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Awards

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DENA MOYAL AWARD FOR DISTINGUISHED SERVICES

In 2020, the AFCC-O President’s Distinguished Services Award was renamed the Dena Moyal Award for Distinguished Service, to honour the memory of one of AFCC-O’s most dedicated supporters. 

Dena began her career as a childcare worker with the Huntley Street Services group home for teenage girls estranged from their families.  In 1980, she obtained her LLB from Osgoode Hall Law School and was called to the Ontario Bar in 1982.  In 1986, she was invited to join the Office of the Official Guardian (now the Office of the Children’s Lawyer).   After many years representing children in custody/access and child protection cases, Dena rose to become Legal Director of the OCL’s Personal Rights department in 1996.  In this role, Dena oversaw the OCL’s child representation program across the province for many years, developing policies, best practices and training programs for child’s counsel, and directly supervising the work of OCL panel lawyers and in-house counsel.

Dena wrote and spoke extensively about issues pertaining to the representation of children in family law and child protection matters, and presented papers at numerous national and international conferences – including those organized by the AFCC.  When the Ontario Chapter was formed in 2008, Dena was one of its first members and was instrumental in shaping the organization from the outset.  She travelled extensively across Ontario with the AFCC-O banner, forms, and general information, participating in community events and conferences to help spread awareness of AFCC-O.  She and the outreach committee developed two presentations featuring interviews with adult children of divorce and incorporating the perspectives of other family members and professionals.  These presentations were recorded so that they could be made available for local community outreach events, and are still used today as a tool to promote awareness of how children are impacted by family conflict.   Dena and her fellow outreach committee members received the President’s Award in 2012 to recognize their tremendous efforts to promote the AFCC-O organization and its vision for children and families in Ontario. In 2013, Dena served as President of AFCC-O.

Throughout her career and after her retirement, Dena maintained strong connections with members of family law bench and bar, as well as clinical colleagues, both in Ontario and oversees.  She was deeply committed to supporting children’s involvement in family law decision-making, and finding creative ways to shield children from family conflict and thereby nurture their healthy growth and development.  Dena is remembered for her calm and gentle leadership style, and her tireless efforts to promote positive outcomes for children and families.  She is also remembered for her close relationship with her family, and could always be encouraged to share a story about her grandson.

The Dena Moyal Distinguished Service Award is an annual award that honours a member for their exemplary contributions to the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts – Ontario Chapter over a sustained period of time.  Past recipients of the award have made significant and voluntary contributions to AFCC-O objectives through committee participation, education, leadership and mentoring.  Through their contributions to AFCC-O and to the greater family justice system in Ontario, candidates for this award must have demonstrated a collaborative and interdisciplinary approach to serving the needs of children and their families.  Nominations should be submitted to info@afccontario.ca and should include the candidate’s C.V. and a letter of recommendation outlining the reasons for nomination.

2021 Award Recipient

Justice Andrea Himel

Justice Andrea Himel received her B.A. from McGill University (1993) and her joint LL.B./M.S.W degree from the University of Toronto (1998). She was a student and an associate following her 2000 call to the bar at Smith Lyons LLP (now Gowling WLG).   From her early days as an articling student, Andrea had a laser focus on practising family law.  Smith Lyons’ loss was Torkin Manes’ gain when Andrea moved to Torkin Manes LLP.  While there, she joined the legal panel of the Office of the Children’s Lawyer.

Prior to her judicial appointment, Justice Himel was a sole practitioner with a focus on family law, mediation, child protection and children’s law. As a member of the Child and Family Services Review Board, she adjudicated and mediated cases involving school expulsions, adoptions, secure treatment, and other Children’s Aid Society matters.

In 2020, Jusice Himel was appointed to the Superior Court of Justice of Ontario, Family Court Branch in Newmarket.

Along with her very impressive work career, Justice Himel was among one of the founding members of the AFCC-Ontario chapter.  During her tenure on the AFCC-O board, Justice Himel was chair of the conference committee for several years, chair of the research committee, and member of several other committees. She was always involved in outreach and promoting a strong membership.   She subsequently became president of AFCC-O where she continued to instill these values into her leadership style.

