What is the difference between a parenting report ordered under s. 211 of the BC Family Law Code?

In contrast, a report ordered under s. 211 is intended to be a more comprehensive investigation of parenting issues and may include recommendations on the parenting arrangements that will meet and promote the best interests of the child. A s. 211 report is not ordered in every family law proceeding involving children. However, the applicant need only meet a low evidentiary threshold as such assessments are seen as “invariably providing a valuable source of information for a court faced with the onerous task of making fundamentally important decisions about the welfare of the child”: R.E.Q. v. G.J.K., 2015 BCSC 1786 at para. 32. The court recognizes that such a report is an intrusion into lives of both the parents and the child. Nonetheless, the probative value to be gained from the report generally outweighs that intrusion. The court has said that, generally speaking, only the cost of such a report will raise a countervailing concern: Marsden v. Bercovitz (3 October 2012), New Westminster E039404 (B.C.S.C.). In addition, a s. 211 report should not be ordered if the purpose is shown to be an attempt by one party to create parenting controversies where none exist or the process is found in some way to be contrary to the child’s best interests. Analysis