Custody & Parenting Mediation in Ontario

Parenting mediation provides a private, child‑focused way to resolve parenting time and decision‑making responsibility after separation. Parents work with a neutral mediator to design a parenting plan that fits real life—school calendars, work shifts, commute times, health needs, and each child’s stage of development. The goal is an enforceable parenting plan that reduces conflict and supports long‑term co‑parenting.

Who This Page Is For

• Parents seeking child‑focused custody mediation to finalize parenting time and decision‑making.
  
  

• Families who want a parenting plan mediation process that is private, practical, and respectful.
  
  

• Co‑parents comparing mediation vs court in Ontario for parenting issues.
  
  

• Parents considering online mediation or shuttle mediation to keep discussions calm and efficient.

What a Parenting Plan Covers

An effective parenting plan is specific, practical, and easy to follow. - Residential schedule (parenting time): school‑year routines, weekends, PD days, summer, travel weeks.

- Holidays and special occasions: exact dates, start/end times, exchange points, even‑year/odd‑year rotations.
- Decision‑making responsibility: health, education, and extracurriculars; joint vs allocated spheres; tie‑break process.
- Exchanges and transportation: pick‑up/drop‑off locations, late policies, weather contingencies.
- Communication protocols: approved channels (email/app), response times, medical/school updates.
- Activities and travel: sign‑up rules, budget approvals, notice for trips, passports and consent letters.
- Change process: notice windows for swaps, review dates, and a return‑to‑mediation clause.

Decision‑Making Responsibility vs Parenting Time

Ontario now uses decision‑making responsibility and parenting time in place of older terms like custody and access.

• Decision‑making responsibility: who decides on major issues (health, education, religion, significant activities). Many plans set joint decision‑making with a defined tie‑break process if consensus fails.
  

• Parenting time: where the child lives day‑to‑day and how time is shared.

How Parenting Mediation Works

1.      Separate intake meetings – confirm suitability, safety, and goals.

2.      Structured sessions (joint or shuttle) – mediator facilitates options, tests feasibility, and keeps child focus.

3.      Drafting the plan – plain‑language agreement with exhibits (calendars, tables).

4.      Revisions and signing – finalize and sign; can be filed if desired.

Online Mediation and Shuttle Formats

Online parenting mediation allows shorter, more frequent sessions without travel. Shuttle mediation uses private breakout rooms to lower tension. Agreements remain valid and enforceable with disclosure, clear drafting, and ILA.

The Child’s Voice—Without Putting Children in the Middle

Children do not attend mediation. Their needs are included through child‑centred planning and, where appropriate, child‑inclusive practices outside the main sessions handled by qualified professionals. In some cases, we can incorporate counsellors and therapists into mediation including their reports. In some cases, the parties utilize an expert to complete a parenting report (typically a voice of the child report to determine a child’s views and preferences) where age appropriate and where there is disagreement between the parents as to a child’s wishes.

Suitability, Safety, and Fairness

Screening at intake ensures mediation is safe and suitable. Safeguards—shuttle, virtual sessions, staggered arrivals, strict ground rules—can make mediation workable even in high‑conflict cases.

Drafting Standards That Prevent Conflict

• Replace vague terms with specific times and places
  
  

• Attach calendars, holiday tables, activity budgets.
  
  

• Align parenting time with support logistics.
  
  

• Use plain, child‑focused language.

In cases where the parties are amicable and able to communicate well and still work together, it may be better to have more open ended clauses and greater flexibility. The opposite approach is appropriate in high conflict mediation. 

Edge Cases in Parenting Mediation

• Relocation requests – phased options, review dates. These are difficult cases because the child typically lives in one jurisdiction or the other due to school restraints.

• Special needs – healthcare protocols, therapy scheduling

• Blended families – etiquette around introductions, event attendance

• High‑cost activities – caps, approval thresholds

• Religious/cultural observances – predictable calendars for traditions.

Next Step

Sage Harmony helps parents design child‑focused, enforceable parenting plans that last. If you want clarity, privacy, and a child‑centred approach, schedule a Parenting Mediation Intake today.