What is a court-ordered evaluation?

When parents separate they may not alwaysagree on matters such as custody and access.Some may ask a mediator or lawyer to helpthem negotiate. In a few cases, however, theymay have to ask the court to decide issues ofcustody and access for them. This is referred toas a contested custody and/or access case.

The court will make its decision based on the“best interests of the child.” To do so, the courtsometimes requests an evaluation of one orboth parents and/or the children. The types ofevaluations that the court may order caninclude:

� Full evaluations to determine the “bestinterest of the child”;

� Child interviews (often called “voice of thechild” interviews) to determine the wishes,needs and interests of the child;

� Focused evaluations to obtain specificinformation;

� Home studies to determine if the home andfamily environment can adequately meetthe basic needs of the child;

� Parenting capacity assessments to verify thecapacity of either parent to properly andeffectively raise the child;

� Psychiatric evaluations in cases where thereare concerns about disorders affecting themind of the child or parent;

� Psychological assessments to determineintellectual levels and functioning,behaviours, and disorders of behaviour,emotions and thought of the child or parent.

Who will do the evaluation?

Court-ordered evaluations must be done by aqualified third party such as a social worker,psychologist, psychiatrist, or other expert whocan assess any or all members of the family toobtain the information needed by the court.

Are court-ordered evaluationsexpensive?

The evaluations required by the court canoften be very expensive. This could causefinancial hardship to the families.

Is assistance available to help with thecost of an evaluation?

The Department of Justice and ConsumerAffairs offers the Court-Ordered EvaluationsSupport Program to help relieve some of thefinancial burden that a court-orderedevaluation places on parents or guardians.The level of assistance is based on the parent’sincome.

Who can apply to the Court-OrderedEvaluations Support Program?

When the court orders an evaluation in acontested custody and/or access case, eachparent involved in the case may apply to theCourt-Ordered Evaluations Support Programfor assistance. Because the law generallyrequires parents to share the costs equally(unless the court orders otherwise), parentsmust make separate applications to theProgram. Family law clients of the NewBrunswick Legal Aid Services Commissionare not eligible to apply.

How much assistance will the Court-Ordered Evaluations Support Programprovide?

The amount of assistance depends on yourincome. The Department of Justice andConsumer Affairs may cover all, or a portion, ofyour share of the cost of the evaluation. Afterreviewing your application, the Department willsend you a letter with complete details about theamount of the contribution to the cost of theevaluation that the Court-Ordered EvaluationsSupport Program will provide.

How do I .nd a quali.ed evaluator?

The Court-Ordered Evaluations Support Programdoes not arrange the services of evaluators.Parents are responsible for arranging for anevaluator. Parents must agree on who is going toconduct the evaluation. To find a qualifiedevaluator you should consider:

� Asking your lawyer

� Checking the Yellow Pages under Marriage,Family and Individual Counsellors

� Contacting the New Brunswick Association ofSocial Workers for a list of possible evaluators(telephone: 1-506-459-5595)www.nbasw-atsnb.ca

� Contacting the College of Psychologists of NewBrunswick (telephone: 1-506-382-1994)www.cpnb.ca

In addition, be sure to ask the prospectiveevaluator if he or she is qualified to do custodyevaluations for the court.

How do I apply to the Court-OrderedEvaluations Support Program?

After you have received your signed court order fora custody/access evaluation, you may apply forassistance. The appropriate forms are available atthe Court Services Division offices in any of theCourt of Queen’s Bench of New Brunswick judicialdistricts of Bathurst, Campbellton, Edmundston,Fredericton, Miramichi, Moncton, Saint John, andWoodstock. (See the address list.) You may alsodownload the forms from the web site of PublicLegal Education and Information Service of NewBrunswick (www.legal-info-legale.nb.ca).

Court Services Division Offices of New Brunswick

Judicial District of Saint John (506) 658-2400(Counties of Saint John,Kings & Charlotte)P.O.Box 5001,110 Charlotte St., Provincial BuildingSaint John,N.B.E2L 2J4

Judicial District of Woodstock (506) 325-4414(Counties of Carleton &Victoria)P.O.Box 5001,689 Main StreetWoodstock,N.B.E7M 5C6

Judicial District of Moncton (506) 856-2349(Counties ofWestmorland,Kent & Albert)P.O.Box 5001,770 Main St., 2nd Floor,Room 207 Assumption Place,Moncton,N.B.E1C 8R3

Judicial District of Bathurst (506) 547-2152(County of Gloucester)P.O.Box 5001,254 St.Patrick St.,Old Court HouseBathurst,N.B.E2A 3Z9

Judicial District of Campbellton (506) 789-2364(County of Restigouche)P.O.Box 5001,157Water St., City Centre Building, Suite 202Campbellton,N.B.E3N 3H5

Judicial District of Miramichi (506) 627-4024(County of Northumberland)673 King George Highway Court HouseMiramichi,N.B.E1V 1N6

Judicial District of Edmundston (506) 735-2028(County of Madawaska)121 Church Street Carrefour AssomptionEdmundston,N.B.E3V 1J9

Judicial District of Fredericton (506) 453-2015(Counties of York, Sunbury & Queens)P.O.Box 6000,423 Queen Street Room 203, Justice BuildingFredericton,N.B.E3B 5H1

Public Legal Education and Information Service ofNew Brunswick (PLEIS-NB) is a non-profitorganization. Its goal is to provide NewBrunswickers with information on the law.PLEIS-NBreceives funding and in-kind support from thefederal Department of Justice, the New BrunswickLaw Foundation and the Department of Justice andConsumer Affairs of New Brunswick.We gratefullyacknowledge the cooperation of the New BrunswickDepartment of Justice and Consumer Affairs in thedevelopment of this booklet. Funding assistance forthis program has been provided by Justice Canada.

This pamphlet gives a brief overview of the C-OESPprogram,and explains who may be eligible and howto apply. It does not contain a complete statementof the law in the area of custody and access,andlaws change from time to time. Anyone requiringadvice on his or her specific situation should seeklegal advice.

Public Legal Educationand Information Serviceof New Brunswick

P.O. Box 6000,Fredericton, NB E3B 5H1Telephone: 506-453-5369Fax: 506-462-5193Email: pleisnb@web.cawww.legal-info-legale.nb.ca

Program Support BranchNB Department of Justice and Consumer AffairsP.O. Box 6000Fredericton, NB E3B 5H1

Published in collaboration with:

Published by:

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For more information, you can contact aCourt Services Division office or you may call

the Family Law Information Line at:

1-888-236-2444Fredericton Region: 444-3855Remember, eachparty applying for C-OESPassistance

must !ll out a separateApplication Form.

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Complete the C-OESP Application Form andattach the following income information:

To apply, you will be required to:

� If an employee:

� a copy of your most recent annual Notice ofAssessment from Canada Revenue Agency, and

� a copy of a recent statement of income, such as apay stub, from your current employer(s)

� If self-employed:

� copies of your 3 most recent annual income taxreturns and corresponding Notices of Assessmentfrom Canada Revenue Agency

� If not employed:

� a copy of your most recent annual income taxassessment notice, and

� a recent statement of income (if any) from allcurrent sources of income (such as EmploymentInsurance benefits, social assistance, disabilitybenefits, Worker’s Compensation, etc)

Attach a copy of your Court Order to theApplication. You must also include copies of anyother orders about custody and/or access.

Send all of the above documents to theaddress provided in the Application Form.