Canadian Family Justice Fund

Background

Family law is an area of shared responsibility between the Federal Government and the provinces and territories.

The Government of Canada is committed to improving access to justice for families experiencing separation and divorce. An important aspect of this commitment is financial support for family justice services.

For more information on family law, please visit the Family Law page.

Objective & Priorities

The overall objective of the Canadian Family Justice Fund is to facilitate access to the family justice system for families experiencing separation and divorce.

The Fund has been designed to address the following priorities:

1. Fostering federal, provincial and territorial collaboration to make improvements to the Canadian family justice system;
2. Supporting the well-being of family members engaging with the family justice system;
3. Extending the reach of family justice programs, services and information to meet the needs of diverse and underserved populations;
4. Supporting alternatives to court for the resolution of family law matters;
5. Improving and streamlining family justice system links/processes to support the simplification of family court processes, information sharing between courts and family justice services, and improved coordination with other parts of the justice system (e.g. criminal justice system).

Fund Components

The Canadian Family Justice Fund includes two components.

Family Justice Activities component

The Family Justice Activities component supports provincial and territorial government programs and services that assist families experiencing separation and divorce. Examples of these programs and services include information on making parenting arrangements, determining child/spousal support and promoting compliance with family agreements and orders.

Projects component

The Projects component is designed to support provincial and territorial governments, not-for-profit organizations, associations, academic institutions and individuals in the following capacity:

1. the development, implementation and evaluation of provincial and territorial innovative family justice services and programs;
2. projects and activities that inform Canadians about family law issues such as parenting arrangements and child/spousal support ; and
3. the development of new strategies, models and tools intended to improve access to family justice.

Who is eligible?

The Canadian Family Justice Fund is designed to support provincial and territorial governments, not-for-profit organizations, associations, academic institutions and individuals.

For more information on the Canadian Family Justice Fund and eligibility criteria, please select category that best applies you:

• Provincial and territorial governments
• Provincial and territorial governments, not-for-profit organizations, associations, academic institutions and individuals

Official Languages

In support of Section 41 of the Official Languages Act the Department is committed to facilitate the participation of official language minority communities and their organizations in the development and assessment of the Department's policies, programs and services having significant impact on the development of the communities; and to take measures to ensure that the Department of Justice's programs and services reach official language minority communities. In the context of project funding, these measures include:

• Outreach to official language minority communities to enhance their understanding of the Department of Justice funding programs
• Encouraging contacts between organizations that are receiving financial assistance and official language minority organizations/groups to ensure that the needs of these communities are taken into consideration in relation to the proposed projects to be considered for Department of Justice Canada funding.

Sustainable Development

The Department of Justice encourages applicants to submit proposals electronically. If you submit your application on paper, please consider printing on both sides of the paper. These actions will minimize environmental impacts.

Terms and Conditions

The Terms and Conditions provide important information on the Canadian Family Justice Fund and eligibility criteria you will need to know before completing your application for funding.

Contact Information

Canada Family Justice Fund
Programs Branch, Department of Justice Canada
284 Wellington
Ottawa ON K1A 0H8
pb-dgp@justice.gc.ca