Family Mediation for Custody in Ontario: Cost, Process, and Requirements

Ontario's family law system doesn't just encourage mediation — it expects it. Under Section 7.3 of the Divorce Act and Section 33.1 of the Children's Law Reform Act, parents have a legal duty to try resolving disputes through family dispute resolution before pursuing a trial, unless family violence or severe power imbalances make it unsafe.

That statutory duty changes how judges view parents who refuse to mediate. If you go straight to court without attempting out-of-court resolution, expect the judge to ask why.

Do You Legally Need Mediation?

Mediation itself isn't mandatory. What's mandatory is attempting some form of family dispute resolution — mediation, collaborative law, arbitration, or negotiation through lawyers. The court wants evidence that you tried.

There's one genuinely mandatory step: the Mandatory Information Program (MIP). In any contested family court case involving parenting or support, both parties must attend separate MIP sessions within 45 days of starting the case. MIP is a free, two-hour educational session run by family lawyers and mental health professionals. It covers the legal process, how separation affects children, and available out-of-court options.

If you've completed mediation and exchanged financial disclosure, you can file a Form 17G (Certificate of Dispute Resolution) to bypass the standard case conference and jump directly to a combined settlement conference. This can shave months off your timeline.

What Mediation Costs in Ontario

There are two tracks:

Court-connected mediation is subsidized through the Ministry of the Attorney General. Available at many courthouses, it uses a sliding-scale fee structure based on household income. Some sessions are free. The scope is typically limited to a set number of hours, focused on getting parents to agree on immediate issues.

Private mediation costs between $2,500 and $5,000 or more for a shared process, with mediators typically charging $200 to $400 per hour. Private mediators offer more flexibility in scheduling and can handle complex cases over multiple sessions.

For parents watching their budget, start with court-connected services. If the dispute involves complex financial issues or you need more sessions than the subsidized program provides, private mediation may be worth the investment — especially compared to the cost of a contested trial.

How to Prepare for Mediation

The single biggest waste of mediation time is arriving unprepared. Mediators charge by the hour, and every minute spent figuring out basic scheduling preferences is money you're burning.

Before your first session:

• Draft a proposed parenting schedule with specific days and times
• List the decisions you want to share versus handle independently
• Calculate your parenting time percentage (the 40% threshold affects child support)
• Prepare a list of Section 7 expenses you expect to share
• Gather your financial documents (income, expenses, debts)

Mediators cannot give you legal advice — they're neutral facilitators. If you need someone to advocate for your interests, that's your lawyer's job. Many parents attend mediation with their lawyers present, though this increases the cost.

When Mediation Won't Work

Mediation requires both parents to participate voluntarily and in good faith. It's not appropriate when:

• There's a history of family violence or coercive control
• One parent has a significant power imbalance over the other (financial, emotional, or physical)
• One parent refuses to provide honest financial disclosure
• There are urgent safety concerns for the child

In these situations, going directly to court is not only acceptable — it's expected. The statutory duty to attempt dispute resolution explicitly excludes cases where safety is at risk.

From Mediation to Enforceable Agreement

A successful mediation produces a Memorandum of Understanding (MOU) — a written summary of what you agreed to. But an MOU isn't enforceable on its own. To make it binding, you need to convert it into a separation agreement reviewed by each parent's independent lawyer, or file it as a consent order with the court.

The Ontario Child Custody & Parenting Plan Guide includes mediation preparation worksheets that help you organize your priorities and draft proposals before your first session — so you spend your mediation time resolving disputes, not figuring out what you want.

See more Ontario guides →