TORONTO, ON – SEPTEMBER 30, 2015 – Mayors John Tory (Toronto), Rob Burton (Oakville), and Dave Ryan (Pickering) are supporting Premier Kathleen Wynne in endorsing Ontario’s first ever Family Dispute Resolution Week, November 23 to 27, 2015.

Organized by the Family Dispute Resolution Institute of Ontario (FDRIO), FDRWeek will feature public forums across the province that will help Ontarians better understand the resources available for resolving family law disputes, including mediation, arbitration, collaborative practice and many free and subsidized services. Court should be, in most cases, the very last option that Ontarians consider when they need to separate, divorce, or deal with related issues.

Premier Wynne, a former mediator at St. Stephen’s Community House in Toronto, kicks the week off with the keynote at a 1-day conference on Monday, November 23, 2015. Ontario Attorney General Madeleine Meilleur is scheduled to speak at lunch also on November 23. The Treasurer of the Law Society, Janet Minor, and Dispute resolution guru Bernie Mayer will speak as well.

Libraries and city halls across Ontario will feature free public information days November 24, 2015, including replicas of the Family Law Information Centres that exist in family courts.

Events include free workshops on access to justice, family violence and mental illness in family law and mediation in a pluralistic society.

Although the courts serve to protect the rights of parents and their children, court is not the only option. FDRWeek is intended to help Ontarian better understand the dispute resolution options that focus on practical, workable and non-adversarial solutions wherever possible.

Here is the schedule of events (so far) for FDRWeek.

For more information:

Hilary Linton, Co-chair, FDRWeek & Director, FDRIO
President & Founder, Riverdale Mediation Ltd.
www.blog.riverdalemediation.com
www.riverdalemediation.com

hilary@mediate393.ca
416-593-7100, ext. 291