Martha Héder

The Children's Lawyer appealed an order of the Superior Court of Justice.

Following the precedent set in A.C.B. v. R.B., the Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, set aside the lower court's order, and substituted a standard form order to the Office of the Children's Lawyer.

The appellant appealed a parens patriae order made by the Superior Court of Justice.

Following the precedent set in A.C.B. v. R.B., the Court of Appeal allowed the appeal, set aside the parens patriae order, and confirmed the standard form order.

In six family law cases, a Superior Court judge exercised parens patriae jurisdiction to order the Office of the Children's Lawyer (OCL) to represent children or conduct investigations, bypassing the statutory request process.

The OCL appealed these mandatory orders.

The Court of Appeal allowed the appeals, holding that the judge erred by circumventing the existing statutory structure under the Courts of Justice Act, which grants the OCL discretion to accept or decline requests for involvement based on its resources and intake criteria.