Motions

If you have a final order from a judge or an Agreement for Support Filed under s.35 of the Family Law Act, and you would like to change it because your circumstances have changed but the other party does not agree with the change, you need to request a motion to change. Motions to change are covered by Rule 15 of the Family Law Rules. Read Rule 15 carefully if you want to bring a motion to change.

If you have an Agreement for Support Filed under s.35 of the Family Law Act (typically a separation agreement but may include other agreements. See section 51 of the Family Law Act for other agreements), you can file the agreement with the Ontario Court of Justice. You must also file an affidavit stating that the agreement is in effect and has not been set aside or varied by the court. By filing the agreement, support provisions within the agreement may be enforced and varied as if it is an order of the court. Once it is filed, the Family Responsibility Office will be able to assist in enforcing the agreement. See s.35 of the Family Law Act for more information. The Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO) has information on filing your agreement with the court. You may find it here: Filing your Separation Agreement with the Court.

Rule 8(2.1) of the Family Law Rules has information on making changes to your agreement when Rule 15 applies but you want to make a claim in which Rule 15 does not apply.

If you are asking the court for the motion to change, you are called the Moving Party. The other party is called the Responding Party.

If you want to change spousal support or your child arrangements in a final order or agreement and both parties do not agree to the change, there must be a “Material Change in Circumstances”. This means that your family situation has changed so much that you need to change the terms of the final order or agreement. You can find examples about material change on the Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO) website here: Figure out if there has been a change - Steps to Justice.

You need to ask the court for a motion date. A good practice is to check with the other party to see when they are available before you ask the court for a court date to hear your motion.

Typically, the motion will be heard where you obtained your final order. Rule 5 of the Family Law Rules applies to motions.

For information about motions to change, the Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO) organization has information to assist you: Motions to Change.

The Ministry of the Attorney General has produced a guide for motions to change. You may find it here: Motions to Change | Ontario.ca

If you are asking the judge for a Motion to Change, you must complete several forms, including Form 15 Motion to Change form. If you are asking for changes involving the decision-making responsibility, parenting time or contact for your children, you must also complete Form 35.1 Affidavit (decision-making responsibility, parenting time, contact). You must also include a certified copy of the final order that you want to change.

If you are the Moving Party, you must also serve the Responding Party with a blank response to motion to change Form 15B and a blank consent motion to change Form 15C.

You may need to serve a copy of your issued motion to change child support documents on the Family Responsibility Office if you and the other party used Ontario’s online Child Support Service within thirty-five (35) days of filing the motion to change. are asking for a change to child support. See Rule 15(8.1) of the Family Law Rules for more information on this.

The Community Legal Education Ontario (CLEO) organization provides a “guided pathway” to help you fill out your forms:

If you are the Moving Party and requesting the motion to change, you should use Form 15: Guided Pathways for requesting a motion to change: Form 15 - Steps to Justice.

If you are the Responding Party and are responding to a motion to change, you should use Form 15B: Guided Pathways for responding to a motion to change: Form 15B - Steps to Justice.

If both parties agree that there is a need to change arrangements concerning the children (Decision-Making Responsibility, Parenting Time, Contact and Child Support) or the Spousal Support in the final order or agreement, you will ask the court for a consent motion to change.

Rule 15(17) of the Family Law Rules covers Motions to Change on Consent. This rule explains what you need to file, including Form 15C, 14B, five copes of a draft order, and a stamped envelope addressed to each party. If both parties and if a Social Service Agency is involved and agrees that spousal support can be changed, you also need to file a Support Deduction Order Information Form and a draft Support Deduction Order. You may find these forms here: Paying and receiving child and spousal support | Ontario.ca.

If both parties agree that there is a need to change child support only in the final order or agreement, you will ask the court for a Motion to Change on Consent – Child Support.

Rule 15(18) of the Family Law Rules covers Motion to Change on Consent – Child Support. You should follow this rule if you only want to change child support and both parties agree. You will need to file Form 15D, five copes of a draft order, and a stamped envelope addressed to each party. If both parties and if a Social Service Agency is involved and agrees that support can be changed, you also need to file a Support Deduction Order Information Form and a draft Support Deduction Order. You may find these forms here: Paying and receiving child and spousal support | Ontario.ca.

For motions to change without consent, you must serve your documents on the other party. To do this, you must follow Rule 15(7), 15(8) and if you are asking for a change to child support, Rule 15(8.1) of the Family Law Rules.

The moving party must serve the completed Form 15 and 35.1 together with blank Forms 15B, 15C and 35.1 on all the other parties by Special Service. See Rule 6 of the Family Law Rules for directions on serving the other party by Special Service.

If you or the other party or children involved in this case have received services from a child protection agency, you will need to complete a Form 35.1A and file it with the court. If you are the moving party, make sure that you serve a blank 35.1A on the responding party together with all the other forms.

If a Social Service Agency, such as Ontario Works or Ontario Disability Support Program is involved, you do not need to serve them by Special Service. Instead, you will serve them by Regular Service. See Rule 6 of the Family Law Rules for directions on serving the other party by Regular Service.

If you are the Responding Party, you must complete Form 15B. You must serve the Moving Party with your responding documents and file them no later than 30 days after you received the motion to change, if you reside in Canada and 60 days if you reside outside of Canada or the United States.

If you are making a parenting claim, you will also need to complete Form 35.1 and serve it on the moving party together with your other documents. If you or the other party or children involved in this case have received services from a child protection agency, you will need to complete Form 35.1A and file it with the court.

You must serve all your documents on the other party within a certain time period. The Ministry of the Attorney General has a guide that can help you with the time periods for serving your documents. It also shows you how to count days: Guide to procedures in family court: Timelines for serving and filing documents | Ontario.ca.

The Ministry of the Attorney General prepared a guide that includes information on serving documents on the other party. You may find it here: Guide to procedures in family court: Serving your documents | Ontario.ca.

Both parties must file the Affidavit of Service Form 6B with the court. The Affidavit of Service Form tells the court that you successfully served the other party with your documents.

Along with your motion documents, if you are required to serve and file a financial statement, you will need to update it if it is more than 60 days since you completed the original financial statement that you filed with the court. You must fill out, serve, and file one of the following:

• A new Form 13: Financial Statement if there has been a major change to your financial situation.
• A Form 14A: Affidavit if there is no change or only minor changes to the last financial statement you filed. You must include details on all the changes.

You also must fill out Form 13A: Certificate of Financial Disclosure. In it, you list all the documents that prove what you said in your financial statement.

You must also file the final court order or agreement that you are asking the court to change.

You should make three (3) copies of each of your documents – one for yourself, one for the other party and the original for the court.