Ontario Superior Court of Justice · Regional Direction

Family — Southwest Region

Practice area  Family (regional direction only)
Region  Southwest
Applies to  Chatham, Goderich, London, Sarnia, St. Thomas, Stratford, Windsor, Woodstock
Source  Consolidated Practice Direction for the Southwest Region
Scraped  2026-05-18

Regional direction only. This contains the Southwest Region's general provisions and its family-specific rules. Province-wide family rules are kept separately.

GENERAL PROVISIONS —

Effective date: June 30, 2025, Last updated: May 1, 2026

This Practice Direction applies to all proceedings in the Superior Court of Justice, Southwest Region, supersedes all previous region-specific Practice Directions and Notices to the Profession for the Southwest Region. Counsel and parties are advised to refer to the relevant Parts of the Consolidated Provincial Practice Directions.

Part 1 : Preliminary Matters

A. Presumptive Mode of Hearing

  1. For complete information on the Presumptive Mode of Hearing Guidelines for the Superior Court of Justice Guidelines, please refer to the Consolidated Provincial Practice Directions.
  2. On January 22, 2024, Chief Justice Morawetz released amended presumptive guidelines governing the Mode of Proceedings in Civil, Family and Criminal matters.
  3. It is important that counsel, and the public, review these Guidelines to determine the presumptive method of hearing. The Guidelines became effective February 1, 2024, and will be strictly enforced.
  4. All matters will be heard in a manner consistent with the Guidelines unless a deviation has been granted by a judge.
  5. Should counsel, or the public, desire to deviate from the presumptive manner of hearing, they must make a request of the appropriate trial co-ordinator, or case management judge, when applicable, well in advance of the event. Any proposed deviation, whether on consent or disputed, will require judicial approval.
  6. It should be noted that deviation from the presumptive manner of hearing will be exceptional and only for sound, supporting reasons. This procedure will apply to all matters whether family, criminal or civil.
  7. As directed by the Chief Justice, counsel should be gowned when appearing virtually if the event is one where gowning would be required if held in person.
  8. The Provincial Guidelines are subject to regional variation. The following variations apply to the Southwest Region in the areas of family and civil law. If a mode of proceeding is not mentioned below, it will be governed by the Chief Justice’s Guidelines:

Family

  1. ROTA courts in Chatham, Sarnia, Stratford, Woodstock, and Goderich will hold Family Law Conferences virtually to allow for greater efficiency managing mixed lists.
  2. In St. Thomas, Family Law Conferences scheduled before a ROTA judge on Mondays (or Tuesdays after a long weekend) will be held virtually.
  3. In London and St. Thomas, Family Law Trial Management Conferences, including those in Child Protection Proceedings (CYFSA), will be held in person, except in St. Thomas when scheduled before a ROTA judge on Mondays (or Tuesdays after a long weekend), where they will be held virtually.
  4. In London, all substantive Regular/Short or Long/Special Appoint Motions in Child Protection Proceedings (CYFSA) will be held virtually. In St. Thomas, all such Motions in CYFSA Proceedings are hybrid; parties may choose to attend virtually or in person.
  5. Regular/Short Family Motions (including Urgent Motions) will be held virtually in all Southwest Region court locations, except in London, Windsor (commencing April 19, 2024) and St. Thomas (commencing October 22, 2025), where they will be held in person.
  6. Long/Special Appointment Family Motions will be heard virtually in all Southwest Region court locations, except in St. Thomas, where they will be held in person.
  7. Uncontested trials will be held virtually in all Southwest Region court locations, except in St. Thomas, where they will be held in person.

B. Filing Court Documents

  1. Information regarding standard document naming protocols and the electronic filing of materials for Court and Court fee payments is contained in the Provincial Practice Direction: Documents MUST be electronically filed.

    PLEASE ENSURE STRICT COMPLIANCE WITH TIMELINES and COURT FILING DOCUMENT STANDARDS. Court documents which do not comply with these document standards, including the maximum length for such documents, will NOT be accepted (i) for filing; and (ii) shall not be uploaded to Case Center.

  2. It is expected that written materials and documents for criminal, family and civil matters will be filed with the court electronically. If, however, a party is unable to file materials and documents electronically, they may file same in person at the courthouse filing office, together with an explanation of why electronic filing is not feasible.

