are planning to divorce. Provincial or territorial laws apply to parents who were never married, are now separated, but are not planning to divorce.