What to expect at the North York family court, 47 Sheppard Avenue East

The family court at 47 Sheppard Avenue East is an Ontario Court of Justice courthouse in North York. It hears parenting, child and spousal support and child protection cases, not divorce or property claims. Since September 1, 2024, new family cases start here if you live in one of 14 provincial electoral districts across North York, Etobicoke North and most of Scarborough. Filing at the Ontario Court of Justice is free, and the clerk gives you a first court date when you file.

Below is what is specific to this courthouse: who files here, what happens at your first appearance, the help available in the building, and the contacts you will need. For how this court fits with the Superior Court downtown, read our guide for Toronto families.

Does your case belong at 47 Sheppard?

Under a practice direction of the Ontario Court of Justice, every new family case in Toronto has started at either 47 Sheppard or 311 Jarvis Street since September 1, 2024, based on provincial electoral districts. The court describes these as temporary boundaries. These districts are assigned to 47 Sheppard:

Cases started before September 1, 2024 can continue here, and so can status review applications, motions to change and contempt motions tied to one of those earlier cases, wherever the parties live now. The direction does not apply to Native Child and Family Services or Jewish Child and Family Services cases. If you live in Scarborough Southwest, Beaches-East York or downtown, your court is 311 Jarvis Street. If you need a divorce or a property order, you need the Superior Court instead; our page on which Toronto family court handles your case explains the split.

What happens at your first court date?

In the Ontario Court of Justice, the clerk sets a court date when your application is filed (Family Law Rules, rule 8(4)). Rule 40 then gives the clerk a checklist for that first date: confirm that everything has been served and filed, refer the parties to information about the court process, mediation and community resources, and, if the other side has answered, schedule a case conference, settlement conference or hearing. If no answer has been filed, the clerk can send the case to a judge to decide on affidavit evidence, or schedule a case conference if the applicant asks.

Before or around that date, most parties in a parenting or support case must attend a Mandatory Information Program, no later than 45 days after the case starts (rule 8.1). The applicant books their own session and gets an appointment for the other party. For the full sequence of steps after filing, see what happens after you start a family case in Toronto.

If the case is not settled, withdrawn or scheduled for trial by its 365th day, the clerk serves a notice of approaching dismissal (rule 40(5)). It is worth diarizing that date.

What happens at a case conference here?

For most parents, the case conference is the first real meeting with a judge. Rule 17(4) lists its purposes: exploring the chances of settling, identifying which issues are in dispute and which are not, exploring ways to resolve them, making sure the relevant evidence is disclosed, including the financial information needed for support, setting a timetable, and organizing a settlement conference where it makes sense. The judge can also give directions about any motion a party plans to bring.

Paperwork comes first. Each party serves and files a case conference brief; the party who asked for the conference does so at least six days before it, and the other party at least four days before (rule 17(13) and (13.1)). Because ensuring disclosure is one of the conference's purposes, arriving with the financial statement and income records already exchanged lets the time be spent on the real issues.

What help is available inside the building?

Legal Aid Ontario lists the help duty counsel can give here as talking to a lawyer, legal representation, preparing documents and referrals. If you need an accommodation for a disability, such as assistive listening or real-time captioning, contact the accessibility coordinator as early as possible with your court file number and hearing date.

What changes the answer?

• Your riding, not your neighbourhood name. The practice direction uses provincial electoral districts. A North York address in a district assigned to 311 Jarvis goes downtown, so check by postal code on the Elections Ontario website.
• Where the child lives. A parenting case starts in the municipality where the child habitually lives (Family Law Rules, r. 5(1)(b)). If the children live in Vaughan or Richmond Hill, the case belongs at the Newmarket family court, not here.
• An older case. If your Ontario Court of Justice case began before September 1, 2024, or you are changing an order from one, it continues here.
• What you claim. A divorce, equalization of property or a matrimonial home claim cannot be heard here; the Family Law Act says the Ontario Court of Justice is not a "court" for those parts of the Act.
• An emergency. If there is immediate danger that a child may be removed from Ontario, or to someone's safety, a case may start in any municipality for an urgent motion and is then transferred (r. 5(2)). Concerns about travel to Iran are covered in whether a parent can take a child abroad without consent.
• Where the other parent is. A respondent served outside Canada or the United States has 60 days, not 30, to answer (r. 10). That affects how soon your first court date can do anything useful.

