Your McKenzie Friend Inc.

03/13/2025

Spoke with a federal party leader about family law.

I am not usually political in my public presentaion of my work. Family law issues transcend political ones. Yet many solutions are to be found in the political will to fix problems. And sadly in this area there has been none

So I wanted to share the news that yesterday I spoke with Maxime Bernier, the leader of the federal People's Party of Canada, about family law, it's issues, and effects on society, as well as what federal government can do to fix it.

We spoke for nearly an hour and he has agreed to consider an official party platform on this issue, one which no party has a platform on, as a message to all Canadians on what government would do to fix this, and also as a commitment of actions to the electorate.

Of course such discussions come with their own peril and now he has asked Your McKenzie Friend to write a summary of the issues and solution ideas for his legal and policy team to use for creating this platform.

I will engage in this task with some hope; I can think of no faster way to resolve family law problems then a federal government mandated by an electorate to carry out a solution they have publicly committed to.

12/25/2024

I want to wish everyone a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

This can be a challenging time of year for people dealing with separation and divorce. After 6 years of working in this industry I know how difficult and emotional it can be. Both from my own experience and from the hundreds of clients I have worked with.

Now here's the important part. It gets better.

100% of the time the situation improves. It takes patience, perseverence, and adaptability. But with even the most difficult cases I have seen things get better.

So smile and dream, because your future will be much better I assure you.

Thomas

08/28/2024

The police enforcement clause.

Hard to get as justices do not give them easily. This is mostly because they are misunderstood by many. So let's discuss them for a bit.

In general, Justices consider the facts of a parenting matter and that someone is not behaving well in providing children to the other parent when scheduled.

They make these enforcement clauses based on a best interests basis and the court has that power. Also notable that parenting orders never start with an enforcement clause in YMF's experience. These paragraphs are only added after someone takes the matter back to court, at great costs in time and money, and shows evidence that the only way for the parenting schedule to be followed is with enforcement of transfer by police.

Police and other parties cannot determine the best interests of the child and do not have that power in general, only in an emergent situation. So if officers are telling you they are making a decision based on their best interests when it is not an emergency they are overreaching greatly and inappropriately in their work. And if there is no threat to the child/ren the action police should take is to enforce as the order dictates. This is what the judges intend in making these.

Sadly everyone is so afraid of conflict, which is odd as that is literally the purpose of courts and police, that these matters are often not enforced. Leaving people frustrated at the lack of justice when orders are not followed with no consequences.

So when you get one of these, discuss with your justice what the intentions are and if police can call them to clarify in a situation they are reluctant to do their jobs.

08/28/2024

Take a few minutes to watch this documentary. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dTxqEFTBgJM

Recommended by an ECMAS member during our weekly Tuesday, 7-9 p.m. online meeting. So many of my clients have to deal with this sort of stuff. You see the damage happening in real time and it's awful to watch. It doesn't have to happen. We have to be vigilant, observant, and open-minded to see it and take action to stop it.

08/13/2024

Start appealing more.

So many poor decisions and conduct in KB family law. I get it. The justices are overworked and overwhelmed with materials and cases. But they mustn't forget that the decision they make in the moment sets up people's lifetimes.

When they get it wrong, and they often do, an appeal is the official and formal way to deal with it. You have 30 days to file.

If you did a good job during your hearing you took some steps to ensure your appeal has the best chance possible. This often means you boldly called attention to errors and misconduct. It may upset the judge, but it's necessary to do. Both for them, yourself, and for the system to work as it was intended.

Now in Alberta we have an appeal conference session prior to an appeal. This is a great idea as it bring fresh and mature eyes on to the matter. It's been invaluable when YMF has had to deal with Justices in rural areas where there are ties and connections of social interactions among the lawyers, litigants, and judges in smaller communities.

Costs of appeals can be very high if they proceed. Even filing is expensive unless you qualify for a waiver of costs. But appealing is an important and necessary element of our justice system. It is the formal push back on mistakes and bad conduct.

So if you have a truly awful order consider an appeal.

There is one other remedy within the rules of court. But I'll leave that for another day.

