A minor’s guide to writing an effective affidavit and/or ...

The parent’s self help guide series

A minor’s guide to writing an effective affidavit and/or statement and submitting

it to the court or for other purposes

Powerful tips and information those in the family court system don’t want you to know about that will help lessen you from getting screwed by the system and help make the system more accountable to you, your family and to all families who may

be victimized by the system after you.

Published by Canadian Families Against Abuse by the Legal System

Revised DRAFT: July 1, 2015 (Ontario Edition)

A minors guide to writing an affidavit – July 1, 2015 of 20

To survive the gauntlet of the family court and child protection system and to do your part to help make the system more accountable, the first thing you need to

understand is what the family courts and the child welfare protection system is all about!

Don’t let this happen to YOU!

Learn how to protect yourself from child protection/family court racket by educating yourself

about how to FIGHT BACK!


A minor’s guide to understanding and writing an effective affidavit and submitting it to a court or for other purposes

(Currently under review)

Many children involved in child protection or family court matters often complain that nobody listens to them or in other cases convey information to the court about them which is not true. Even children who are represented in court by a children’s lawyer often complain that their lawyer is not telling the truth or that the lawyer asked them misleading or selective questions intended to get the children to provide answers which the lawyer wanted to hear but not what the child wanted to say.

This document has been written to help mature children gain a better understanding of the legal system and to better understand how to get their voices heard in court quickly and effectively through the use a document called an affidavit. This document will also help mature children gain a better understanding of how broken the family and children protection courts in Canada are today. Parents involved in the family court or child protection proceedings are urged to review this document with any of their mature children who are being affected by the family or child protection court system and who want their voices heard. What is an affidavit? An affidavit is a written and signed document which contains a statement of truthful facts or reasonable beliefs voluntarily made by an individual [referred to as an affiant] under an oath or “affirmation” administered by a person authorized to do so under the law. When a person signs an affidavit before an authorized person he/she is swearing that the information contained in his/her affidavit is true to the best of that person’s knowledge. Just before signing an affidavit, the Affiant is usually is asked the question, “Do you swear that the information in this document is true to the best of your ability?”

While the purpose of an affidavit is to describe facts from the perspective of a witness, stating one’s beliefs is also acceptable because the fact that one believes something is also a fact. The term “I verily believe” is often used in affidavits to express a person’s strong beliefs which are usually based on their personal experience and knowledge. A minor who present an opinion in their affidavit, should be mature enough to have developed the ability to rationalize his/her own opinion on that issues. An affidavit from a minor can be highly persuasive to a judge in a family law matter, particularly when the minor’s affidavit addresses matters of importance and expresses an unambiguous preference which is clearly that of the child. A well written and organized affidavit will convey the truth in a very convincing way and will also provide supporting evidence if there is any. An excellently written affidavit will cause the judge to think to himself/herself, “Wow! That was so convincing and well-written. I believe this minor and see where they are coming from. It’ll take a heck of an affidavit in reply to overcome this!"

A bit of history about the terms “affirming” and “swearing” an affidavit? Many oaths of office contain the text “I, ________ do swear (or affirm)...” When people take such an oath for an office, they have the option of choosing between swearing and affirming, depending on the region where they live. When someone chooses to use the term “affirm” rather than the term “swear”, the oath is more properly known as an affirmation. The difference between the two may seem subtle, but to some people, it is extremely important. It also continues to be an issue in some regions of the world where religious beliefs play a significant role in a society.


Some Christians prefer to say “I affirm” rather than “I swear” because of a section in the Book of Matthew, in which Christ is said to have specifically advised His followers against swearing. Quakers, Mennonites, and members of some other Christian sects choose to not to swear because they believe firmly in telling the truth at all times, and feel that swearing to tell the truth goes against their religious values because it suggests that they might lie at other times.

People have been taking oaths for countless generations and the issue of affirming as opposed to swearing only really began to arise in the 1600’s, when the Christian church branched out into a multitude of differing sects, and some bold atheists began to be more outspoken about their beliefs. Quakers especially found themselves persecuted for refusing to swear, and they were barred from public office and unable to testify in court as a result of their religious beliefs. Today in Canada, the term “affirm” is more commonly used than is the term “swear”.

Who can submit an affidavit to the court? Any person, including a person under the age of eighteen (18), having the intellectual capacity to swear an oath or make an affirmation and who has knowledge of the facts that are relevant in any kind of dispute or court matter may submit an affidavit. There is no age requirement for an affiant (the person signing the affidavit) as long as a person signing the affidavit is old enough to fully understand the facts and the significance of the oath or affirmation he or she makes. As long as the previous conditions are met, the affidavit is a valid and valuable legal document which a competent judge would be bound to consider. A criminal conviction does not make a person incapable of making an affidavit, but an person who has been deemed by a court or mental health professional to be mentally incompetent can be deemed to be unfit to submit an affidavit. A child who is not mature enough to understand the significance of the contents of an affidavit can also be ruled by a judge as being unable to submit an affidavit. The main point is that a minor must be old enough to understand what is written in the affidavit and to understand that all statements written in the affidavit must be truthful to the best of the minor’s knowledge.

The Canada Evidence Act The relevant provisions of the Canada Evidence Act which relate to providing evidence to a court are found at sections 16 and 16.1 and are instructive to both the lawyer considering obtaining the affidavit of a child and the lawyer retained to prepare one.

In essence, children who are fourteen years of age and older are presumed to be competent to give evidence, including by affidavit, in the same manner as adult witnesses. Counsel seeking to have the affidavit of such a child excluded from evidence must be prepared to challenge the mental capacity of the child however most children would not be receptive to this line of enquiry. Just as likely few lawyers would be so bold as to pursue this line of inquiry unless it is clearly evident that the child has issues with his/her mental capacity.

Below is a copy of section 16.1 of the Canada Evidence Act deals with the issue of challenging the affidavit or testimony of a minor based on his/her mental capacity.


Children younger than fourteen are competent to give evidence as well as long as they can understand and answer questions, however they generally must give their evidence on promising to tell the truth, not upon oath or affirmation. Below is the section from the Canada Evidence Act which covers the issue of persons under the age of 14 years of age giving testimony to the court.

Person under fourteen years of age 16.1 (1) A person under fourteen years of age is presumed to have the capacity to testify.

No oath or solemn affirmation (2) A proposed witness under fourteen years of age shall not take an oath or make a solemn affirmation despite a provision of any Act that requires an oath or a solemn affirmation.

Evidence shall be received (3) The evidence of a proposed witness under fourteen years of age shall be received if they are able to understand and respond to questions.

Burden as to capacity of witness (4) A party who challenges the capacity of a proposed witness under fourteen years of age has the burden of satisfying the court that there is an issue as to the capacity of the proposed witness to understand and respond to questions.

Court inquiry (5) If the court is satisfied that there is an issue as to the capacity of a proposed witness under fourteen years of age to understand and respond to questions, it shall, before permitting them to give evidence, conduct an inquiry to determine whether they are able to understand and respond to questions.


Promise to tell truth (6) The court shall, before permitting a proposed witness under fourteen years of age to give evidence, require them to promise to tell the truth.

Understanding of promise (7) No proposed witness under fourteen years of age shall be asked any questions regarding their understanding of the nature of the promise to tell the truth for the purpose of determining whether their evidence shall be received by the court.

Effect (8) For greater certainty, if the evidence of a witness under fourteen years of age is received by the court, it shall have the same effect as if it were taken under oath. Permission of a parent is not required for a minor to submit an affidavit using a lawyer Permission of one or both parents is not required to submit an affidavit as a witness in a court matter. Even a lawyer does not need the permission of parents to consult with or to help a minor prepare an affidavit. A witness in a legal proceeding does not belong or is considered the property of anyone. All that is required is the informed consent and willingness of a competent minor to submit an affidavit and the willingness by the lawyer to take the minor on as a client. What about not telling the truth in the affidavit? It is a serious offence for a person to make a statement which the person knows is not true in an affidavit. Making a false statement is called perjury and is a criminal offense. A person can go to jail for lying in an affidavit. If a person intentionally submits a false statement in an affidavit, the entire affidavit will likely be thrown out by the judge hearing the case.

Even minors who submit an affidavit in which they know contains false information can be charged with various criminal charges such as “Obstruction of Justice” and “Public Mischief”.

What about not being sure about some details? In some cases where a person wishes to state what he/she believes is the truth but does not remember some of the specific facts to support his/her belief a person will use the phrase, “I verily believe that”. An example of the use of this phrase would be:

“My parent took away my cell phone and I verily believe that my parent took away my phone so that I could not contact my other parent whenever I wanted to”.

“The workers at the group home stood next to me while I used the phone and I verily believe that they did this so that they could hear everything I said to my parents on the phone.”

“I had some of my personal belonging taken from my room at the group home while I was at school and I verily believe that it was the group home workers who search rooms while the group home kids are at school.” Where can an affidavit be used? In the majority of cases, an affidavit is used the early stages of a court proceeding and are considered as being very important documents. In many cases today, affidavits are widely used in family court proceedings. However, the use of affidavits is not limited to just use in courts. Affidavits, as documents stating the truth, can be used in a wide range of other ways such as:

To provide statements to police to assist police to lay criminal charges.


To provide statements to child protection agency workers either inside or outside of a court proceeding.

To provide supporting evidence to be given to elected officials at both a provincial and national level in support of a change to legislation.

To provide supporting evidence to be used in any form of community advocacy work To provide supporting evidence to newspaper and magazine writers in developing a news story

on the subject covered in the affidavit.

The fact that the signing of the affidavit has been witnessed by someone who is registered as an authorized person to witness the affidavit, make the document legitimate even after it may be difficult or impossible to locate the person who may have originally signed the affidavit. For those wanting to bring public attention to injustices a well written and organized affidavit can make a very powerful presentation to members of the media. What are the benefits of an affidavit in a court proceeding? Generally at the early stages of a court proceeding, witnesses are not called before the court to give evidence in person so a judge cannot hear what you have to say if you are a witness in someone's court related matter. Information given in person is usually done at a trial where persons take the stand under oath. Sometimes a trial will be months and sometimes years after a court proceeding has started. An affidavit is the way in which witnesses can get their information and testimony before the court long before a trial. While the judge may not be able to see the person in front of him/her while evidence is given, an affidavit gets this information before the judge very early in the process. Affidavits can assist in making an expensive trial not necessary.