In addition to all of this, Justice Himel was a major contributor to the development and marketing of AFCC-O’s Parenting Plan Guide (the “PPG”) and Template. She recently published an article with former board member and colleague Prof. Nick Bala on the use of the PPG.

Justice Himel was and remains one of AFCC-O’s greatest champions.

To kick off our 10th Anniversary celebrations in 2018, AFCC-O honoured TEN outstanding Judges, psychologists, lawyers, social workers, financial professionals, academics and other professionals with our
Award of Excellence in Family Justice. 
The award was given to TEN (10) individuals or institutions to acknowledge their exemplary contributions to the field of family law and justice in Ontario.  The recipients all made significant contributions demonstrated by one or more of the following principles:
  • contributions to the ability of families to access family justice;
  • research that has contributed to an understanding of the needs of families;
  • mentorship and leadership to newer professionals;
  • development and sharing of novel and innovative best practices;
  • promotion of collaborative and interdisciplinary practices;
  • creation and development of tools that assist practitioners (ie. software, screening tools, assessment tools);
  • development and promotion of information and resources that help families navigate the family justice system;
  • preparation of important educational resources, precedents and educational materials and/or commitment to continuing professional development activities;
  • community advocacy on behalf of families and children and or issues related to families;
  • advocacy, in and out of the court setting, particularly on behalf of vulnerable or underserviced populations; and/or
  • contributions specifically related to the understanding of the needs of children and advocacy for them.

Please join us in congratulating our ten award recipients:
Dr. Rachel Birnbaum
Patti Cross
Justice George Czutrin and Justice Emile Kruzick
DivorceMate Software Inc.
Mr. Philip Epstein
Dr. Barbara Fidler
Dr. Peter Jaffe
Mr. Alfred Mamo
Justice Joyce Pelletier
Professor Carol Rogerson and Professor Rollie Thompson

PRESIDENT’S DISTINGUISHED SERVICE AWARD

Award Description: The President’s Distinguished Service Award is an annual award that honours a member for his or her exemplary contributions to the Association of Family and Conciliation Courts, Ontario Chapter, over a sustained period of time. The individual has made significant and voluntary contributions to AFCC-O objectives through committee participation, education, leadership and mentoring. Through his or her contributions to the AFCC-O, and to the greater family justice system in Ontario, the recipient has demonstrated a strong commitment to promoting a collaborative and interdisciplinary approach to serving the needs of children and their families. Nominations should include the candidate’s C.V. and a letter of recommendation outlining the reasons for nomination.

2019 Award Recipient

Tami Moscoe

Tami Moscoe is Senior Family Counsel, Office of the Chief Justice, Superior Court of Justice, where she provides advice to Chief Justice Geoffrey Morawetz and Senior Family Justice Stevenson on any and all issues relating to family law, family court processes and the Unified Family Court.  This includes developing internal and external resources for the Superior Court of Justice to assist with the resolution of family cases, including its guide to process for family litigants.  It also includes assisting with the development and implementation of best practices, education and resources for family law and child protection proceedings.  Tami also advises on improvements to the Family Law Rules and family justice innovations, working closely with representatives of the Ministry, the family law bar and other stakeholders.

Over the past five plus years, Tami has contributed to several successful family law initiatives.  She was instrumental in the recent Unified Family Court expansion in Ontario as well as the launch of Ontario’s Family Law Limited Scope Services project.  In addition to her significant contributions to the Ontario family justice system, Tami has supported numerous AFCC-O initiatives.  Most notably, she helped to create the Walsh Family Law Negotiation Competition in 2014, and took on the formidable task of co-chairing the organizing committee for the first five years.  

Tami joined the public service in 2006 after 8 years of family law practice at Torkin Manes.  She also became an Accredited Family Mediator (Ontario Association for Family Mediation) during her time in private practice.

