Does the material change threshold become engaged under the Change of Name Act?

In some cases where a parent wishes to apply for a name change the material change threshold may become engaged. But that threshold is not engaged under the Change of Name Act; it is engaged under the Children’s Law Reform Act in the context of a related custody dispute. I recently addressed this distinction fully in Roy-Bevington v. Rigden, 2017 ONCJ 730 (C.J.).

In Roy-Bevington v. Rigden, the moving party was an access parent. As such, he had no ability to make an application to change the child’s name pursuant to s. 5(1.1) of the Change of Name Act. For various reasons, I varied the temporary custody order under the Children’s Law Reform Act and then dealt with the question of the mother’s consent under the Change of Name Act, which permitted the father to proceed with a name change application. However, to be clear, the material change analysis in that case related to the custody order.