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ARTICLE · 09 JUNE 2022

If You Think Child Support Doesn't Apply To Stepchildren, Think Again

Torkin Manes LLP
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Monthly child support payments from one parent to the other are one of the most common outcomes of a separation. As time goes by, separated parents often re-partner, and step-parent...

CanadaFamily and Matrimonial
Adam Black
Adam Black
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Monthly child support payments from one parent to the other are one of the most common outcomes of a separation. As time goes by, separated parents often re-partner, and step-parent relationships can become part of the matrix of a blended family. But what happens if the parents in the blended family separate? Is a step-parent required to pay child support for a stepchild? In some cases, the answer is yes.

That was the outcome of a recent twelve-day trial before Justice Dale Fitzpatrick of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice who was asked to decide if a stepfather had an obligation to support two stepchildren. The trial focused almost entirely on the binary issue of whether the stepfather should pay child support. The length of the trial made it very clear: determining a step-parent's, or subsequent parent's, child support obligation is far more complex than determining a first parent's obligation.

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