Previous Recipients:
2017 – Justice Eleanor Schnall2016 – Jennifer Suzor
2015 – Dr. Barbara Fidler
2013 – Vince Ramsay
2012 – AFCC-O Outreach Committee – Deborah Moskovitch (chair), Dena Moyal, Steven Benmor, Linda Popielarczyk, Linda Chodos, Angela Khelem, and Maggie Hall
2011 – Patti Cross

Nicholas Bala Award For Student Excellence

Previous Recipients:

2019 – Priya Khalsa
2018 – Beth Ambury; Shawn Stewart
2017 – Stephanie Ovens
2016 – Shely Polak
2015 – Katie Hunter
2013 – Joanna Hunt
2012 – Jaclyn Mackenzie
2011 – Ambreen Walji
2010 – Tiffany Lau

Award Description: From 2010 to 2019 the AFCC-O had the Bala Award for Student Excellence to recognize achievement by students in law, social work and related disciplines who intended to pursue careers  in Family Law.  The Award was created when the Ontario Chapter was getting established to help us connect with students.

Since 2010, the AFCC-O has had an extensive program of outreach to professional students, including establishing the Walsh Family Moot and the Walsh Family Negotiation Competition, and expanded its conference scholarship program and mentoring program, so in 2019 the Board decided to cease giving this Award.  The AFCC-O continues to strive to strengthen ties to students and to support and mentor those starting their careers.

The AFCC-O also acknowledges the contributions to Family Justice of  Professor Nicholas Bala, whose interdisciplinary research has had a major impact on developing knowledge on the effect of legislation and the justice system on children and families.  The Award was named in his honour in 2010 when he had 4th stage metastatic melanoma, but happily he survived, served on the AFCC-O Board for three years, and presented the 2019 (and last) winner with the Award!

The winner of the 2019 Nicholas Bala Award for Student Excellence is Priya Khalsa.

Priya Khalsa obtained her Honours Bachelor of Health Sciences with a Psychology minor from Western University. During her undergrad, she volunteered with young adults at a mental health care hospital and with impoverished children in the Dominican Republic, planning English language learning activities.

Ms. Khalsa graduated from the combined Juris Doctor and Master of Social Work program at the University of Toronto in 2019. At the Faculty of Social Work, she specialized in Children and their Families and acquired a solid understanding of child and adolescent welfare in the context of the family microsystem. She completed her social work placement at Ujima House, where she supervised therapeutic access visits and provided support to racialized families who faced child protection concerns and other personal barriers.

At the Faculty of Law, she participated in the Walsh Family Law Negotiation Competition, first as a competitor then as a student coach. She was also part of Pro Bono Students Canada’s Family Law Project (PBSC), volunteering at the Ontario Court of Justice. She is especially interested in interdisciplinary family law. She completed a full year law and social work practicum at the Ministry of the Attorney General’s Supervised Access Program where she developed a 6-chapter family law and supervised access e-learning module to assist in the training of social work professionals.

From 2018-2019, she was part of PBSC’s Bioethics Project at Sick Kids Hospital where she conducted research and presented on “The Best Interests of the Child: What Can Healthcare Law Learn from Family Law?”. She became interested in expert evidence and family law after presenting on the topic of expert evidence bias at the Canadian Academy of Psychiatry and the Law conference. In 2018, she joined the Board of Directors for Family Services York Region, a non-profit organization devoted to the wellbeing of youth and their families. Ms. Khalsa is currently articling at J K Hannaford Barristers in Toronto.

AFCC-O’S 2016 SPECIAL AWARDS IN MEMORY OF OUR COLLEAGUES

In October 2016, the AFCC-O presented two special awards in memory of two colleagues:

The Honourable Justice Geraldine Waldman for Excellence in the Intersection of Family Law and Criminal Law Relating to Domestic Violence

The Honourable Justice Geraldine Waldman was an innovator and an outstanding voice for families and children, particularly victims of domestic violence. Justice Waldman was appointed to the Ontario Court of Justice in 1992. She pioneered the creation of the first Canadian court dedicated to hearing domestic violence cases that included both family law and criminal law issues.

Dr. Peter Jaffe was the recipient of this award in recognition of his outstanding dedication to serving families and children affected by domestic violence, and his commitment to educating and mentoring others working in this area.

The Lorraine Martin Award for Excellence in Dispute Resolution

Lorraine Martin was a pioneer of family mediation and is remembered for her varied contributions to the field of dispute resolution. Lorraine was the Director of the Custody/Access Clinical Program at the Office of the Children’s Lawyer for 17 years.

Ms. Antoinette Clarke was the recipient of this award in recognition of her outstanding contributions to facilitating the resolution of family disputes in a family, child focused and culturally sensitive manner.

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