What Happen if You Breach a Family Court Order

People engaged in Family Court litigation often express enormous frustration when their former spouses breach Family Court Orders.  Those breaches can mean the kids don’t have a relationship with a parent, can cause financial hardship, or, can drag family court proceedings to a standstill meaning nothing gets finished or finalized.  Judges repeatedly say that a court order is NOT a suggestion.  But are there really any consequences for breaching a Family Court Order?  

In this episode of the Ontario Family Law Podcast, Certified Specialist in Family Law, John Schuman, goes over the consequences for breaching the various types of Family Court Orders.   The consequences for breaching a court order for child or spousals support are different from breaching a parenting (child custody) order.  There can be serious consequences for breaching a restraining order, while enforcing a court order for payment of money that is not support can be tricky.   Failing to provide court ordered disclosure can have serious consequences.  Judges can be more “enthusiastic” about enforcing some types of orders over others.  So, this episode covers what enforcement tools are available, and what enforcement tools are likely to be used, for each type of Order.   This is very important information for everyone with a case in Ontario Family Court because people usually go to court to force someone else to do something, so understanding how a court will, or will not, do that is important when making decisions about court