The Bottom Layer: the Initial Agreement creating the "Equal Parenting Plan"

The more decisions that  can be settled in the Equal Parenting Agreement, the less trouble and expense  later in rehashing these same topics every year in the Annual Parenting Supplement.   All these settled joint decisions are set down in the legally binding "Covenants  Section" of the Equal Parenting Agreement.

The Supremacy and Legal Equality of Both Natural Parents

Any  "Equal Parenting Agreement" must establish the legal equality of both parents.  This is already guaranteed under in the  Charter of Rights and Freedoms (Sections 15.1 & 28).   Neither parent’s authority is subjugated to any third party:   This is very easy to do conceptually. 

The problem as always are the ubiquitous femiinarcissist "Women's right to Choose" types.  For these it is second nature to demand the woman's prerogative and right to murder unborn children with impunity at taxpayers expense, the right to murder their husbands and young children demanding  the greatest sympathies and leniencies of the Courts, and to "murder" their husbands and older children emotionally and financially in Family Court.   Stay clear of these ubiquitous femiinarcissists.  Do not be seduced by them.   They mean you and family members no good.  Their intent is for your harm, and once injured, to give them greater access to emotionally vulnerable women and their children.  Tales of seduction and sexual harassment in Women's Shelters abound.  All these, if in government service, are in  Breach of trust by public officer   To cover their tracks, and those of their kind, femiinarcissist "Activist Judges" have by MIS-interpretation of the Charter fabricated the fictitious "Charter Rights" of "sexual orientations" while ignoring generally the true Charter Rights of Fathers and their Sons to equality on the basis of "sex" literally prescribed TWICE in the Charter.)

Long Term Planning for Parenting, entrenched as Covenants

Anticipate all the joint decisions that have to be made in parenting until the end of high school, and  arrange them into functional periods according to chronology.  For example, plan separately the pre-school, elementary school, middle school, high school periods of Parenting.  The objective is to develop an exhaustive list, which is  to hashed over  until a consensus is reached.  What can be agreed upon is entrenched into the Agreement as Covenants. 

Determine to lay down enough of a backbone of Covenants, so that future efforts will be directed at day to day matters, rather than foundational issues, like custody and guardianship - all easy money for the legal profession, but lousy for families.  What cannot be determined in advance, and laid down in Covenants may be deferred to Annual Agreements to supplement the initial Equal Parenting Agreement.  

If at all possible, determine the "Parenting Community" for each period, and lay that out in either the Covenants or Wishes section..

Parental "Wishes" Section

In addition to a  "Covenants  Section" of the Agreement which IS binding, you can  make a non-binding statement of intent in a "Wishes Section" to guide any person caring for the child in absence of both parents.  Set you mind to the prospect of "dying" and you are having to set out your wishes to whoever is caring for you children after your "death".  For decent parents, this should be an easy and collaborative part, and provides momentum for more difficult questions.

This might be the place to begin the Agreement making  process.  It fits in well with the death of the marriage, and some of the grieving that entails.

Although not strictly binding, the Wishes Section provides any non-parent providing care, or making decisions on behalf of the child in the absence of the parents a description of the Trust placed in them.  This is also the measure by which any such non-parent is to be judged to be in breach of the Trust  placed in them by lending them parental powers in trust.

Short-Term Planning Parenting Supplements, "Annual Agreements"

An ESSENTIAL Covenant of the Equal Parenting Agreement is that Annual Parenting Supplement WILL be made yearly. 

It is prudent to include in the initial Equal Parenting Agreement what would normally be considered Annual Agreement material, to provide a preexisting agreement to fall back on if one of the parents refuses to participate in the preparation of an Annual Agreement in the future.

Embedded with in the initial Agreement and each Annual Supplement is a "Parenting Timetable" to govern which parent has autonomy on all residual day to day parenting issues on each calendar day in the year in questions

Parenting Timetable:

The "Timetable"  plans a one year calendar of parenting alternation, encompassing all 52 weeks of school weeks and non-school weeks.  The Timetabled Parent is the parent obligated to provide care for the child and given the right to decide how care not already determined in the various covenants will be implemented. 

It is desirable for the parenting split ratio between parents to be close to 50% for many reasons. If the parents both live within driving distance to the child's school, it is difficult to imagine why this would not be possible. 

Remember, what alternates  in the Timetable is the OBLIGATION to provide care and the RIGHT to make a parental decisions not already established in the Covenants.  Usually the right and obligation of care is concurrent with physical care, but not necessarily. 

