BC Form 1 Notice to Resolve Explained

Why this guide exists

I went through the BC family-law process myself and found the forms much harder to understand than they needed to be. Once I understood what each form was actually asking for, the process became much easier to manage. These guides explain the forms in plain English.

Based on lived experience and checked against current official BC forms and rules. Not legal advice.

What this form is really for

Use this form when your Provincial Court registry is an early resolution registry and you have a family law matter that must go through the early-resolution process before a Form 3 application or Form 6 reply can be filed.

Do not use it like this: Do not treat Form 1 as your actual application for parenting, support, contact, guardianship, or spousal support orders. It is notice that you want help resolving those issues before the court application stage. Protection orders and priority parenting matters follow different routes.

Part 1 — Notice

You confirm that the people who need a copy of the Notice will get one. In normal language: identify everyone who is legally part of the family-law issue, not just the person you are most directly disagreeing with.

Part 2 — About the parties

Put in your information and the other party’s information. If there is another adult who is actually part of the family-law matter, the form has space to identify that person too.

Part 3 — What you need help resolving

Check the family-law topics that are actually in dispute: parenting arrangements, child support, contact, guardianship, spousal support, or companion-animal property division. This section is not asking for the exact order you want yet.

Part 4 — Children

List the children the family-law matter is about. If the dispute is not about children, the form tells you to move on.

Part 5 — Existing orders and safety-related orders

Tell the system whether there are already court orders or written agreements, and whether there are protection orders, bail conditions, peace bonds, child-protection plans, or other restrictions that matter. Do not assume “existing order” means only a Provincial Court family order.

Part 6 — Filing location

Choose why you are using that registry: existing file, where the child lives most of the time, where you live for a non-child matter, or because a court order allows it.

Part 7 — What happens next

The form lays out the early-resolution steps: a needs assessment, parenting education where required, and consensual dispute resolution where appropriate. If the issues do not resolve, a party can move on to Form 3 after the requirements are met.

Common mistakes to watch for

Thinking Form 1 asks the court to make an order. It does not.
Ignoring an existing protection/criminal order because it came from a different court.
Choosing a registry just because it is convenient instead of checking the filing-location rule.
Assuming every BC registry uses Form 1. It is specifically tied to early resolution registries.

What happens after you fill it out?

1. File the Form 1 in the correct early-resolution registry and provide a copy to the other party. Form 1 starts the early-resolution process; it does not ask a judge to make a family-law order.

2. Complete the early-resolution requirements. The current Rules require a needs assessment, the parenting education program where applicable, and at least one consensual dispute-resolution session where appropriate.

3. If you resolve the issue, you may not need a contested Form 3 application. If issues remain unresolved after the requirements are completed, the next step is usually the appropriate court application, commonly Form 3 for a family-law matter.

4. Keep proof of what you completed. Early-resolution services and the registry process are connected. Keep copies of the filed Form 1 and any completion information you receive.