Understanding the objective of the affidavit A minor who signs an affidavit should understand the purpose of their affidavit as much as possible and how the affidavit is to be used and the implications such as being questioned on the contents by a judge. If anyone wants you to write an affidavit for them, then you should ask for what purposes the affidavit will be used for. If you don’t appear to fully understand the affidavit, then a judge in court may dismiss it. To help make it clear to a judge that you are acting independently and of your own free will, the following suggested phrases may help make your maturity clear to the court:

“I am currently 14years of age (d.o.b. Jan 12, 2001) and do not suffer from any medical condition which prevents me from fully understanding the contents of this affidavit and the matters before the court including the issue of custody of myself.”

I have reviewed materials about the preparation of an affidavit, including reading Section 16 of the Canada Evidence Act and believe that my affidavit complies with the Act.

I fully understand that by signing this affidavit that I could be called upon as a witness in court to give testimony as to the statements I have made in this document.

I have signed this document without any undue influence from any of my parents and without their assistance in preparing it.

I am willing to speak to the judge in this matter privately if the judge wishes to speak to me in his/her chambers.

Another party's right to examine a person about their affidavit Because an affidavit is considered to be a powerful document in which the person who swore should be prepared to stand behind, there are protections for those who may be adversely affected by the information or statements contained in the affidavit.


For example, if you write an affidavit against another person. such as one of your parents, or an entity such as a child protection agency in a court proceeding, that person or entity has the right to "examine" or question you on the truthfulness of the contents of your affidavit. This is why it is so important for the person signing the affidavit to fully understand the contents of his/her affidavit and to ensure that his/her affidavit contains only the truth. The affected person or the entity can have the affiant put on the witness stand and questioned under Oath at a trial or in some cases prior to trial at a private examination. This is why that if you are a minor, you must be prepared to stand up and to be questioned on what you wrote in your affidavit. If you are confident and know what you stated in your affidavit very well, then you should have no problem being examined under Oath.

What is the difference between a signed letter and an affidavit? The most significant difference between a signed affidavit and a signed letter is that your signature on an affidavit must be witnessed by a personal who is authorized under law and recognized by the court to witness your signature. The formatting of an affidavit is also more formal and in most cases written up on court forms and in numbered paragraphs which are widely spaced. In some cases, however, your signature on a simple letter could be witnessed in the same manner as an affidavit and would be equally effective in spite of not conforming the standard formatting of an affidavit. When an affidavit is given to a judge to review in court, the judge is assured that some reasonable steps were taken by someone authorized to ensure that the information in the affidavit was from you and that you are a real person. This is why you must personally appear before the person authorized to witness your affidavit and you must sign your affidavit in front of that person. Otherwise, anyone could make up fake document, sign it and submit it to the court to pretend to be someone that they are not. In court, a judge must give much more consideration to an affidavit than to a signed letter. Shown below is a generic sample of where the parties sign the affidavit. First you sign your affidavit in the presence of the person who is witnessing your signature and after you have signed, the person will sign their name and the date and location where the affidavit was signed.

Diagram 1

Sample of an affidavit signature block where signatures are attached at the end of an affidavit. The signatures of the person submitting the affidavit and the person witnessing the signature must

appear. If a lawyer signs the affidavit, he/she should also print his/her name below the signature

Most Commissioners of Oaths will use an ink stamp with their signature Almost all Commissioners of Oaths have an ink stamp which they generally use to stamp near any


signature they sign on your affidavit. This stamp clarifies the signature of the person who witnessed the affidavit. Below is a sample ink stamp from a Commissioner of Oaths. Lawyers generally do not use an ink stamp so it is always a good idea to make sure that the lawyer prints his/her name under his/her signature.

Sample of a Commissioner’s stamp. This can be in ink or embossed on to the paper

Some Commissions may use a stamp with presses the paper to form a raised stamp which can be felt. This is called embossing. Below is a photo of hand held embossing stamps.

Always get two copies of your affidavit signed and keep one for your records It is always advisable when getting an affidavit witnessed to have two copies witnessed. Usually the court will want to have the affidavit with the original signatures in the court record. Although rare, some records have been known to have gone missing from court files. Having a second copy signed and witnessed with original signatures which you keep in your possession will ensure that you will always have a copy should records go missing from the courthouse.

Who is authorized to witness me sign and swear my affidavit? Only certain persons are authorized by law to witness an affidavit. Under Section 13 of the Canada Evidence Act, it states the following:

In legal terms the person who witnesses an affidavit is called a jurat. Those who have authority under law are persons such as lawyers, notary publics or Commissioners of Oaths. As of 2013 in Ontario, registered Paralegals with the Law Society of Upper Canada are authorized to witness affidavits.


When you go to see the lawyer or the person who is going to witness you sign your affidavit that person usually will take some steps to assure themselves that you are the person you say you are. Adults often take identification with them such as a photo driver’s license. In most courthouses many of the staff are authorized to witness affidavits.

The person who witnesses you sign your affidavit must also sign each of the Exhibit pages which are described further down in this document.

In addition to ensuring that the affidavit is that of the person who is signing it, the person who witnesses your affidavit should also take reasonable steps to satisfy himself or herself that you understand and intend every statement in your affidavit. A conscience witness should at the very least quickly review the statements and ask you questions. At the very least, the person witnessing your affidavit should ask you, “Do you swear the statements made in your affidavit are true and do you understand the contents of your affidavit?”

Once an affidavit is signed by the affiant, it cannot be changed. Even hand-written changes made to the affidavit before signing require initials of the affiant in the margins.

What does “affirming” or “swearing” my affidavit mean? Before you sign your affidavit before the authorized person, the person who is witnessing you sign your document should ask you if you “affirm” or “swear” that by putting your signature on your affidavit that you are “affirming” or “swearing” that everything in your document is the truth. You should answer “yes” and then sign the document. Both terms mean the same as previously explained in this document under the historical background the two terms.

Only an authorized person must witness your affidavit Once you have properly prepared an affidavit to be sworn, an authorized person cannot refuse to sign it. Those authorized to witness affidavits are considered as officers of the court and must provide this service when asked to do so. Refusal to sign the affidavit would be considered as an obstruction of justice and a complaint can be and should be filed against any authorized person who refuses to sign an affidavit.

Who should help me prepare my affidavit? If you are submitting an affidavit in a child protection or family court matter, you should not have any of the parties to the court proceedings help you prepare your affidavit, especially if it is one of your parents in family court against the other parent. One of the lawyers in your parent’s court matter can help you and witness your affidavit as well. If you are trying to support one of your parents in their court matter and believe that your testimony is important the lawyer for the parent you are trying to support can help you. If you have access to a competent and honest lawyer, that lawyer should be able to help you. You may get a family member who is not a party to the proceedings to help you but even more preferable is someone outside of the family. There are persons in the community such as teachers and child advocates who can help you. If someone helps you prepare your affidavit then it is important that you read it over very carefully before you sign it to ensure that the person who has helped you was able to write the information you provided in the affidavit accurately and truthfully. It is important that you be very familiar with the contents and to know the meaning of every word and understand the meaning of every phrase in your affidavit.


The importance of NOT having a parent or family member help you make your affidavit In a family court matter where parents are against each other, an affidavit from a minor may be helpful. However, a judge may also refuse to accept the affidavit of a minor if he/she feels that the affidavit was really prepared by one of the parents who would benefit by having the minor write the affidavit. If you are making up an affidavit in a family court matter where your parents are in court against other, you should not have any of your parents assist you in its actual wording or preparation otherwise the affidavit may have the opposite effect of helping the parent. Before considering the preparation of an affidavit, FULLY inform yourself about the benefits and the implications of writing an affidavit. If you have any questions after reading this document, then get your questions answered first.

Below are some comments made by a judge in a family law case where the judge thought that a father had made up an affidavit for his two children.

As the court put it in M.E.S. v. D.A.S., 2001 ABQB 1015:

“In the case at bar, the two children’s affidavits in this matter are clearly drafted by the husband in his usual offensive manner. The many points made in the two children’s affidavits contain the classic pattern and trademark of the husband’s voluminous other writings in this file. “To allow these two affidavits in would countenance yet another abuse of the court process by the husband. Effectively, entering the affidavits would be tantamount to allowing the husband to advance and advocate his case further in his own words under the guise of and cloak of his children’s reflections.”

What should my affidavit contain? There is no standard form or language that needs to be used in an affidavit as long as the facts contained within it are stated clearly so that those reading your affidavit can understand. Clerical and grammatical errors, while to be avoided, are inconsequential. Many courts provide standardized affidavit forms to assist persons to have affidavits which more easily fit in with other court documents but the standardized forms are not necessary. You can review various affidavits referred to in the appendix of this document to see what a finished affidavit will look like in its entirety using standard court forms and not using standard court forms. The affidavit usually will contain your address and the date that your affidavit was witnessed in addition to your signature or mark. Where the affidavit has been made is also noted. When an affidavit contains information which you believe to be true but you have not directly witnessed it yourself then you must state the source of your information and the grounds for your belief in the accuracy of such information. This permits the court to draw its own conclusions about the information in your affidavit. You are responsible for the truth and accuracy of the contents of the affidavit. Use of photos in the affidavit Photos are encouraged in an affidavit. With computers and word processing programs it is easy in include photos in affidavits. Generally in the body of the affidavit one or two small photos inserted into the main body of the affidavit can be effective to support a statement. If a large number of photos are being submitted then it is best to put maybe one photo in the main body of an affidavit and then to make reference to an exhibit where the other related photos are located. Should the judge wish to view the other photos then he/she can go to the exhibit section to see the remaining photos.