  3. Compendiums: Where counsel file more than thirty (30) pages of documentary evidence, whether by affidavit or otherwise, counsel must, in addition to the filing of such documentation, file a Compendium which shall contain only those documents and caselaw that counsel intend to refer to in argument.

C. Uploading Materials to Case Center

  1. Directions are provided in the Consolidated Provincial Practice Directions and in the Superior Court of Justice’s Guide to Requirements regarding uploading materials to Case Center. The Guide to Requirements can be found at the following link: Case Center in the Superior Court of Justice.
  2. Failure to comply with the requirements may result in the hearing not proceeding as scheduled and, where appropriate, judicial sanctions and/or terms may be imposed.
  3. Where there is a change in representation, or there is a change in contact information for counsel or a party, it is the responsibility of the parties (and former counsel), upon receipt of the Case Center invite to forward it to new counsel and/or the opposing party(ies)
  4. Only court documents which have been accepted for filing may be uploaded to Case Center. A party who refers to a document which has not been properly filed with the court, shall bring same to the attention of the presiding judge.
  5. When preparing factums, all references to caselaw shall be hyperlinked to an electronic database such as CanLII. The hyperlink must NOT be to another document which has been filed or submitted online but rather MUST be to an external URL and NOT password protected. Please see the following link: Case Center in the Superior Court of Justice.
  6. Counsel MUST NOT file Briefs of Authorities UNLESS the caselaw they intend to refer to is not found on a publicly accessible electronic database.

  7. Case Center guides are accessible at the following links:

    For counsel: https://answers.legalprof.thomsonreuters.com/casecenter_canada/outsidecounsel

    For self-represented litigants: https://answers.legalprof.thomsonreuters.com/casecenter_canada/self-represented-lit-1

A. Introduction

  1. This Part identifies scheduling and administrative changes to facilitate more expeditious and efficient litigation under the Rules of Civil Procedure.
  2. Subject to PART 3, this Part applies to commercial motions or applications heard in London as described in PART 3 of this Practice Direction that are not time sensitive. This Part also applies to contested estates matters as described in Part 4 below.
  3. A reference in this part to a “rule” or the “rules” is a reference to the Rules of Civil Procedure.
FAMILY PROCEEDINGS —

Part 5 : Family Proceedings

A. Introduction

  1. This Part identifies scheduling and administrative changes to facilitate more expeditious and efficient litigation under the Family Law Rules.
  2. Unless otherwise stated, this Part applies to all family proceedings, including those in the Unified Family Court – London and St. Thomas.
  3. A reference in this part to a “rule” or the “rules” is a reference to the Family Law Rules.

B. Family Motions

  1. Any motion that requires 60 minutes or less for all parties to argue is treated as a regular motion.
  2. All regular motions will be heard on the assigned motions court day for each respective county in the Southwest Region commencing at 10:00 a.m. unless otherwise ordered by the court.
  3. All motions requiring more than one hour to argue will require a special appointment.
  4. Paragraphs 37-43 relating to special appointments in civil cases also apply to special appointments in family cases, including the requirements for the filing of factums.

C. 14B Motions

  1. Form 14B motions are governed by Part I of the Consolidated Provincial Practice Direction. Counsel and parties are advised to refer to that Practice Direction for further direction.

D. Confirmation Forms

  1. Each party to a conference or motion must file a fully completed Form 14C Confirmation of Motion or Form 17F Confirmation of Conference no later than 2 p.m. three business days before the motion or conference, except urgent motions that are being brought without notice to the other party do not need to be confirmed.
  2. Form 14C Confirmation of Motion or Form 17F Confirmation of Conference forms must only list the specific issues that are to be addressed at that event and the specific materials that the judge should review. Communication and cooperation in completing all parts of the prescribed form is expected. The materials which the presiding judge will be referred to, by any party, should be fully and accurately described.
  3. Where Form 14C Confirmation of Motion or Form 17F Confirmation of Conference forms have not been properly completed and filed by the appropriate deadline, the event may not be heard on the scheduled day without the permission of the presiding judge.