If for some reason the Timetabled Parent cannot be physically present with the child during their Timetabled time, we think it is preferable to leave small children especially in the care of the Non-Timetabled Parent than any third party.  Under an Equal Parenting Agreement this should not become contentious issue.  The Time-tabled Parent retains the obligation to provide care, and the right to decide how that care will be implemented (subject to the Covenants and Wishes), even while the child is in the care of the Non-Timetabled Parent. 

The Non-Timetabled Parent of course in not under obligation to provide care at such time, but if they are willing, the Timetabled parent may assign care to the Non-Timetabled Parent.. 

The Middle Layer: the Series of "Annual Parenting Supplements"

Each spring, in anticipation of the coming school year, the Equal Parenting Agreement requires a list of specific parenting decisions be reviewed, modified if necessary, and recorded in the Annual Parenting Supplement.  The usual topics to be reviewed are schooling, day care, extra-curricular activities, medical, health, how to pay for things, and so forth. 

This is typically very simple and straight forward.  Any married couple would have to do the same thing  yearly.  The Annual Agreements, often in tabular form, are written down and formalized in writing.

If for some catastrophic reason, preparation of these Annual Agreements become problematic, they may be settled by Mediation or Binding Arbitration predicated on the equality of the parents and all constraining  Covenants and guiding Wishes made in the initial Equal Parenting Agreement.. 

We tend to place a high value on maintaining a single community for both parents, the settling stability of weekly routine, and flexible  predictability.  Parents who move away move away without their kids until alternative arrangements are made.

The Top Layer: the Series of "Parenting-Time Timetables"

Embedded within the initial Equal Parenting Agreement and each Annual Supplemental Agreement is a refreshed  "Parenting-Time Timetable". On any given day, one parent is the Timetabled Parent, and the other parent is the Non-Timetabled Parent.  Neither parent’s authority is subjugated to any third party, and they themselves are of equal status, with alternating parental care and control.  

Set down in each Agreement, specific dates and times which predetermine which parent exercises parental control on any given date in the Calendar Year.  This constitutes the "Parenting-Time" Timetable.  Ideally you will have tentative Parenting-Time Timetables planned out from Divorce through until the children reach the age of consent, which will be tweaked and ratified in each Annual Parenting Supplement..  Registering the Equal Parenting Agreement and it's Annual Supplements in Provincial Court means its terms can be amended without the chronic  involvement of lawyers or their additional cost to the raising of a child.

With in a calendar year there are ? weeks of Summer Vacation, ? weeks of Standard School Weeks, and within the school term, ? weeks of School Vacation.  We recommend these all be divided as equally between the parents as practicable.  With Equal Parenting both parents have equal rights to  parenting time, but may waive these rights for practical considerations.  Equal Parenting rights are guaranteed under the Charter, but rarely complied with in Family Court.

By adhering to this ESSENTIAL principle of INDEPENDENCE on day to day parenting concerns not jointly established in the Covenants and Wishes sections of the Agreements, disagreement which are bound to occur between parents on day to day parenting are eliminated.  This independence does not permit a cantankerous parent, usually the mother, to  escalate problems with Joint Custody into a false claim sole custody predicated on the disruptions she herself created.   Traditionally, because of the most favored status of women in BC Family Courts, Mothers gain by being disruptive, while Fathers can only loose if they can't keep things on a steady keel with the mother.

The Icing on the Cake!

Just think of all the money your family will save by heading directly into an Equal Parenting Agreement!  

By the way, studies have clearly shown that the old sixties thinking  that conflict is harmful to kids is WRONG!  Conflict in marriage is not an excuse to end the "commitment" provided in marriage for your spouse and your children.  On the contrary, it is not CONFLICT that harms kids, it is protracted, UNRESOLVED CONFLICT, such as that inflicted on us after Divorce by the Family Law Industry, that creates the damage to our kids. 

Conflict is inevitable where freewill exists, within Marriage, and after Divorce.  In fact, CONFLICT DEMONSTRATING PROBLEM SOLVING  and  CONSENSUS BUILDING between equal partners is a necessary and highly beneficial environment for kids to be raised  in , and far superior to the autocratic tyranny  of a Sole Custodial Parent.  What needs to be avoided is the long term, UNRESOLVED conflict, the current practice of the Family Law Industry creates.  Long term, unresolved conflict is a problem while  the opportunity exists for one of the parents, typically the mother determines to be uncooperative or disruptive.  Many, if not most BC judges allow women to be disruptive and  make false allegations  in their bid for sole custody, even though they are instructed in the Divorce Act to remove the disruptive parent from the class of custodial parents. 

You can save all that money the lawyers will charge you to mess up your family their way, and have fun with your kids to put some icing on your cake instead.  Minimize the lawyers, and lather on the Icing!