Exhibits to your affidavit An affidavit may also contain what are called, “exhibits”. An exhibit is additional information which is labeled and attached to the back of the main body of the affidavit. The exhibits support the statements which you have made in the main body of your affidavit. In most cases, the information contained in an exhibit is too lengthy or cumbersome to fit in the main body of the affidavit itself. Exhibits are usually numbered using the letters A to Z or with numbers. Each exhibit should have either a cover page or a stamp on the first page indicating the exhibit number. Each exhibit is signed by the person authorized to witness the affidavit. Exhibits may include such items as: Copies of emails School report cards Copies of Diaries Copies of letters Copies of documents found on the internet Additional photographs Affidavits from other individuals Copies of articles from newspapers Written transcripts of audio recordings taken secretly or with the knowledge of another party.

To the left is a sample exhibit cover page which can be made up for your own court matter. Each exhibit should be labeled with its own number or letter and have its own cover page and be signed by a person authorized to witness affidavits (lawyer or commissioner)

In the body of your affidavit, you may write a sentence or a group of sentences in a paragraph to describe a fact or piece of information. What you write about the exhibit in the body of the affidavit should be written clearly enough to sufficiently explain how the contents of the exhibit support the facts without the reader having to look at the Exhibit. The Exhibit is there for the reader as additional evidence should the reader want to see that the paragraph you have written is based on fact. Emails, letters or reports are often used as exhibits. If an exhibit is very short such as just a few lines, then rather than making an exhibit, just put the additional information right into the body of the affidavit as this makes it less necessary for the person reading the affidavit to have to turn pages to look into the exhibit section of your affidavit.


If the court wishes to check your exhibits then the judge can quickly find and refer to the back to read the exhibits you have attached to your affidavit.

Note about support letters being used as exhibits If you do include letters from individuals who are supporting you in your court matters and these individuals have sent you a letter of support, the letter should be signed with a signature and contain a date of writing and an address of where the person lives. A phone number where the person can be contacted and a paragraph in the letter by that person offering anyone to call them can also help. However, affidavits from supporters are preferable to letters. Letters without signatures can be easily thrown out as evidence. What you should read or review first before writing your own affidavit If you are submitting an affidavit in relation to a child protection matter, family court matter or any other matter, you should read or have someone review the court documents that have been submitted before the courts or have one or both of the parties involved discuss the issues in the court documents which your information may help to clarify to the court. Remember, the purpose of the affidavit is to help the court determine the truth so that the court can make a reasonable and just settlement of a matter which is before the court. Review and understand what the issues are and if the statements you have made in your affidavit can help get the truth know to the judge then this is how you contribute to justice and fairness.

For example, if your parents are in court and have said things in their affidavits which you know is not the truth, then the information in your affidavit will help the judge to determine which parent may not be telling the truth to the court. Getting to the truth is more important than remaining silent. The interest of getting the truth before the court should be above loyalties to any person should a person be harmed as a result of you remaining silent. Making copies of the signed and witnessed affidavit for serving upon the parties Once you have had the affidavit witnessed then you must make enough copies to ensure that all parties, including the court, receive a copy of your affidavit. It is always a good idea to get no less than copies of your affidavit signed with original signatures on the documents. The copy to the court is supposed to contain original signatures. It is acceptable for the other parties to be provided with photocopies. It is always recommended to keep at least one copy of your affidavit with original signatures as a backup should the copy to the court get lost or misplaced. Note: If your affidavit contains photos or exhibits which are in colour, then colour copies should be made to maintain the most accurate rendition of the original. Serving your affidavit on the parties involved in a court proceeding Once you have had your affidavit witnessed and enough copies made then you must ensure that all parties, including the court, receive a copy of your affidavit. In the vast majority of cases, affidavits from minors will be included as an “exhibit” as part of a parent’s court documents which one or both of the parents or a guardian may submit to the court. In this case, the minor need only to give an original signed copy of his/her affidavit to the parents or guardian and those parties will take care of the details of serving the affidavit. In rare cases, where a minor person may be acting without the involvement of parents or a guardian, the minor must deliver or arrange to have someone deliver copies of your affidavit to the parties involved in the court case first. While the affidavit of service document included in the appendix of this document says that you are 18 years of age, simply cross this out. There is no law that says that you much be 18 years of age to sign an affidavit. This statement on the affidavit of service form is


simply another example of how the legal establishment attempts to silence those under the age of 18 years of age.

Delivering the affidavit to the other parties is called “Service of Documents”. It would be a good idea to take a photo of the person who accepted your documents or secretly audio record the service of the documents. Once you have legally “served” [given] the other parties with copies of your affidavit then you take the original copy of your affidavit [with the signatures in ink] to the courthouse and serve it to the court along with a document called an “affidavit of service” for each of the parties who were given a copy of your affidavit. The “Affidavit of Service” forms are available from the clerks at the courthouse. When you submit your affidavit to the court office, a second affidavit is signed at the court called an “affidavit of service” in which you swear how your affidavit was served on the parties, to whom and when. You should always keep a copy of your signed affidavit with original signatures in your possession at all times. If you have a lawyer, then the lawyer should take care of all these details for you.

Children’s lawyers – government funded A children’s lawyer can help a minor with an affidavit but minors must be very careful when using a children’s lawyer to help them. Many minors have complained that their children’s lawyer will not represent them properly and will not tell the court what they want to say or in some cases not even the correct information. Some minors have reported children’s lawyers giving them incorrect legal information in an effort to preventing the minor from understanding their rights and freedoms. A number of teens have reported that their children’s lawyers tell them that affidavits cannot be submitted by minors until they are 18 years of age. Some lawyers have lied and told their child clients that it was against the law for a teen under 18 to write an affidavit. Some children’s lawyers tell their clients that it was considered child abuse for anyone to allow mature children to read court documents. Instead of informing children of their rights and teaching them, some children’s lawyers want to further abuse their child clients by keeping them stupid and uninformed. In cases where child protection agencies are involved, in some cases, those who work as a children’s lawyer used to work for the very child protection agency or have very close ties with lawyers and workers with the child protection agency.

Often, children’s lawyers will not want you to say anything which may make another lawyer, child protection worker or court related professional look bad to the judge. Many lawyers and judges don’t want young people interfering with the professionals or making them look bad in writing. In many cases the professionals have already decided beforehand what is going to be the outcome in a court case before it even goes to court and in many cases, they don’t want kids interfering with what the lawyers have decided they want as the outcome. Some teens have reported that their children’s lawyer refused to attend court if the teen was present or tried to submit an affidavit to the court. If you have a children’s lawyer and find that the lawyer does not want to tell the court what you really want to say about your experience, then it is likely the lawyer is afraid to really fight for your rights and freedoms. Below is a photo and link to testimony from just one teen of many who complain about poor services by their children’s lawyer.


The teen shown here is just one of many Canadian children under the age of 18 years of age who are boldly standing up to support the cause of justice and to fight for themselves and to expose the broken family court system in Canada by reporting how their children’s lawyer miserably failed them. In many cases, lawyers threaten and intimidate their child clients in an attempt to shut them up. View the video at the link below: http://vimeo.com/12417120

This mother is just one of many Canadian parents who are boldly standing up to support the cause of justice and to fight for themselves and to expose the broken family court system in Canada by reporting how their children’s lawyer miserably failed them and their children. View the video at the link below: http://vimeo.com/821391

Your own paid lawyer In some cases it may be possible for a minor to hire his/her own lawyer with the fees being paid by a parent or family member. Paid lawyers will sometimes act more responsibly and are more inclined to do what their client instructs them to do but in many cases, lawyers do not like to assist or to witness

http://vimeo.com/12417120

http://vimeo.com/821391


any document which may cast another lawyer, judge or other professional in a bad light. Those professionals in the system tend to want to protect their industry even if it means helping to obstruct attempts by minors to get the truth introduced into the court. Being present in the court when your affidavit is before the court Judges and lawyers are not used to having minors submit affidavits into the court record. It would not be uncommon for one of the lawyers to claim that your affidavit was coached or contained lies so that the judge will not believe what you have said. Attending court on the day that your affidavit will be seen by the judge is a good idea. Lawyers are less likely to call you a liar in front of you if you are present in the courtroom and the judge will see your presence in the courtroom as your commitment to the statements you have made in your affidavit. Writing a sworn letter to a judge In some cases, a letter can be written for the court or for other purposes which can be less formal than an affidavit, but can be quite effective. Sworn letters are written up just like a letter but still with your signature witnessed by an authorized person. In a sworn letter it is a good idea to be present in the court should the judge have questions about your letter. If you are unable to attend court for any reason you can also indicate in your letter to the judge a phone number where you can be reached if the judge feels that he/she needs to confirm your identity at the time the parties are in the court. [sample to be included in future update of this document]

Writing a signed but unsworn affidavit (statement) for the court In some cases, it may not be possible for a minor to get an affidavit signed. In most cases this is because the minor is being held against his/her wishes so that getting to a person to have an affidavit witnessed is very difficult. Such an example would be when child protection agencies are detaining a minor in a foster home or group home and keeping such tight control of the minor that it is impossible for the minor to get free. In such situations it may be possible to submit an unsworn affidavit to the court which technically would no longer be considered as an affidavit but a signed statement. Because the document has not been witnessed, the authenticity of the document can be questioned. If attempting to submit a signed but unsworn affidavit to the court, then the person signing should do everything possible to attend court or to do everything possible to be available when court is being held. It would be helpful to include a recent photo of you in the body of your documents and a statement where you can be reached by phone at the time the court is being held.

Judges do have the authority to call anyone they want by phone right in the middle of the court hearing. Fair and competent judges should do all that they can to get the truth before the court, even if by phone. Hopefully, the courts will embrace video calls so that children can be spoken to by the judge without the child having to attend court.

General Questions Are there any negative consequences in regards to my relationship with my parents in submitting an affidavit in a family court matter? In family court matters there are some negative aspects of writing an affidavit which all minors should be aware of and be willing to maturely and logically deal with. Affidavits create a permanent record of the child’s statements. Once the minor’s evidence is written down, it’s there for all time to be worried over, reread and fretted about. In a court matter where parents are fighting over children,


depending on the nature of the child’s evidence, the affidavit may damage the child’s the relationship with the non-favoured parent well into the future and significantly impede reconciliation.

