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When parents separate, one of the most important and emotionally fraught questions is how much time each parent will spend with their child. Parenting arrangements affect a child’s daily routine, stability, and long‑term wellbeing, and it is natural for parents to feel uncertain about what the law requires or how decisions are made. Understanding how Saskatchewan courts determine parenting time can help parents navigate this process with clarity and confidence.

In Saskatchewan, parenting time is entirely guided by the best interests of the child, not parental entitlement or assumptions about what arrangements should look like. Courts approach each child’s situation individually, with the goal of protecting the child’s physical, emotional, and psychological wellbeing.

What is parenting time?

Parenting time refers to the time a child spends in the care of either parent. This includes the time when the child is not physically with that parent but is at school, daycare, activities, or with friends/family during that parent’s parenting time.

How is parenting time decided?

Parenting time is decided in consideration of the best interests of the child. Parents can agree to the parenting time that is in their child’s best interests. If parents are unable to agree, either parent may bring an application before the Saskatchewan Court of King’s Bench and ask the Court to determine what parenting time is in the child’s best interests.

Under The Children’s Law Act, 2020, Saskatchewan courts must consider only the child’s best interests when making, varying, or rescinding a parenting order that details parenting time for the child. A parenting arrangement is not in a child’s best interests unless it protects their physical, emotional, and psychological wellbeing to the greatest extent possible. When considering a child’s best interests, the court considers a wide range of factors, including, but not limited to:

• the child’s needs, given their age and stage of development;

• the nature and strength of the child’s relationship with each parent;

• each parent’s willingness to support the child’s relationship with the other parent;

• the history of care of the child;

• family violence;

• the child’s views and preferences, when appropriate; and

• any other circumstances affecting the child.

This analysis is holistic and child‑centered with no one factor being determinative. Given this , the parenting time that is in a child’s best interests may vary over time as children age or circumstances change.

Is there a presumption that children should spend equal time with both parents?

No. There is no presumption that one parent has preferable parenting time over the other. There is also no presumption that children should spend equal time with each parent. Although parents may have shared parenting roles during their relationship, the amount of time one parent spent with the child before separation is only one factor to be considered and it is not determinative. The primary consideration and focus is what parenting time is in the best interests of the child.

The “maximum contact principle”, which is the idea that children should have as much contact with both parents as possible, now exists only to the extent that it supports a child’s best interests. Maximum contact does not mean equal parenting time and it does not create a presumption of shared parenting.

If you have any questions or require further information regarding your particular situation, please contact us and Avenue Law LLP’s family law team would be happy to assist you.