Is a husband's obligation to contribute to child care expenses reduced to zero?

In Trafford v. Trafford (2006), O.N.C.J. 389, the Ontario Court of Justice refused to make an order requiring a husband to pay a proportionate share of child care expenses because the mother failed to provide any evidence of any child care expenses being incurred by her. The father’s obligation, therefore, to contribute to those expenses was reduced to zero but on a without prejudice basis which would permit the mother to provide proof of current child care expenses if they were being incurred.

In another case, Stewart v. Jones (2003), CAN.L.I.I. 2251, the Ontario Superior Court of Justice overturned a decision of the trial judge in the Ontario Court of Justice who made an order for a proportionate sharing of child care costs in the absence of confirmatory evidence that the mother was incurring child care costs. Although she had testified to the fact, there was no documentary evidence to support her position. At paragraph 6 of the decision Seppi, J. said that: “The applicant bears the onus of proving her claim within the requirements of Section 7(1)(a) and she did not do so.” As a result, she found that the father was not given a full opportunity to respond to the child care expense claim that was made against him.