All minors should be aware of how their affidavit can impact their relationship with one or both parents and be prepared to deal with this in the future. A mature minor will understand this consequence and will understand the importance of resolving relationship issues with parents at an appropriate place and time. Sometimes counselling can be effective. However, if submitting an affidavit is necessary to get the truth known to the court and the minor believes that this is in his or her best interests then it is important that the truth prevail thought an affidavit. It must always be considered that during family court litigation, parents sometimes do not tell the truth or do what is in the best interest of their children. Many times parents are encouraged to lie by lawyers and other professions to win in family court. It must be remembered that justice requires the truth to be known to the courts.

I am being told that I cannot submit an affidavit because I am not 18 years of age. Is this true? It is not uncommon for minors to be told that they cannot submit an affidavit because they are under the age of 18. Some of those who may tell you that you cannot legally submit an affidavit may include your own lawyer, courthouse staff, Legal Aid lawyers, duty counsel lawyers and police officers. Although most of these professionals should know, most are simply unaware of your rights to submit your own affidavit as in many cases they have been lied to and misinformed by their bosses as well. Many simple do not know the law although they should.

While the age of 18 may apply to legal contracts, it does not apply to affidavits. Anyone who tells you that you cannot sign an affidavit because you are under the age of 18 is either lying to you or totally unaware of the law. If a lawyer tells you this then the lawyer should be considered as being incompetent. In general, courts and lawyers are not used to minors being aware of affidavits or how to write them so often it is the legal experts who are shocked when presented with an affidavit from a person who is a minor. Read the sections of the Canada Evidence Act earlier in this document which deals with the age of those submitting affidavits. My children’s lawyer said that he/she will not submit my affidavit to the court. What should I do? Some minors have reported that their children’s lawyer will refuse to witness or to submit an affidavit for their client who is 18 years of age or younger. If your affidavit is done properly and you are fully prepared to be stand behind what you wrote in your affidavit, your children’s lawyer should not refuse to submit your affidavit to the court. Your lawyer may not like it, but your lawyer cannot refuse to do so as this is considered as an obstruction of justice which is a criminal offence which could get the lawyer into a lot of trouble. If your children’s lawyer refuses, you should fire the lawyer and file a complaint against the lawyer with the Law Society of the Province in which the lawyer practices law. If a lawyer refuses to submit your affidavit to the court or refuses to submit information that is truthful and helpful to the court when instructed to do so by the client of a lawyer is called an obstruction of justice. Lawyers who refuse to submit affidavits from those under the age of 18 generally do so because they do not want to been seen by the judge and the other lawyer as assisting a young person to put an affidavit into the court. Generally, the courts and the lawyers don’t want to hear the truth from minors and want to get minors unaware of their rights and freedoms. In most cases, lawyers and judges want to keep kids suppressed so that lawyers and professionals can continue to make money.


If your lawyer refuses, then you can serve the court with your affidavit yourself once you have learned know how to do it. You should also file an official complaint against the lawyer to the Law Society of the Province which he/she does business and copy your letter to Canada Court Watch. You many also register the lawyer's name with the Canadian Registry for Public Accountability at the following website at: http://www.crpa.ca In Ontario, complaints about a lawyer can be made to the Law Society of Upper Canada at the following website:

http://www.lsuc.on.ca/with.aspx?id=644

Shown above is image of complaints page at Law Society of Upper Canada

I have taken my affidavit to the courthouse or to a lawyer’s office to be witnessed but nobody will witness it. What should I do? Some minors have reported that when they have gone to have their affidavit sworn, that the qualified persons have refused to witness it just because the person is a minor. In some cases, someone may read the affidavit but then refuse to sign it because some of the things said in the affidavit put some of the professionals in a bad light.

One teen reported that a judge had actually gone done personally and instructed court officials at the court not to witness any affidavit from any person who was under the age of eighteen (18) if they came to the front service counter at the court. This, of course was just another barrier that court officials were attempting to place in front of young persons who were attempting to be heard and to assist in the administration of justice. When approaching any qualified person to sign your affidavit, use a secret recording device to secretly record what the person says. If the qualified person says that they are refusing to sign your affidavit then ask them for their reason why they will not sign it. Refusing to witness an affidavit for a minor who is competent to understand the contents of his/her affidavit would be considered as an obstruction

http://www.crpa.ca

http://www.lsuc.on.ca/with.aspx?id=644


of justice and that person could be made to face consequences if a complaint is filed against that authorized person. It is a lawyer’s DUTY to witness affidavits if asked to do so. Attached to the appendix of this document is a sample letter from one teen to her children’s lawyer complaining about how the lawyer was not truthful with her.

I had help to prepare my affidavit from a community advocate and I am being threatened by my lawyer for the name of the person who helped me prepare the affidavit? What should I do? Under no circumstances are you required to provide the name of any person who you might have used to assist you to prepare an affidavit. This is a violation of your rights. Not even a judge has the authority to demand that you give the name of anyone you might have obtained help from to prepare your affidavit. The only thing which matters is that your affidavit is truthful and that you fully understand the contents of your affidavit and are willing to be questioned by a judge in a court of law, should you be requested to do so. In many cases, those who get help to prepare an effective affidavit do a better job than do lawyers. Lawyers and other court related professions do not want non lawyers to do better work than themselves so often they will attempt to get the names so that they can attack those who may have tried to help you be heard. I am a minor who has had a bad experience with the family/child protection court system and I would like to speak up publicly in the name of justice just like the kids in some of the videos I have seen. How do I get my voice heard? If you are a minor who has had a negative experience as a result of your parent’s involvement with the family or child protection courts then you should contact Canada Court Watch by email at [email protected] or visit the Canada Court Watch main website and the video links on their page at www.canadacourtwatch.com

Advocates with Canada Court Watch will assist you to get your voice heard along with many other Canadians who are fighting hard to stop the abuse of children and families by Canada’s family justice system. Below is the Canada Court Watch logo from their public Facebook group.

Further Reading A minor’s guide to the Office of the Children’s Lawyer The document titled, “A minor’s guide to the Office of the Children’s Lawyer” will explain many of the serious problems and issues that other minors have experienced when dealing with the Children’s Lawyer’s office. Many of the issues apply to any situation where a child is dealing with or being represented by a children’s lawyer.

mailto:[email protected]

http://www.canadacourtwatch.com


A parent’s family court/child protection system resource library The parent’s family court/child protection system resource library is available on both USB and flash memory cards through various community advocacy groups such as Canada Court Watch. This educational resource contains a wealth of helpful information for all persons having dealings with the family and child protection justice systems.

Appendix documents Sample affidavits from teens completed on official court forms (Ontario) Sample affidavits not using official court forms Sample affidavit of service form (Ontario) (2 pages) Sample signed statement a teen (Ariel) (4 pages) Sample letter from a teen complaining about her children’s lawyer not being truthful in relation to helping her with an affidavit (2 pages)

ONTARIO Court File Number Ontario Court of Justice C325/12

(Name of Court) Family Law Rules, O. Reg. 114/99 491 Steeles Ave, East, Milton, Ontario L9T 1Y7 Form 14A: Affidavit (General)

(Court office address) Dated: Nov 12, 2013 Applicant(s) Full legal name & address for service — street & number, municipality, postal code, telephone & fax numbers and e-mail address (if any).

Lawyer’s name & address — street & number, municipality, postal code, telephone & fax numbers and e-mail address (if any).

The Children’s Aid Society, Region of Halton 1445 Norjohn Court Units 1&2 Burlington, Ontario L7L 0E6 Tel: (905) 333-4441 Fax: (905) 333-1844 Email:

Ms. Diane Skrow 1445 Norjohn Court Units 1&2 Burlington, Ontario L7L 0E6 Tel: (905) 333-4441 Fax: 905-333-2860 Email:

Respondent(s) Full legal name & address for service — street & number, municipality, postal code, telephone & fax numbers and e-mail address (if any).


Kxx Hxxxx (mother) XXXX Dxxxxx Avenue Burlington, Ontario XxX XxX Tel: (XXX) XXX-XXXX Email: Mxxxxxx Hxxxx (father) XXX Dxxxxxxxx Road, Unit XXX Etobicoke, Ontario XxX XxX Phone: XXX-XXX-XXXX Email:

Self Represented Self Represented

Children’s Lawyer Name & address of Children’s Lawyer agent for service (street & number, municipality, postal code, telephone numbers and email address (if any) and name of person(s) represented

John V. Grant (Representing the children) 75 Yonge St. Hamilton, Ontario L8N 1V4 Tel: (905) 527-8716 Fax: 905-529-8819 Email: My name is (Full legal name) Txxxxx Hxxxx I live in Burlington, Ontario and we swear/affirm that the following is true to the best of our knowledge: Set out the statements of fact in consecutively numbered paragraphs. Where possible, each numbered paragraph should consist of one complete sentence and be limited to a particular statement of fact. If you learned a fact from someone else, you must give that person’s name and state that you believe that fact to be true.

Form 14A: Affidavit (General) (page 2) Court File Number C325/12 dated November 12, 2013

1) I am the biological daughter of the defendants Kxx Hxxxx and Mxxxxxxl Hxxxx and am the

subject of the child protection proceedings before the court involving the Halton Children’s Aid Society. I am currently 14 ½ years of age (d.o.b. Jan 12, 1999) and do not suffer from any medical condition which prevents me from fully understanding the contents of this affidavit. Below is a photo of my mother and I taken on November 10, 2013.

2) I am writing this affidavit of my own free will because I believe that the CAS has messed things up for my family and has not done what is right for my family. I want the court to know that my wishes are to go back to my home to be with my mother where I am safe and where I rightfully belong. While my mom and I might get into arguments occasionally over her rules I want the court to know that I do not feel that my mother poses any risk to me or to my brother as well.

3) The CAS forced me to away from my home without a good reason and in a very sneaky way which I shall outline in this affidavit. Since the involvement of the CAS in my life things have been so much worse for me, including criminal charges against me which would never have happened if CAS had not placed me into their horrible group home where staff bully and intimidate the kids staying there.

