Understanding court orders and hearings — Information for Aboriginal families

If you're being investigated for a child protection matter, or if the Ministry of Children and Family Development has removed your child from your home, it may be helpful to you to better understand the court orders and hearings described below as you go through the process for child protection cases.

Important: If the ministry tells you that you're being investigated for a child protection matter, you have the right to get a lawyer. Contact the legal aid office in your area immediately to find out if you qualify for a free lawyer, or call 1-866-577-2525. See Who can help for more information on how to get a lawyer and the other resources available to you.

Tip: As you review the terms below, you may find our poster outlining the Aboriginal Child Protection Process helpful.

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Access order

If the ministry has removed your child from your home, you can apply for an access order. An access order will say when you can visit your child. You can do this even if the judge makes a custody order that says your child will live with someone else. Apply for access as soon as you can.

Consent order

If you and the ministry agree about how your child should be cared for, a judge will make consent order. This means that you won't have to have a full protection hearing.

Continuing custody order

If the ministry removes your child from your home and the judge makes a continuing custody order, this means that your child will stay in the ministry's care indefinitely (with no set time limit). The judge will usually only make this order if there is a serious problem that can't be fixed within a certain amount of time.

Interim supervision order (your child stays with you)

Your child will stay with you in your home, but the ministry will supervise you. The order will include terms that you must follow in order to keep your child, called supervision terms.

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Interim supervision order (your child stays with relatives or is placed in foster care)

The ministry removes your child from your home and places him or her in the care of relatives or in foster care. The ministry will supervise your child's care in the new home. The order will say how your child will be cared for and whether you can visit your child.

Interim custody order

If the ministry removes your child from your home and the judge makes an interim custody order, it means your child will stay in the ministry's care for a certain amount of time. The order will say when and how you can visit your child.

Presentation hearing

The presentation hearing takes place the first time you go to court. The judge will ask you if you agree with what the ministry wants to do. The judge will make an order right away, or may set up another hearing so that he or she can learn more about your case. If the ministry removes your child from your home, the presentation hearing must start within seven days. If the ministry applies for a supervision order without removal, the presentation hearing must start within 10 days. In either case, you'll be notified of the hearing date.

Protection hearing

The protection hearing is when the judge will decide who will care for your child for a longer period of time. The protection hearing usually follows the presentation hearing. If you and the ministry agree about how your child should be cared for, the judge will make a consent order, and you won't have to have a full hearing. The protection hearing must start within 45 days of the presentation hearing ending.^ Back to top

Report to Court

When you go to court, your child protection worker or lawyer must give you a copy of the Report to Court. This document should say:

• why the ministry removed your child from your home or asked for a supervision order,
• what the ministry tried doing before that, and
• what the ministry wants to do next.

Supervision order without removal

When the ministry gives you a supervision order without removing your child from your home, the ministry will want you to follow a certain plan that is meant to protect your child. If you agree to do what the order asks you to do, your child can stay with you. The terms of the plan are called the supervision terms (see below).

Supervision terms

You'll be asked whether you can agree with the terms of your supervision order (see above). These are the details of the plan the ministry wants you to follow if your child stays with you in your home. If you agree to the supervision terms, your child can stay with you under a supervision order.

Find out more

The following resources may be of help to you and your family:

• Our fact sheet Understanding Court Orders and Hearings
• Our poster outlining the Aboriginal Child Protection Process
• Our wallet card Your Right to Get a Lawyer
• Our fact sheet Understanding Aboriginal Child Protection / Removal Matters
• Our fact sheet Child protection and the Aboriginal community

To see what other kinds of resources are available to you, return to the Aboriginal people community page.

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