Your Rights During Family Investigations

Every year in BC, thousands of families experience investigations by the Ministry of Children and Family Development (MCFD) or a delegated Indigenous Child and Family Services Agency (ICFSA).

Despite their harms and disproportionate impacts, family investigations in BC often lack adequate oversight and accountability. There is also limited public information about investigation processes and rights in the BC legal context. MCFD workers are not required to inform parents of their rights (and may not know what those rights are).

However, parents and caregivers have rights during these investigations that they can exercise to safeguard themselves and their children from unjust state intervention.    

Our Your Rights During Family Investigations resources are intended to support parents and caregivers in making informed decisions while accessing legal and advocacy support as soon as possible. This is an important first step toward ensuring fairer investigation processes, reducing system overreach, and narrowing the front door to the family policing system (also known as child protection, or child and family services).

The Your Rights During Family Investigations resources include:

• A parent and caregiver guide: What are my rights during a “child protection” investigation?
• A companion resource on the stages of a “child protection” investigation.
• A guide for lawyers and advocates on the rights of parents during child and family services investigations.

Parent and caregiver guide: What are my rights during a “child protection” investigation?

This plain language guide is for parents and caregivers who are dealing with an investigation by MCFD or a delegated ICFSA. It does not discuss investigations conducted by an Indigenous Nation.

The stages of a “child protection” investigation

A companion resource to the parent and caregiver guide, this factsheet provides a stage-by-stage overview of what to expect during the family investigation process.

A guide for lawyers and advocates on the rights of parents during child and family services (CFS) investigations

The Guide is written for lawyers and legal advocates, though it may be helpful to others involved in the family policing system.

It aims to create a knowledge base so that lawyers and legal advocates can advocate for fairer investigation processes and support their clients to make informed decisions.

A note on language

At West Coast LEAF, we use “family policing system” to refer to the area of law known as “child welfare”, “child protection”, or “child and family services.” The family policing system narrowly focuses on assessing whether to remove a child from their home. The family policing system maintains power and control over the lives of families and children—most often Indigenous families and children—through surveillance, regulation, and punishment.

We use the term “child protection” in the Parent Guide for accessibility and familiarity for families.

In the Guide for Lawyers and Advocates, we use the term “child and family services system” for our legal audiences. The term “child and family services” is used in An Act respecting First Nations, Inuit and Métis children, youth and families and the Continuing Legal Education Society of BC’s Child and Family Services Law and Practice Manual.

Learn more about our work on family policing. 

Legal and advocacy resources

Acknowledgements

We are grateful to our project advisors and legal reviewers for helping make these resources possible.

Thank you to the Law Foundation of British Columbia for funding this project.