4) Currently, I do not trust the CAS and its workers and can say, without hesitation, that they have not helped me or my younger brother. If anything, I feel bullied and terrorized by the CAS workers.

5) In this affidavit, I will also disclose some of the very unpleasant experiences I have had while being involved with the Halton Children’s Aid Society and its workers which will

Photo of mother and daughter removed as required by law in

spite of the teen having no objections to photo being

posted.


demonstrate how bad they have been to me and my family.

6) The apprehension of my brother and I was done on Sunday October 6,, 2013 by CAS worker Ms. Brenda Smith who lied to me the day she came to my home. I was not in any danger when she ordered me to leave my home. Following are some of the details of my experience with the CAS workers.

Entry of the CAS worker, Ms. Brenda Smith, into my mother’s home on October 6, 2013 without permission and lying to me

7) On Sunday October 6, 2013 at about 6:45 am, I called the Halton CAS because I found my mother sleeping on the floor. I woke her up and she went into her bed and back to sleep. I have an anxiety issue and because of my family’s previous involvement with CAS had been told by the CAS workers that I was to call and report to them anytime I saw something different with my mother. I was not worried for my safety but did what the workers had previously instructed me to do. Without asking me if I wanted her to come to my home, Ms. Smith told me she was going to come out. I did not want her to come but afraid to say no to her.

8) Later that morning, CAS worker, Ms. Brenda Smith came to my home. I did not want her to come into my home so I went outside to meet her on the front steps to tell her that I was OK and in hopes that she would just leave. Ms. Smith, told me that she had to come into my home to look around. She told me that I had nothing to worry about and that she was not going to apprehend me or my brother and that she was there just to help.

9) Ms. Smith then walked past me and opened the front door of our home and walked in. I was too scared of the CAS worker to say anything to her so I just followed her into our home. She walked into the living room. When I asked her if I should get my mother, she said not now and she wanted to speak to me alone. I was just too scared of the CAS worker and thought that I had to do what she said or that I would get into trouble. I believed that if I did what she wanted that she would leave my home.

The CAS worker lied to me and then staged photographs to use against my mother

10) After the CAS worker Ms. Smith had looked around, she then told me that she wanted to count all of the alcohol containers that might have been in the house. She told me to collect them and to bring them to her in the living room. Out of fear for getting in trouble for not cooperating with the CAS worker, I did what the CAS worker told me to do and started


gathering any empty containers I could find in the house.

11) I went into the garage where there was a garbage bag of empties which had been there for a very long time. There were three unopened cans of beer in the cupboard. I brought the bag of empties from the garage and into the living room. The CAS worker then told me to empty the bag of empties on the floor and to arrange them together in a line in one spot on the floor. The three unopened cans of beer the CAS worker told me to put on the table with the empty cans. The CAS worker told me that she only wanted to count the containers but after getting them all together, she took out her cell phone and took a picture of the containers. I did not like the CAS worker lying to me but I was afraid to say anything to her.

12) The photo below on the right is of the empties from the garage and the photo on the left is of the empties which the CAS worker had me place on the table in the living room for her. Ms. Smith got me to take the empty beer cans from the laundry room and to place them on the table which are shown in the photo to the left. Those cans had been in the laundry room for some time as well. These photos are the photos which the CAS worker, Ms. Smith, took with her cell phone and included in the court documents. I feel it was very wrong for Ms. Smith to have had me get all the empties and to have me place them so that she could take photos to use against my mother.

The CAS worker entered and searched the upstairs of our home without consent

13) After the CAS worker, Ms. Smith, had taken the photos of the empties, she then told me that she had to go upstairs and to look around. She did not ask if it was OK to go upstairs and she


did not ask me to get my mother, even though my mother was upstairs sleeping in her bedroom. In a very stern voice, Ms. Smith ordered me to take her upstairs and I complied. The CAS worker went upstairs very quietly and whispered so as to not wake up my mother. The CAS worker went into the rooms except my mother’s bedroom and took pictures. Below is the photo of my own personal bathroom which my mother does not use or is responsible for. I admit I have a messy bathroom but that should be none of the business of the CAS worker as to how I choose to keep my personal space.

14) The CAS worker used the photo of my bathroom in court documents without explanation to make it appear that my mother was responsible for the messy bathroom but this is not the case at all. I am the one who is responsible for my own bathroom, not my mother. As for the clothes on the floor, my mother and I were gathering old clothes to donate to charity prior to the CAS worker coming to our home. I told this to the CAS worker, Ms. Smith, but she did not seem interested in any explanation.

The CAS worker confronted my mother and totally humiliated her

15) After the CAS worker had taken her photos and snooped around the house while my mother was sleeping in her bedroom, the CAS worker told me to wake my mother and to tell her to come downstairs. The worker did not tell me to clean up the empty containers from the living room floor so they were left there on the floor. I went up and woke my mother who


had no problem in getting out of bed and coming downstairs.

16) When I came down with my mother downstairs I could see how upset and humiliated my mother was. My mother came downstairs to be confronted with the CAS worker sitting at the table with the empty containers lying all over the floor which I had put there at the instructions of the CAS worker. I felt so horrible and responsible for having brought all this upon my mother. I hated the CAS worker, Ms. Smith for doing all this but I felt powerless to say anything. I now believe that Ms. Smith did this intentionally to humiliate my mother. The CAS worker treated my mother in a degrading manner. My mother told me afterwards that she felt totally defeated to come downstairs and to see the CAS worker and the empties all over the floor.

After telling me that she was not going to apprehend my brother or I, the CAS worker told me that I was being forced to leave my home

17) After grilling my mother with questions, the CAS worker, Ms. Smith told my mother that my brother and I would have to leave the home and that we would not be allowed to stay at the home anymore. My mother called my father who came out to pick me up. My father and I then went to pick up my brother who was at a sleepover with one of his friends. We then went back to my mother’s home to get some clothes. At no time did I feel afraid with my mother. At no time did I see her drink. At no time was my mother unable to care for me.

I was placed into a CAS group home where I was harassed, intimidated and bullied by staff with criminal charges being laid against me

18) On Thursday October 17, 2013, I was placed into a Halton CAS group home called “Transition” which was located on Waterdown Rd. in Waterdown, Ontario. I was placed there in spite of my objections to be placed there. I don’t know why I was placed there in the first place because I was already staying with my grandfather and things were find. My parents also told the CAS workers that a group home was not a good place for me to go to but the CAS workers did not listen. Supposedly I was there to be protected from my mother. From the very first evening in the group home I was bullied and treated like garbage by the staff. I witnessed other kids being bullied by staff as well. I was placed in an environment where group home staff literally abused their power and authority over the kids.

19) On October 19, 2013, after being placed into the CAS group home one of the workers by the name of Carolyn began to harass and verbally abuse me. Carolyn simply took a dislike to me from the moment I first arrived at the facility. She kept following me and breathing down my


neck and told me that I was going to do what staff told me or get grounded. The female group home worker yelled at me waived her hands in my face. She kept yelling at me and following me. She wound not stop harassing me. I then pushed her away from me and told her to leave me and told her to keep away from me. The worker then punched me in the face with her fist which left a bruise close to my left eye and then called for the other worker, Tina. Tina came into the room and I was thrown on the floor and restrained. In spite of everything being calmed down, Tina and Carolyn told another staff member to call the police. It was clear that Carolyn wanted revenge. She is known amongst staff to be very over dramatic and judgmental.

20) Once the police were called, Carolyn made fun of the situation. Carolyn told me that I would regret it and told me that she hoped that I would spend the night in jail. She made fun of me as if calling the police was some kind of joke. There were two witnesses against me so the police believed the workers. I was arrested and charged with two counts of assault against Tina and Carolyn. In spite of doing nothing to the other girl Tina, I was charged with assault for trying to resist being restrained. I was just trying to defend myself.

21) I have never in my life been in such an abusive and controlling place as a CAS group home. I don’t even know why they use the word “home” at all. The group home was basically a jail for kids. My rights and freedoms were violated from the moment I was forced by the Halton CAS into the group home. CAS claimed that I was being placed in the group home to be protected from my mother but in reality I was abused by the Halton CAS group home. I have never in my life suffered the kind of abuse that I experienced in the Halton CAS group home. Just a few of the crazy things that went on in the group home were:

a) All cell phones and electronics were taken away from the kids. I now understand why this is done so that that none of the kids will be able to electronically record the abuse going on inside the group home. The workers in the CAS group home are on a power trip and literally abuse and torment already distressed teens to their breaking points.

b) If staff did not like the clothes you were wearing then they would make you take them off and if you did not dress as group staff ordered, then you would get punished and put into isolation.

c) You are not allowed to sit in a room with anyone unless a CAS worker present.

d) You are not allowed to speak to anyone on the phone unless approved by the CAS and staff listen in on your conversations.

e) Kids are not allowed to sit on a couch with anyone of the opposite gender.


Unwanted interrogation of myself at my school by the CAS workers without any prior notice or consent from myself

22) On Tuesday November 5, 2013, I was summoned out of my classroom at my school [Dr. Frank J. Hayden Secondary School] and told to go to the counseling office. Once at the office, I was told that I had been pulled from class to be interrogated by CAS workers at the school. Nobody told me beforehand that CAS workers were coming over to my school. This put me under a lot of stress because I felt trapped, alone and that I had no choice except to submit myself to an unwanted interrogation by the CAS workers.

23) There were two workers from the CAS in the room who asked me a bunch of intrusive questions. No witnesses were present. I told them that I did not want to answer some of their questions which I felt were personal and did not have anything to do with them. In an effort to get information from me the CAS workers threatened me by telling me that I could not be trusted if I was not going to answer all of their questions.

24) At one point the workers tried to get me to agree with them and to state that my mother had lied to workers about an issue which involved the windshield wipers breaking down on her car on Halloween night. The workers tried to accuse my mother of getting my brother and I to lie. It seemed like these workers only wanted the answers they wanted to hear.

25) I did not like the CAS workers coming into my school and interrupting me from class to bully and intimidate me. I would have preferred that they spoke to me at my home, not at my school.