07/27/2024

Feminist lawyers with an agenda attempting to gaslight the ministry of justice.

Family law should be genderless, with decisions based on what os best for the people involved.

I get upset when certain groups that have exist agendas and preferences seek to interfere in the system to get a preference by lying and misrepresenting facts. If they get their way tje outcome is less hustice, not more.

Parental alienation exists and happens regularly when families split. It's a himan trait. People alienation bosses from coworkers to get an advantage, wives alienate a husband from his friends to be more important, men adminish women for spending too much time with some of her friends, etc. This is all various forms of alienation. So of course some people do it with their children.

To have various female lawyer groups, and why do we have that anyways, should just be lawyers, come out with a letter claiming alienation is not a real thing is complete gaslighting.

Anyways, here's a petition to challenge them

Parental Alienation is real! Ask the government to solve PA through legal change.

06/06/2023

Interesting stats and opinions about this certainly some ideas for consideration. What It fails to discuss is shared parenting. And fundamentally it is this attitude if either Mom or Dad that is breaking things.

The consensus is mothers typically make better parents than fathers, yet single fathers do better than single mothers, here is why

05/03/2023

YMF OPINION

COURT GETS IT WRONG AGAIN. NOTHING NEW.

Once again the system incentivises primary parent. So much changes during and after a separation that assuming a primary caregiver is making the best decisions for the child is very poor judgement and consideration of the real world

In fact one can argue that in the very act of separation parties are not doing a great thing for the kids. And I have seen many cases where the reason for separation was a primary caregivers bad decision making and parenting. This is a bad precedent amd another blow to get more shared parenting.

It is assumed that the primary caregiver will always ensure that the children are looked after

04/25/2023

I KNOW CAREY. HES A GOOD MAN AND A FINE LAWYER. I THINK THIS WILL BE WORTH ATTENDING.

Healthy men. Healthy children. Healthy communities. Correction to previous email:
EVENT IS AT 7:00 PM MDT, and 6:00 PM PST. --> Join CCMF Vancouver for this FREE
Parental Alienation Awareness Community Event
with
Carey Linde
Family Law Lawyer and Author of
"Dad, Win Without a Lawyer While Recovering Your Soul" --> -->

Dear CCMF Community,

Today is International Parental Alienation Awareness Day.


In recognition of the many men and children within and beyond the CCMF family, who bear the cost of this horrific form of domestic abuse, CCMF (Vancouver) will host a special webinar with veteran family law lawyer Carey Linde.

We invite our friends across the CCMF network and beyond to join us in raising awareness about parental alienation and honouring those who live daily with the pain of this abuse.

Mr. Linde serves as the volunteer lawyer for CCMF’s B.C. legal clinic. Mr. Linde has spent a long career advocating for men and their children, doggedly challenging the bias in the legal system against men with the dedication and courage few possess. He is the author of a manual on how to navigate the hell of family law as a self-represented litigant—Dad, Win Without a Lawyer While Recovering Your Soul. (Available Here)

Mr. Linde will speak about the lessons learned over a more than fifty-year career serving men in the family law system. He will read from his book. He will be on hand to answer questions you may have.

The webinar will begin with a moment of silence in recognition of the far too many parents (many of them men) and their children who live with the pain of parental alienation. This pain, as so many of you know, is compounded many times over by the fact that our legal system too often fails to recognize parental alienation for the abuse it is, leading our courts to neglect what should be their most important job: to protect children and innocents from harm.


We hope you will join us. Please invite others who may benefit.

This is a chance to gather, to remember, and to look to a future wherein our legal authorities gain the nerve to do the right thing in the face of this injustice, on behalf of children, on behalf of good parents, and on behalf of the generations yet to come.