A worked example

For example, imagine a mother in Willowdale who moved to Canada from Iran with her two children. She and the children's father never married; he now lives in Mississauga. She wants a parenting order and child support. Because Willowdale is assigned to 47 Sheppard, and the children live with her in Toronto, she files her application here. There is no filing fee, and the clerk gives her a first court date when she files.

She serves the father, books her own Mandatory Information Program session and gets an appointment for him. He files an answer within 30 days, so at the first court date the clerk schedules a case conference. Before the conference, both parents serve financial statements so child support can be worked out under the guidelines. On the day of the conference, they try the free on-site mediation and agree on a schedule, leaving only the support amount for the judge. This is a hypothetical walk-through of the process, not a prediction of any result. How support is calculated when income is earned abroad is explained in child support when a parent lives or earns income outside Canada.

What mistakes do people make at 47 Sheppard?

1. Filing a divorce here. The clerk can only accept claims this court can hear.
2. Guessing the courthouse from the neighbourhood name. Assignment is by provincial electoral district, so look yours up.
3. Missing the Mandatory Information Program deadline of 45 days.
4. Arriving outside counter hours. The counter is open 9 to 11 a.m. and 2 to 4 p.m. only.
5. Forgetting the 365-day mark. If nothing is scheduled, a notice of approaching dismissal follows.
6. Assuming a Farsi interpreter will be there. In family court, interpretation in languages other than French is provided if you qualify for a fee waiver or the court orders it.

What to do this week

1. Look up your provincial electoral district by postal code.
2. Confirm whether you have an older Ontario Court of Justice case, and find its file number.
3. Collect copies of anything already filed or served, proof of service and any earlier order.
4. If support is in issue, gather income documents for a financial statement; our guide to which financial statement to file lists them.
5. If you need interpretation or a disability accommodation, contact the court office or the accessibility coordinator now.
6. If you have just separated, work through our first-week separation checklist.

Frequently asked questions

Is there a fee to file at 47 Sheppard?

No. Ontario's family court guide says there is no fee to file documents at the Ontario Court of Justice.

Can I get a Persian (Farsi) interpreter at 47 Sheppard?

In family matters, Ontario provides French interpretation in all cases and interpretation in any language if you qualify for a fee waiver or the court orders it. Ask the court office as early as possible, because interpreters are booked ahead.

Can the Office of the Children's Lawyer get involved in my case here?

Yes, a judge at 47 Sheppard can ask it to. The practice direction names the Office of the Children's Lawyer among the institutional parties in Toronto family cases. See what the Office of the Children's Lawyer does.

Is the supervised access centre near this courthouse?

Toronto's Ontario-funded centre, Access for Parents and Children in Ontario, is on the same street at 100 Sheppard Avenue East, Suite 504 (416-304-1221 ext. 111). Read how supervised parenting time works in Toronto.

What if the other parent does not answer?

At the first court date, the clerk can send the case to a judge to decide on affidavit evidence, or schedule a case conference if you ask (rule 40(4)(d)).

Can I change an old support order here?

If the order came from an Ontario Court of Justice case started before September 1, 2024, a motion to change it continues at 47 Sheppard. If it came from the Superior Court or a divorce, the motion goes to the Superior Court; in Toronto, see what to expect at 361 University Avenue.

Sarbazevatan Law is based at 5000 Yonge Street, Toronto, and helps parents with parenting and support cases across Toronto. Consultations are available in English, Persian (Farsi) and French. Call +1 (416) 628-2041 or reach us through the contact page.