My thoughts about being apprehended on October 6, 2013

26) The CAS worker, Ms. Smith should not have apprehended me from my home. The only reason why I called the CAS was because I had been instructed by the workers during previous involvement to call the CAS to report on my mother. On that morning I found my mother sleeping on the floor at 6:15 am in the morning and was fearful that if I did not call the CAS and report on my mother that I would get into trouble. I called CAS just to get some information and not to have CAS come out to my home. I never felt afraid of my mother nor afraid for myself nor was my mother “passed out” as the CAS stated in the court documents. I never told the CAS worker that my mother had “passed out”.

27) As far as I am concerned, I did not need to be apprehended from my home as I was in no danger whatsoever nor was I fearful of my mother at any time. My brother was at a friend’s home for a sleepover and was not even in the house at the time.


28) The only thing that my mother did was drink 3 cans of beer during the middle of the night

while I was in my bedroom. Kids should not be taken away because their parent drinks three beers.

My observations and feelings about my mother’s use of alcohol

29) While I don’t like my mother drinking alcohol, I have not seen her consume alcohol for over a year. While I get into arguments with my mother about her rules as do most other teenagers with their parents, my mother is basically a good mother who does take care of my brother, Keaghan and myself. I do not feel threatened in any way as a result of my mother’s occasional use of alcohol. Children should not be taken from parents just because they drink.

30) In the past year I have never seen my mother consume alcohol in my presence or the presence of my bother that I know of. Her drinking has not caused me or my brother to be fearful of her. The main reason why I am concerned about my mother’s occasional drinking is what the CAS might do my family because of it. I am afraid of the CAS.

31) On October 6, 2013 when I was apprehended from my home, my mother was not drunk nor did she do anything to frighten me. My mother admitted to having three beers while I was in my room. There were three unopened cans of beer.

My education and my social relationships have been turned upside down by the CAS

32) The CAS workers have said that I must live with my maternal grandfather who lives in Toronto, Ontario. Early in the morning I have to get up and catch TTC then the Go train then catch the bus in Burlington to get to school. After school I have the same difficulty with transportation. It is a long and exhausting trip to get back and forth from school. Two nights a week I attend dance classes in Waterdown, Ontario so my mother has to drive me to Toronto, Ontario after dancing. The extra time taken to travel back and forth, especially in the evening has interfered with my ability to get my homework done and interferes with my social relationships with my friends at school. With my anxiety disorder, this extra stress only makes my anxiety worse and put even more stress on my mother as well.

33) The CAS workers claim to be protecting me (I don’t know from what) but in reality they have made things very difficult for me and it seems that they really don’t care about what is best for me. It seems that they only want to keep my brother and I separated and to punish my mother. I just want to go back home and to get on with my life with my mother. If this is the way CAS helps families then I sure don’t need the CAS to help me.


My thoughts and feelings about the Halton Children’s Aid Society

34) Both my 10-year-old brother and I live in fear of the Halton Children’s Aid Society. Both of us feel that the CAS workers have not done anything good for our family but only put more stress on all of us, especially our mother. My brother cries about wanting to come home. I hate what the Halton CAS and its workers have done to the mom, my brother and myself. Our lives have been turned upside down since they became involved.

35) In regards to the day that I was apprehended on October 6, 2013, I did not like the way in which the CAS worker, Ms. Brenda Smith, came out to my house and then came into our home without permission and by lying to me. I think it was very sneaky of Ms. Smith to have taken pictures in our home to make my mother look bad without explaining in court documents what the true circumstances were surrounding how she obtained the photos and what she knew about the photos.

In Summary

36) Both my 10-year-old brother Keaghan and myself live in fear of the Halton Children’s Aid Society workers and just want to come home where we feel safe. I have no fear of my mother and do not feel afraid being in her care at any time. If anything, I am fearful of the CAS workers who have mostly bullied and intimidated me and not listened to what I have to say.

37) The use of alcohol by my mother has been grossly exaggerated by the CAS workers to justify the apprehension of my brother and I. In reality, consumption of alcohol by my mother has never been a problem for a long time in our home. Even my brother will say the same thing.

38) It is time for my brother and I to go home and for the Halton CAS to stop harassing and threatening us.

39) I make this affidavit in the name of justice and for no unlawful or improper use.

Put a line through any blank space on this page.


______________________________________________ Signature of Txxxxx Hxxxx (14 ½ yrs)

______________________________________________

(This document to be signed in front of a lawyer, justice of the peace, notary public or commissioner for taking affidavits.)

Sworn/Affirmed before me at:

(municipality) in Province of Ontario (province, state or country) on (date)

___________________________________________ Barrister/Solicitor or Commissioner of Oaths

ONTARIO Court File Number Superior Court of Justice Family Court Branch C-440/11

(Name of Court) Family Law Rules, O. Reg. 114/99 55 Main St. West, Hamilton, Ontario L8P 1H4 Form 14A: Affidavit (General)

(Court office address) Dated: July 21, 2011 Applicant(s) Full legal name & address for service — street & number, municipality, postal code, telephone & fax numbers and e-mail address (if any).


The Children's Aid Society of Hamilton 26 Arrowsmith Rd. Hamilton, Ontario L8L 4B0 Phone: 905-522-1121 Fax: 905-572-7446 Email:

Treena Watts (Legal Council) 26 Arrowsmith Rd. Hamilton, Ontario L8L 7M1 Phone: 905-522-1121 Ext 6419 Fax: 905-572-7446 Email:

Respondent(s) Full legal name & address for service — street & number, municipality, postal code, telephone & fax numbers and e-mail address (if any).


Brenda Domenic (mother) 81 Balmoral St. Hamilton, Ontario L8J 7M4 Tel: (xxx) xxx-xxxx Tom McFarlane (father) 44 Ruston Ave. Hamilton, Ontario L8H 3M9 Tel: (xxx) xxx-xxxx Email:

Salvatore Garcea, Barrister and Solicitor 340-69 John St. South Hamilton, Ontario L8N 2B9 Tel: 905-529-9999 Fax: 905-529-1160 Joel Kerr, Barrister and Solicitor 1010-105 Main St. E. Hamilton, Ontario L8N 1G6 Tel: 905-521-1013 Fax: 905-529-7791 Jim Higginson, Barrister and Solicitor 63 King St. West Dundas, Ontario L9H 1T5 Tel: (905) 628-6321 Fax: (905) 628-2767 Lawyer for Kevin McFarlane (15 ½ years)

My name is (Full legal name) Kevin McFarlane I live in (municipality and province) Hamilton, Ontario and I swear/affirm that the following is true: Set out the statements of fact in consecutively numbered paragraphs. Where possible, each numbered paragraph should consist of one complete sentence and be limited to a particular statement of fact. If you learned a fact from someone else, you must give that person’s name and state that you believe that fact to be true.

1. I am currently 15 ½ years of age and am not mentally or physically impaired.

2. I am the oldest child of the Respondents, Tom McFarlane (father) and Brenda Dominic

(mother) and along with my three sisters are the subject of the Child Protection Application

Form 14A: Sample Affidavit (General) (page 2) Court File Number C-440-11 dated July 20, 2011

filed by the Applicant Society against my parents.

3. I am submitting this affidavit to get my wishes and preferences before the court and to tell the

court about some of the bad things that I have been subjected to during the ongoing court

proceedings between my parents and involving the Children’s Aid Society of Hamilton and by

a CAS worker named Pepetua Chizive.

4. I have willingly submitting this affidavit with the help and support of friends in the community

as well as information from the Internet and neither my father nor any other member of my

family has assisted me in writing this affidavit as I was led to believe that they might get

blamed for influencing me if they did help me to write it.

5. Below is a photo of me taken on June 16, 2012. At that time I was safe with my friends but

hiding from the CAS and the police as the worker with the CAS, Ms. Perpetua Chizive, had

obtained a temporary warrant obtained behind my back to have me taken away from my Dad’s

house by force. I believe the warrant has expired but Ms. Chizive will not provide a copy of

the warrant for me or my dad to look at.

6. I am currently living with my dad and his partner, Jessica Lavalee at our home in Hamilton

which is where I want to continue to live. Below is a very recent picture of me with my dad at

Canada’s Wonderland. We are with four friends in the picture (left of my dad and I). The two

young girls are friends of my younger sisters. My sisters are not allowed to come on outings

with me and my dad because of the CAS has insisted on supervised access with my dad which

is not necessary.


Failure of my Children’s lawyer, Ms. Virginia Mendez de Costa to effectively represent me 7. The main reason why I have had to resort to having this affidavit prepared on my own is

because my children’s lawyer, Ms. Virginia Mendez de Costa who is from Hamilton has failed

to represent me effectively in the almost two years she was supposed to be representing me.

8. Ms. Mendes Da Costa has not listened to me or done anything to really help me since she

started as my children’s lawyer. In the two years that she was supposed to be representing me,

she has spent only about 10 to 15 minutes speaking to me in person and I have always felt that

she did not really care.

9. At the first and only meeting I had with Ms. Mendes Da Costa almost two years ago, she asked

questions of me which clearly could be answered in only a way which would make my dad

look bad. I did not like her one-sided questioning. She did not ask any questions about my

mother who has been abusive to me and my siblings. Clearly, Ms. Mendes Da Costa seemed

not interested in seeing the full picture or hearing the truth. She seemed against my dad from

the very beginning. On a second day when I went to her office to try to speak to her, she

turned me away and refused to speak to me.

10. In frustration of not being able to meet with Ms. Mendes Da Costa, I wrote letters to Ms.

Mendes Da Costa. Ms. Mendes Da Costa did not responded to my letters and she never called

me to keep me informed of matters affecting me in court. My letters to Ms. Mendes Da Costa

were never responded to.


11. At one point, my father tried to help me write an affidavit and to file a motion in the court.

While I did fully understand the contents and did understand what an affidavit was, I did not

fully understand the process of court documents at the time. As a result my dad was accused by

the CAS worker, Ms. Chizive, of influencing me. Once my dad realized he had made a

mistake by doing a motion of my behalf, I went to the court with my grandparents and

withdrew it. I better understand now what a motion is.