--> Join us via Zoom on Tuesday, April 25 at
6:00 PM PST (7:00 PM MDT): https://us06web.zoom.us/j/82603831160?pwd=TVBnUHVjTzFqYWVWYU9vQ3oya0F3QT09 Meeting ID: 826 0383 1160 Passcode: 073615 --> “Parental alienation – the concerted attempt by one parent to fracture the bond of a child with the other parent – is child abuse of the worst kind. It should be a criminal offense. It is the last judicial frontier. Parental alienation is a pernicious form of abuse too often given only lip service by the courts. Alienators, historically camouflaged and augmented by gender politics, have hoodwinked psychologists and judges for too long. Current data, knowledge, and research demand a more concerted exposure and recognition of this type of abusive parent. The dynamic involved in serious parental alienation is a very complex one even for psychologists to understand. We need strengthened resolve on the part of judges to understand and pay heed to the growing number of experts in this field.”


– Carey Linde, Dad, Win Without A Lawyer While Recovering Your Soul
(Vancouver: Divorce for Men Publishing Inc, 2017)

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04/19/2023

Tried the AI, artificial intelligence, system on Bing to see what it thought about Your McKenzie Friend and our chances for success. Here is the response:

Tom Matty is Canada's first professional McKenzie friend. A McKenzie friend is someone who assists a self-represented litigant in court by providing moral support, taking notes, and giving advice on the legal process. Tom Matty has a background in law and social work, and he decided to become a McKenzie friend after witnessing the challenges and frustrations that many people face in the family law system. He believes that by offering his services at a low cost, he can help families cope with separation and divorce, and increase access to justice for those who cannot afford a lawyer or qualify for legal aid.

However, Tom Matty's role as a professional McKenzie friend is not without controversy. Some lawyers and judges have raised concerns about his qualifications, ethics, and potential conflicts of interest. They argue that he is not regulated by any professional body, that he may give inaccurate or misleading legal advice, and that he may have ulterior motives for assisting certain clients. They also question whether he is infringing on the practice of law, which is reserved for licensed lawyers in Canada.

Tom Matty defends his work as a professional McKenzie friend by saying that he is not acting as a lawyer or representing anyone in court. He says that he only provides information and guidance to his clients, and that he always encourages them to seek independent legal advice if they need it. He also claims that he follows a code of conduct that ensures his honesty, integrity, and confidentiality. He says that his main goal is to empower his clients to make informed decisions about their own legal matters, and to reduce the stress and conflict that often arise in family law disputes.

The question of whether Tom Matty can be successful as Canada's first professional McKenzie friend remains to be seen. He faces many challenges and uncertainties in his work, as well as opposition from some members of the legal profession. However, he also has supporters and clients who appreciate his services and value his contribution to the family law system. Ultimately, his success may depend on how the courts and the public perceive his role and its impact on access to justice.

What do you think of this response?

09/09/2022

THAT WAS FAST

It is now the Court of King's Bench of Alberta.

No longer Queen's Bench.

There is an announcement that all parties are to begin immediately using the new nomenclature. But Queen's bench will still be accepted for awhile.

The Court of Queen's Bench is the Superior Trial Court for the Province, hearing trials in civil and criminal matters and appeals from decisions of the Provincial Court. The Chief Justice and other Justices of the Court are also judges of Surrogate Matters, which has jurisdiction over probate and ad...

07/06/2022

HOW YOUR MATTER WILL BE HEARD

Post covid there is discussion about whether you should attend court in person or remotely.

The Alberta courts have a pilot project setting out criteria and types of hearings that will be in person and which will be via remote access.

In general if it is a procedural matter, like docket court, it will be remotely. If it is substantive then it is likely to be in person.

You can request to change the type of hearing for various reasons which I will post below.

A basic table of hearing type and whether it is default remote or default in person is here:
https://www.albertacourts.ca/qb/court-operations-schedules/scheduling/hearing-guidelines

Quote from the link, and a contact to discuss your type of hearing:

any change to the mode of hearing after a matter is scheduled must be approved by the Manager, Court Coordination at

[email protected].

Changes to the mode of hearing after a matter is scheduled will be determined considering the circumstances and the following criteria:inability of a participant to attend in person due to health issues or other personal circumstances;distance to the location of the hearing which makes in-person attendance impractical;a change in the nature of the proceeding such as to necessitate a departure from the scheduled mode of hearing;a change in representation of a party from self-represented to represented, or vice versa; andsuch other reason as approved by the Court.