Custody Mistakes to Avoid Saskatchewan

Family court judges in Saskatchewan see the same mistakes repeatedly. Most of them are not legal failures — they are emotional reactions that feel justified in the moment but create problems that compound over months or years. If you are going through a custody process in Saskatchewan, these are the errors that cost parents the most.

Withholding Parenting Time Without a Court Order

When conflict escalates, some parents decide unilaterally to restrict or cancel the other parent's time with the children. Unless there is an immediate safety concern, this is one of the fastest ways to damage your credibility with a Saskatchewan judge.

Under the best-interests framework in Section 10 of The Children's Law Act, 2020, one of the factors the court evaluates is each parent's willingness to foster the child's relationship with the other parent. A parent who blocks contact without legal justification is demonstrating behaviour the court can consider under this factor. If you believe your child is unsafe, file an emergency application — do not take matters into your own hands.

Skipping the Mandatory Gatekeepers

Saskatchewan has two prerequisites that must be completed before a contested hearing: the Parenting After Separation (PAS) course and early family dispute resolution (FDR). Both are mandatory. Both require certificates filed with the Court of King's Bench.

Parents who ignore these requirements hoping to get straight to a judge may face procedural consequences, including struck pleadings, refusal to make submissions, or costs. Worse, if the other parent has completed them and you have not, you are immediately positioned as the uncooperative party. The PAS course is free and available online. There is no strategic advantage to skipping it — only downside.

Badmouthing the Other Parent in Front of the Children

Venting about your ex to friends is understandable. Doing it in earshot of your children — or actively encouraging them to take sides — is behaviour that Saskatchewan courts treat as harmful to the child's well-being.

Judges look for this pattern because it signals an inability to separate adult conflict from parenting. Courts can consider this behaviour when assessing the child's best interests and each parent's willingness to foster the other parent's relationship. The standard is not whether you intended harm, but whether the child is being placed in the middle.

Making Major Decisions Unilaterally

If you have joint decision-making responsibility, you cannot enrol your child in a new school, schedule elective medical procedures, or sign them up for intensive extracurricular programs without consulting the other parent. The temptation to act first and deal with the consequences later is strong, especially when communication is difficult.

But unilateral decisions on joint-responsibility matters give the other parent grounds to bring you back to court. In R.R. v. MK, 2022 SKQB 33, the Court of King's Bench specifically addressed how one-sided decision-making undermines the framework joint arrangements are designed to create.

Failing to Document Financial Disclosure

Where child support is claimed, Saskatchewan's disclosure rules under King's Bench Rules 15-47 to 15-59 apply. Form 15-47 is required for a party seeking or responding to child support, except where a party is only applying for basic Table support and the paying parent's income is under CA$150,000. The required supporting documents include the three most recent tax returns and CRA Notices of Assessment.

Parents who fail to comply with a Notice to File a Financial Statement face serious consequences: the court can impute income based on earning capacity or lifestyle, strike pleadings, or award costs. Some parents underreport income thinking it will reduce their support obligation. Courts have seen this strategy thousands of times, and the tools for catching it (CRA records, lifestyle analysis, employment history) are well-established.

Refusing to Participate in Mediation

Since July 2022, Saskatchewan requires early family dispute resolution before contested proceedings can advance. Some parents view mediation as a formality to endure rather than a genuine opportunity to reach agreement.

This approach is costly. Private mediation runs CA$150–$500 per hour, and showing up unprepared or obstructive multiplies the number of sessions required. Parents who arrive at mediation with a structured draft parenting plan and a clear understanding of the 40% shared-parenting threshold tend to resolve issues faster — and spend less.

Moving Without Proper Notice

Under Section 13 of The Children's Law Act, 2020, a parent planning to relocate in a way that significantly impacts existing parenting arrangements must provide at least 60 days' written notice to any person with parenting time or decision-making responsibility. The other parent then has 30 days to file an objection.

Parents who move first and deal with the paperwork later put themselves in an extremely weak legal position. Moving before providing the required notice can lead to a court dispute over the child's residence and parenting arrangements.

Treating the Parenting Plan as Optional

Some parents reach an informal verbal agreement about parenting and never formalize it. This works until it does not — and when it fails, neither parent has enforceable expectations. Saskatchewan courts strongly prefer detailed, written parenting plans because vague arrangements generate the disputes that fill courtrooms.

A formal plan is not a sign of distrust. It is a commitment to predictability for your children.

For a structured approach to building a parenting arrangement that avoids these pitfalls, the Saskatchewan Child Custody & Parenting Plan Guide covers each step of the process from gatekeepers through parenting plan design.

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