12. On June 4, 2012, I went to the court with my dad to see for myself what was going on and

when I located Ms. Mendes Da Costa at the courthouse she again refused to give me any

answers. When I asked her about the letters I sent to her, she said that she never received them.

She seemed nervous that I had shown up at the court on my own and was asking her questions.

She seemed too busy and just walked away without ever answering my questions. I have fired

her and if anything, she has kept my wishes and preferences as well as the truth from getting to

the court. I am very upset with her and don’t trust her any more.

CAS worker, Ms. Chizive is attempting to mislead the court regarding marijuana 13. I have read paragraph 67 of the affidavit of the CAS worker, Ms. Perpetua Chizive, dated April

3, 2012. In her affidavit Ms. Chizive stated that she had been told by my mother that I was

using marijuana which was obtained at my father’s home. Ms. Chizive’s affidavit would lead

the reader to believe that my father’s partner, Jessica Lavalee had given me marijuana. This is

simply not true.

14. I have on more than one occasion told the CAS worker, Ms. Chizive, that I got marijuana at my

mother’s home and that it was my mother who personally gave me marijuana which she got

from her new boyfriend, Kevin. Ms. Chizive asked me on more than one occasion the same

question as if trying to get me to give her a different answer.

Mistreatment by the Children’s Aid Society 15. I am very upset with the way in which the CAS has dealt with me and my family.

16. The CAS worker, Ms. Pepetua Chizive has put my sisters and I under pressure to live with my

mother. I do not want to live with my mother and prefer to live with my father. While neither

of my parents are perfect and both have done dumb things to annoy each other because they no

longer are together, between the two homes, I still feel the most comfortable living at my dad’s

home and to visit my mother whenever I feel like it. I don’t like people from the CAS


attempting to force me to live with a parent that I do not want to live with.

17. I have written letters to the CAS worker involved, Ms. Perpetua Chizive but she has not

responded back to answer my questions. I even gave her my email address to make it easy for

her to contact me. Ms. Chizive seems to be doing the same thing that my children’s lawyer did

to me which is to avoid answering my questions.

Attached as “Exhibit A” is a copy of my letter to Ms. Chizive which she has not responded to

Attempt by Ms. Chizive to apprehend me using police force 18. On Monday June 11, 2012, at a secret court hearing which neither me nor any member of my

family knew about, the CAS went before Justice of the Peace Anderson to obtain a temporary

order to have police apprehend me by force. The CAS worker behind this was Perpetua

Chizive. Police showed up at my door but luckily I was not home and went into hiding once I

found out that the police had come to my home.

19. As a result of the temporary apprehension order by the CAS I had had to flee from my school

and into hiding with my friends and had to miss the last few days of school in order to prevent

the CAS from getting me. I did not want to be forced from my own home and into a group

home as Ms. Chizive was trying to do to me. I was prepared to do everything I could to fight

for my rights and freedoms which I am entitled to under Canada’s Charter of Rights and

Freedoms.

20. The CAS and the police refused to provide a copy of their warrant to my father when they

came to my home on June 11, 2012. The workers with the Hamilton Children’s Aid Society

also refused to provide my father with a copy of this warrant when he called the CAS offices

and requested it. The CAS told my dad that police will continue to hunt me down until they

get me. This is not right. I just want to live at my home and go to school and not have the

CAS and Ms. Chizive stop harassing me.

21. I have sent a letter to the Executive Director of the Hamilton CAS advising him that I do not

want the CAS to be apprehending me. He has not responded to me as well. It makes me

wonder why these grown-ups don’t want to communicate with a teen.

My experience of being forcefully taken out of my bed by police, handcuffed and thrown in jail as a result of the CAS


22. I am very angry with what the CAS, Ms. Chizive and the police did to me last month on June

22, 2012.

23. On Friday June 22, 2012, while I was visiting with my aunt in Kingsville, Ontario, I was

physically assaulted, brutally pulled out of my bed early in the morning by two uniformed and

armed police officers with the Ontario Provincial Police. The officers came into my aunt’s

home without a warrant after telling my aunt that they did not need a warrant to enter her

home. I was woken up and forced from my bed and then handcuffed and then dragged up the

stairs and across the front lawn with only my socks on and then thrown into the back of a

police cruiser, taken to the OPP detachment and then searched and thrown into a police jail cell

where I was detained until my grandparents came to get me. The officers indicated that they

were acting on the instructions of the Children’s Aid Society. The reason given by officers was

that the Hamilton Children's Aid Society wanted to speak with me and my family members.

Below is a photo taken by my Aunt as the police were dragging me out to their police cruiser.

Photo from a video taken by my aunt showing two Ontario Provincial Police officers dragging me in handcuffs across the front lawn of my aunt's home in my sock feet.

24. Since when did police and CAS start entering homes without a warrant and handcuffing and

jailing teens just because the CAS workers wanted to talk to the teens? Do we teens not have

any rights and freedoms in Canada as individuals?

The situation involving my parents

25. Between my mother and father, my mother is the one who seems to be most angry and

unreasonable. She often says bad things about my dad and I don’t like it and she yells a lot


around her house. She has at times prevented my sisters and I from speaking to my father. My

mother does not want us to be at our dad’s.

26. While neither one of my parents are perfect, neither am I. While I do get into disagreements

with my parents, certainly any conflict which happens in our family we eventually work out

ourselves and things get back to normal. I sometimes fight with my parents just like many of

my teenage friends who fight with their parents. I don’t need some stranger from the

Children’s Aid Society who knows little about my family deciding behind my back that at

almost 16 years of age, I need to be taken away by police by force, handcuffed and thrown in a

jail cell to keep me safe from my own dad. If I need the CAS I am very aware that I can call

them but after this experience all I can say is that I sure don’t trust the CAS.

27. When it comes to my parents acting immature in the past, I don’t need some worker from the

Children’s Aid Society deciding that I need to be taken away from my home by police to keep

me “safe” from my own parents.

28. Just who do these workers from the Children’s Aid Society think they are to tell me that my

sisters and I cannot see each other when we want to? Surely the CAS could come up with

better ways to deal with the problems than breaking up our family, calling the police and

throwing teens in a police jail cell? If anything, I now believe that the Children’s Aid Society,

the police and my Children’s Lawyer are the ones who have screwed up and done more harm

to my family than anyone else. I feel that things would be a lot better if the CAS and the police

just left us alone. I know my sisters enough to know that my sisters would agree with me if

they were allowed to speak freely which they are not now allowed to do right now living at my

mom’s.

The family dog

29. I have a dog at my mother’s home and his name is Blizzard. My mother refuses to allow me to

take the dog over to my father’s home even though we don’t live that far away from each other.

I believe that the main reason that my mother does not allow me to walk the dog to my dad’s is

because she does not like my father and does not want him to see the dog. This is one example

of the things that my mother does which are not reasonable just because she is angry at my

father.

30. I have been told by my father that he has heard that my mother is going to get rid of the dog. I


have asked my mother to let me take the dog to my father’s home but she has refused. If she is

going to get rid of the dog then I want my mother to give the dog to mc.

My current living arrangements

31. Currently, I am living with my father and his partner Jessica Lavalee in Hamilton and this is

where I want to stay. My dad’s home is clean and comfortable and I have my own room and I

have friends in the neighbourhood and from school.

32. While I am willing to visit with my mother when she is not in a bad mood, I do not want to live

with my mother. I also want my mother to stop talking badly about my dad and his partner,

Jessica. I want my mother to stop grilling me for information about my dad when I am at her

house. She is always bugging me for information, especially when I first go over.

Summary

33. At this point in time, I just want my choice to live with my father respected, to visit my mother

and my sisters whenever is reasonable and to have the CAS stop harassing me and interfering

with my relationship with my parents and my sisters. I don’t mind speaking with the CAS

workers if they have reasonable questions but I don’t want these unregistered CAS workers

bossing me around and telling me what to do with my life. What I do with my life is my

choice, not the choice of CAS worker, Ms. Perpetua Chizive. If I screw up because of my own

decisions then I will have only myself to blame and I will have to suffer with the consequences

of my choices. The CAS and Ms. Chizive should just leave me alone!

34. In regards to my dog Blizzard, I do not want my mother to get rid of the dog which is part of

our family. I want the dog if my mother is not going to keep it. If my mother is not going to

get rid of the dog, then I want my mother to stop preventing me from taking the dog over to my

dad’s from time to time.

35. The only people I really feel harassed and threatened by are the CAS workers and the police. I

am not afraid of my parents and fully capable of handling any issues involving my parents

contrary to what the CAS worker, Ms. Chizive, claims. As a young Canadian I should not have

to live in fear of police and CAS workers who claim to be protecting children yet from my own

experience seem to do the opposite by bullying and controlling them.

36. Hopefully, those professionals who claim to be helping children and families will come to their


senses and to listen to my sisters and I and to stop harassing us and to stop intruding into our

lives. If anything, the Children’s Aid Society and the Children’s Lawyer’s office has only

made matters worse for me and my younger sisters, not better.

37. I am more than willing to speak to a judge in person to back up what I have stated in this

affidavit.

Put a line through any blank space on this page.

Sworn/Affirmed before me at: Hamilton

(municipality) In Province of Ontario (province, state or country) on Signature

(This form to be signed in front of a lawyer, justice of the peace, notary public or commissioner

for taking affidavits.)

(date) Barrister/Solicitor or

Commissioner of Oaths

Reader’s note Exhibits for this affidavit are not shown in order to not identify the family involved

Statement of Ariel Drifus Page 1 of 4

Statement by Ariel Drifus D.O.B. Dec 12, 1999

I, the undersigned, Ariel Drifus state the following to be the truth:

1) I am currently 14 years of age and currently live with my mother Jennine Drifus under the supervision of the Children’s Aid Society (CAS). I do not suffer from any mental conditions which prevent me from fully understanding the contents of this document and the circumstances which affect me.

2) I understand that the CAS are attempting to obtain another six month supervision order which is mainly over the issue of my mother and I getting into disagreements at home. I do not feel is necessary or in my best interest for CAS to be involved in our matters.

