When you are the applicant in the NS ISO process, you are normally not expected to appear in court, or be represented by anyone at the hearing in the other jurisdiction.
You can however indicate in your Form A whether you would like to participate in the ISO hearing in the other jurisdiction by electronic means. If you indicate this, you will need to be prepared to make yourself available to attend. Whether you are invited to participate is determined by the court or authority in the respondent’s jurisdiction.
On the other hand, in general, unless your application is being resolved through a child support service in the other jurisdiction, the respondent on an NS ISO matter will have to go to court. For more information about this process, please see the section called 'Information for Respondents.'
Exception – Quebec and the United Kingdom
Where your NS ISO application is going to Quebec or the United Kingdom, or another jurisdiction where a provisional order is required, both you and respondent will have to go to court, in separate court hearings. Here’s what that process looks like:
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after filing your application, you will appear at a court hearing in Nova Scotia in front of a judge (just you, and your lawyer if you have one)
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the other party does not usually appear at these hearings;
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the judge will make a provisional order based on the evidence you’ve put forward;
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the Nova Scotia court will forward the provisional order and the documents, evidence, and transcript from court to the reciprocating jurisdiction;
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the court in the reciprocating jurisdiction will hear the other party’s evidence as well as review the material in your application;
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that court will either confirm the order granted by the Nova Scotia court, substitute its own order, or refuse to confirm the order.
It is strongly recommended that you speak to a lawyer for help and advice.