E. Conference Briefs

  1. No brief or other document for use at the conference that is required to be served or filed may be served or filed after 2:00 p.m. four business days before the date scheduled for the conference (rule 17(14.1)).
  2. Any attempt to file conference briefs outside of the filing dates set out in the Family Law Rules will be refused. However, if a brief is sent electronically no later than 9:00 a.m. on the day of the conference, with proof of service on the other party, the Trial Coordinator will record that the brief is “FILED LATE” and place it with the materials for the presiding judge to review or not, at the judge’s discretion. This process allows the court staff to comply with the Rules and for conferences to proceed in a timely manner, giving the presiding judge an opportunity to read the conference brief or refuse the brief.

F. Scheduling Family Conferences

  1. Case Conferences will be limited to 7 per day to allow approximately 45 minutes for each matter scheduled.
  2. Settlement Conferences will be limited to 6 per day to allow 60 minutes scheduled for each matter.

G. Settlement Conferences and Trial Scheduling Conferences

  1. The settlement conference is an important step in family cases. The primary purpose of the settlement conference is to settle or at least narrow the issues in dispute. Parties (or their counsel) are required to communicate before any conference in order to attempt to narrow or resolve the issues that are in dispute, unless the parties are self-represented and are also prohibited from communicating by court order.
  2. Pursuant to rule 17(5) (g), if the case is not settled at the settlement conference, one of the additional purposes of the conference is to identify the witnesses and other evidence to be presented at trial, estimate the time needed for trial and, where appropriate, to schedule the case for trial.
  3. Parties are to come to the settlement conference having completed Parts 1 and 2 of the Trial Scheduling Endorsement Form. If the case has not settled at the conclusion of the settlement conference, the presiding judge will complete Part 3 of the form or shall give directions to the parties regarding the completion of this form. In some centres (Unified Family Court – London, and Sarnia), the TSEF will be discussed at the Trial Management Conference, rather than the settlement conference.
  4. The court may require the parties to attend a trial scheduling conference to canvass issues regarding the scheduling of the trial and ensure proper completion of the Trial Scheduling Endorsement Form. Each party shall complete and file their portion of the Trial Scheduling Endorsement Form with the court in advance of a trial scheduling conference in accordance with the timelines in rule 17(13.1).
  5. The purpose of a trial management conference includes (i) ensuring that the case is ready to proceed to trial, (ii) considering each party’s list of proposed witnesses and (iii) ensuring the accuracy of the estimated time for trial. Consideration should also be given to other conditions that would be appropriate under rule 1 in order to limit the duration and scope of the trial.
  6. A trial date will not normally be made available until the court has reviewed and endorsed the complete Trial Scheduling Endorsement Form. The court may however, in its discretion, provide litigants with a provisional trial date before the court has endorsed the complete Trial Scheduling Endorsement Form, where necessary. Where this has occurred, the form must be finalized no later than 60 days in advance of the trial or as directed by the presiding judge in order to retain the scheduled trial date.

H. Trial Management Conferences

  1. A trial management conference should be held in family cases that have not been resolved at or before the settlement conference in order to ensure trial readiness and canvas settlement.
  2. The purpose of a trial management conference is to confirm that parties are ready for trial, have filed their Trial Record exchanged all other material required by the Trial Scheduling Endorsement Form, provide any further directions or revisions to the Trial Scheduling Endorsement Form, and, where appropriate, to explore any final possibilities for settlement to resolve the trial.
  3. The Trial Management Conference Brief: Form 17E is no longer required. Instead, the following documents must be filed at least 7 days before the Trial Management Conference:
    1. The completed Trial Scheduling Endorsement Form must be filed by either the Applicant or the party that requested the conference;
    2. Where appropriate, each party must file an offer to settle all outstanding issues; and,
    3. Where directed by the court, each party must file an outline of their opening statement for trial.
  4. Any relevant endorsements must be made electronically available to the judge at the trial management conference.
  5. The judge will make any changes to Part 3 of the Trial Scheduling Endorsement Form to reflect any changes in the outstanding issues, witnesses and positions of the parties since the form was initially completed, ensure that the case is trial ready and confirm the trial sittings.
  6. The completed Trial Scheduling Endorsement Form shall be filed with or added to the Trial Record. No offers to settle should be included in the Trial Record.
  7. Where the case has been settled and the trial is no longer required, one of the parties shall immediately advise the Trial Coordinator so that the trial date can be vacated. A copy of any Minutes of Settlement or consent should be filed at the same time.
  8. The Trial Record is to be served and filed within the timelines set out in the Family Law Rules.