3) The photo below on the left is my younger sister (left) and I and the photo on the right is my mother and I. These photos were taken at our home one day before signing this document.

Photo removed Photo removed

4) I am very unhappy having the Children’s Aid Society involved in my life and with my family. From the very beginning CAS have blown things a way out of proportion. I do not feel that CAS supervision was ever needed nor do I feel supervision is needed now. All my mother and I needed from the beginning was some simple advice which we have obtained without the help of the CAS. We don’t need CAS supervising us and I am fully capable of calling the CAS on my own should I feel a need for them.

5) If anything, involvement of the CAS has made things worse for my family, not better. I do not like the CAS and do not want CAS workers to be imposing conditions on me which I feel are unreasonable and only put a lot of stress on me and my family.

6) While my younger sister Annie who is only 12 years of age is not as mature as I am to speak out about her feelings, she discloses her feelings to me which show that she dislikes the CAS for what the workers have done to our family as much as I. She wants the CAS to leave her alone as well. We both want CAS out of our lives.

My actions are partly responsible for this situation involving CAS 7) I admit that I am responsible for some of the conflict which has resulted with the CAS getting

involved. I do admit experimenting with marijuana and often do not follow her good advice which has angered my mother. I know my mother does care about me. However, as with most teenagers I am at an age where I want greater independence and to make my own


choices in my life. I also acknowledge that I have shown disrespect for my mother at time because she and I do not agree on some things. I am simply a teenager.

8) On one occasion I told my teachers that I was refusing to go home because I was angry with my mother which resulted in the CAS getting called by the school. Thinking about that situation now, I realise that it was a form of protest which I did this to embarrass my mother and her partner for not letting me get my way. At no time have I feared for my physical safety if I returned home. While I did stay with my family for a few days, I did realise that my mother’s home was still the best place for me to be.

Interference by CAS in my relationship with my father 9) I am angry at the CAS for creating conflict between my mother and father which has

adversely affected my relationship with my father. I believe that the CAS workers have told my father that I am not safe with my mother so this has upset him and caused him to put pressure on me to live with him. While I love my father, I just prefer to stay with my mom and my younger sister.

10) What upsets me is that the CAS workers go back and tell my father information which only gets him upset. This gives him the false impression that things are worse than they actually are at my mother’s house which then causes conflict between him and my mother and encourages him to pressure me to live with him. This interference by the CAS has only made things worse. It almost fees like the CAS workers are trying to stir up trouble between my parents by getting one parent against the other.

11) While my relationship with my father is still good and I want to maintain a good relationship with him, I believe that my relationship with my father would be even better today if CAS had not imposed itself upon our family.

12) I see that the CAS have asked the court to order that I visit with my dad only upon their approval. CAS workers never asked me about this or ever told me that they were going to ask the court to order this. I see no reason why they should be telling me when I can or cannot see my father. I feel safe when I am with him at his home and certainly am mature enough to make my own choices as to when I see my own parents.

CAS have adversely affected my relationships with my friends at school 13) The CAS and my children’s lawyer have come to my school without telling me first. I would

prefer that they do not come to my school anytime. I believe as a result of my schoolmates knowing that CAS are involved in my family, that some of the parents of my school friends will not allow their children to associate with me. I feel that CAS involvement has caused me or my mother to be labelled as bad by those who do not know the true facts.

Interference by CAS with my counselling 14) In regards to counselling, I am refusing to go anymore. The CAS have put this in their court

papers which make me look bad but the CAS workers do not explain why to make it look as if it is my fault. The reason why I don’t want to attend counselling is because of interference by the CAS.

15) I originally went to counselling under the impression that my meetings would be confidential and that the counselling people would help me deal with some of the issues which cause my mother and I to argue. Instead, without my consent, CAS workers obtained this information


and then used this information to cause more problems and to get themselves involved. I went in good faith to get help so that my mother and I could work things out between us, but the CAS want to get involved and impose their way of doing things. I want my mother and I to work things out ourselves. I feel that the CAS are treating my mother and I like children.

My mom and I have a plan for when we might argue 16) I do understand and acknowledge that from time to time my mother and I may get into an

argument. Most of my teenage friends get into arguments with their parents but CAS does not come into their families and start ordering them around. My mother and I have been getting along better since last fall and there has never been any violence between us.

17) However, in the event that my mother and I do get into an argument which may require us to have some space, we have come up with a plan that will give me the option of going to another place at such times. The places which my mother and I have agreed that I can go to when I feel are necessary are:

My dad’s house My cousin Carolyne My Aunt Linda and Uncle Mario

Summary 18) At this point in time, I am frustrated with what the CAS had done to my family. I just want

the CAS out of my life and to respect my informed choice to call them if and when I need help from the CAS.

19) I feel that there will be a lot less conflict and stress when CAS leave me and other members of my family alone and to let us get on with our lives without interference. I also feel that my relationship with my father will improve once CAS is no longer involved.

My wishes 20) At this time the following these are my wishes:

It is my wish that the CAS workers would not go to my school anymore or speak to me at my school so that my relationships with my peers and my teachers are not adversely affected.

It is my wish that should CAS workers want to speak to me for any reason, then they call me or my mother and arrange to meet me in the privacy of my home where I feel most comfortable.

I do not wish to go to counselling until such time as I feel that there is a problem that my mother and I are unable to sort out on our own. I want counselling to be voluntary and only when I feel that there is a problem which my mother and I are unable to work out.

It is my wish that CAS workers leave me alone and to let me be the one to call them when I feel it necessary. I understand what child abuse is. I am mature enough to understand when I feel I am being abused. I am mature enough to call the CAS and simply want them to get involved only when they are called or when there is a real reason.


My consent and acknowledgement 21) I acknowledge that no one has put pressure on me to sign this document and I am signing this

statement of my own free will. I fully understand the contents of this document and that this document will be shared with all of the parties listed in the court documents. I give my informed consent to this document being shared with anyone and everyone.

22) I am willing to speak in person to any judge regarding the matters I have written about in this statement should this be necessary.

23) I give my consent for anyone to speak to me in person, by phone or by video conferencing on Skype should they wish to speak to me personally to confirm my identity and/or to confirm the accuracy and truthfulness of the contents of this document. I can be contacted at the phone or email numbers listed below my signature below.

Dated at ___________________________, this ______ day of _____________ 20____

________________________________ ________________________________ Signature Name printed

________________________________ Email _________________________________ Phone number at my mother’s home

XXXXX (Date) Mr. Xxxxxx Xxxxx, Ontario’s Office of the Children’s Lawyer XXXX Xxxxxx St. Xxxxxxxx, Ontario XxX XxX Tel: XXX-XXX-XXXX Fax: XXX-XXX-XXXX Email: [email protected] Dear Mr. Xxxxxx RE: Xxxxxxx v. Xxxxxxxx – court file no XX-12-XXXX I am writing this letter to express my disappointment in the services and advice you have provided to me as my children’s lawyer with Ontario’s Office of the Children’s Lawyer. At our meeting on XXXXX XX, XXXX at your office, I asked you if it was possible for me to provide an affidavit to the court to let the court know what my wishes and preferences were to in regards to wanting to live with my father. At our meeting you advised me that it was “against the law” for me to submit an affidavit and that I had to be 18 years of age to do so. You also told me that I was not allowed to attend family court to witness matters which were affecting me.

In regards to submitting an affidavit, I have obtained help from others in my community and conducted my own research. Information I obtained from the Canada Evidence Act appears to contradict your legal advice to me. Below is information I copied from the Canada Evidence Act. A person 14 years of age and older can submit evidence by way of affidavit or in court as long as the person understands what he/she has written.

If you believe that I am wrong and still maintain your position that it is “against the law” for me to submit an affidavit, I would ask that you provide me with the applicable sections of the law to

support what you told me at our meeting. I believe that you are either incompetent as a lawyer or you deliberately lied to me.

In regards to how you have handled this matter, I got the impression that you have been biased in favour of my mother from the very beginning. During the four interviews we had, you questioned me if I had seen my father hit my mother but did not ask me if my mother ever hit my father. In reality it was my mother who was often abusive in the home and made me feel uncomfortable. You never asked questions about my mother, only my father. Your line of questioning seemed so one sided. I got the impression you were trying to force me to go and live with my abusive mother.

I have seen my mother throw things at my father. I have seen my mother bang her own head on the walls when she loses her temper. One time I saw my mother smash a hole in the wall when she got angry. Other times she has smashed doors in our home. When my mother was having an extra-marital affair with another man and I found out about it, my mother told me to keep it a secret from my father. My mother would leave me alone in the house when I was little. In light of the years of bad behaviour by our mother I wish to live with my father simply because I feel more safe and comfortable living with him rather than with my mother. It should not have taken this long for you to have got my wishes before the court and my reasons but as I said, I got the impression you were trying to force me to live with my mother. When I was first told that a children’s lawyer was appointed to help me, I was looking forward to having you help. More than a year has passed since you have been appointed and in all that time you have not put my wishes to live with my father before the court. After more than a year of meetings with you, all I can say is that I feel that you have done nothing for me. Meeting with you has been a waste of time.

At this time I am instructing you to prepare a letter to both of my parents advising them that it is my wish for my parents to have joint custody of me and for me to primarily live with my father and to visit with my mother whenever, I want. Please advise my parents that I will submit an affidavit with my reasons if they are unable to agree with my wishes. I would prefer not to do this so as to not embarrass my mother in court for the things she has done in the past. Being 16 years of age, I am mature enough to make my own choice as to which parent I wish to be with and when.

I would ask that you prepare the letter to my parents as soon as possible and to forward me a copy by email to my email address listed below. My parents have been in court over custody for far too long and from what I can see, you are the reason why my parents court matters over custody are taking so long. Your truly Xxxxxxxxx Xxxxxxxxx XXXX Xxxxxxxxxxx St. Xxxxxxxxx, Ontario XxX XxX Home: XXX-XXX-XXXX Cell:XXX-XXX-XXXX Email: [email protected]

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