Part 6 : Additional Provisions Regarding the Unified Family Court- London and St. Thomas

A. Family Law matters

  1. Paragraphs 17 – 23 also apply to all family law matters being heard in the Unified Family Court – London except for Child, Youth and Family Services Act.
  2. Previously scheduled settlement conferences, motions, special appointments or summary hearings may be adjourned on consent by obtaining a new date from the Trial Coordinator. A confirmation must then be sent in changing the dates. If the confirmation is sent there is no need for attendance by counsel/party. A separate confirmation must be filed to confirm attendance on the new date in accordance with the Family Law Rules. No more than two consent adjournments will be permitted before an in-person attendance is required.
  3. Trial management conferences with a set trial sittings date may only be adjourned by attendance before the Local Administrative Judge or his/her designate at a time that may be arranged through the Trial Coordinator.
  4. Trial adjournment requests may be made at the Trial Readiness Court if they have not already been addressed at the Trial Management Conference. Attendance is required. It is expected that if a matter is on the trial list it is ready for trial and, if not, it will be removed, and placed on another trial list, or adjourned to a date to be spoken to, at the presiding judge’s discretion. At the Trial Readiness Court no order will be given to the trials and the parties will be expected to be ready when called.

B. Child, Youth and Family Services Act matters

  1. Paragraphs 51 – 54 apply to all Child, Youth and Family Services Act matters being heard in the Unified Family Court – London. And STT FC.
  2. Trials can only be adjourned to a subsequent trial date on motion with supporting affidavit material. These motions may be brought at the Trial Readiness Court or earlier before the Local Administrative Judge or his/her designate at a time that may be arranged through the Trial Coordinator. This direction applies to requests for adjournments by Children Aid Societies and any other party.
  3. Temporary Care and Custody hearings and other motions may be adjourned to a subsequent date as set out above in paragraph 47 for family matters without the necessity of attendance by counsel or parties, provided that no more than two consent adjournments will be permitted before an in-person attendance is required.
  4. Even with the consent of both parties, settlement conferences and trial management conferences may only be adjourned by filing a confirmation indicating an intention to adjourn accompanied by a personal attendance to explain the reasons for the adjournment. If the parties know ahead that a request to adjourn the settlement conference will be made, the matter may be brought forward to be spoken to. Where an adjournment has been granted, a confirmation form will have to be filed in advance of the new date as required by the Family Law Rules.
  5. For child protection matters, the Child Protection Trial Scheduling Endorsement Form must be filed by all parties at the final Settlement Conference. This form is available on the Superior Court of Justice website.

C. General

  1. Trial lists are blended with Family Law Act/Children’s Law Reform Act/Divorce Act matters and Child, Youth and Family Services Act matters, bearing in mind that Child, Youth and Family Services Act matters have statutory timelines under both the Child, Youth and Family Services Act and the Family Law Rules that must be respected, and will be given priority.
  2. Any requests for adjournments of settlement conferences, special appointments or Temporary Care and Custody hearings should be made as early as possible so that other matters may be scheduled in their stead. This will assist in reducing time-outs for these events.
GENERAL PROVISIONS —

Part 9 : Forms

  1. Each of the forms prescribed under the Rules of Civil Procedure and the Family Law Rules are available on the Ontario Court Forms website.
  2. Additional forms referred to in this Practice Direction are as follows:
    1. Certificate of Readiness of Special Appointment – Long Motions/Applications and Commercial Matters
    2. Certificate of Readiness of Special Appointment – Family Cases
    3. Time Sensitive – Commercial Scheduling Request
    4. Trial Scheduling Endorsement Form (TSEF – Family)

    5. Trial Scheduling Endorsement Form (TSEF – Child Protection)

      Paul Howard Regional Senior Justice Superior Court of Justice Southwest Region