125 (1) Despite the provisions of any other Act, if a person, including a person who performs professional or official duties with respect to children, has reasonable grounds to suspect one of the following, the person shall immediately report the suspicion and the information on which it is based to a society: 1. The child has suffered physical harm inflicted by the person having charge of the child or caused by or resulting from that person’s, i. failure to adequately care for, provide for, supervise or protect the child, or ii. pattern of neglect in caring for, providing for, supervising or protecting the child. 2. There is a risk that the child is likely to suffer physical harm inflicted by the person having charge of the child or caused by or resulting from that person’s, i. failure to adequately care for, provide for, supervise or protect the child, or ii. pattern of neglect in caring for, providing for, supervising or protecting the child. 3. The child has been sexually abused or sexually exploited by the person having charge of the child or by another person where the person having charge of the child knows or should know of the possibility of sexual abuse or sexual exploitation and fails to protect the child. 4. There is a risk that the child is likely to be sexually abused or sexually exploited as described in paragraph 3. 4.1 The child has been sexually exploited as a result of being subjected to child sex trafficking. 4.2 There is a risk that the child is likely to be sexually exploited as a result of being subjected to child sex trafficking. 5. The child requires treatment to cure, prevent or alleviate physical harm or suffering and the child’s parent or the person having charge of the child does not provide the treatment or access to the treatment, or, where the child is incapable of consenting to the treatment under the Health Care Consent Act, 1996, refuses or is unavailable or unable to consent to, the treatment on the child’s behalf. 6. The child has suffered emotional harm, demonstrated by serious, i. anxiety, ii. depression, iii. withdrawal, iv. self-destructive or aggressive behaviour, or v. delayed development, and there are reasonable grounds to believe that the emotional harm suffered by the child results from the actions, failure to act or pattern of neglect on the part of the child’s parent or the person having charge of the child. 7. The child has suffered emotional harm of the kind described in subparagraph 6 i, ii, iii, iv or v and the child’s parent or the person having charge of the child does not provide services or treatment or access to services or treatment, or, where the child is incapable of consenting to treatment under the Health Care Consent Act, 1996, refuses or is unavailable or unable to consent to, treatment to remedy or alleviate the harm. 8. There is a risk that the child is likely to suffer emotional harm of the kind described in subparagraph 6 i, ii, iii, iv or v resulting from the actions, failure to act or pattern of neglect on the part of the child’s parent or the person having charge of the child. 9. There is a risk that the child is likely to suffer emotional harm of the kind described in subparagraph 6 i, ii, iii, iv or v and the child’s parent or the person having charge of the child does not provide services or treatment or access to services or treatment, or, where the child is incapable of consenting to treatment under the Health Care Consent Act, 1996, refuses or is unavailable or unable to consent to, treatment to prevent the harm. 10. The child suffers from a mental, emotional or developmental condition that, if not remedied, could seriously impair the child’s development and the child’s parent or the person having charge of the child does not provide the treatment or access to the treatment, or where the child is incapable of consenting to the treatment under the Health Care Consent Act, 1996, refuses or is unavailable or unable to consent to, treatment to remedy or alleviate the condition. 11. The child’s parent has died or is unavailable to exercise the rights of custody over the child and has not made adequate provision for the child’s care and custody, or the child is in a residential placement and the parent refuses or is unable or unwilling to resume the child’s care and custody. 12. The child is younger than 12 and has killed or seriously injured another person or caused serious damage to another person’s property, services or treatment are necessary to prevent a recurrence and the child’s parent or the person having charge of the child does not provide services or treatment or access to services or treatment, or, where the child is incapable of consenting to treatment under the Health Care Consent Act, 1996, refuses or is unavailable or unable to consent to treatment. 13. The child is younger than 12 and has on more than one occasion injured another person or caused loss or damage to another person’s property, with the encouragement of the person having charge of the child or because of that person’s failure or inability to supervise the child adequately. 2017, c. 14, Sched. 1, s. 125 (1); 2020, c. 25, Sched. 1, s. 26 (6); 2021, c. 21, Sched. 3, s. 3. Ongoing duty to report (2) A person who has additional reasonable grounds to suspect one of the matters set out in subsection (1) shall make a further report under subsection (1) even if the person has made previous reports with respect to the same child. 2017, c. 14, Sched. 1, s. 125 (2). Person must report directly (3) A person who has a duty to report a matter under subsection (1) or (2) shall make the report directly to the society and shall not rely on any other person to report on the person’s behalf. 2017, c. 14, Sched. 1, s. 125 (3). Duty to report does not apply to older children (4) Subsections (1) and (2) do not apply in respect of a child who is 16 or 17, but a person may make a report under subsection (1) or (2) in respect of a child who is 16 or 17 if either a circumstance or condition described in paragraphs 1 to 11 of subsection (1) or a prescribed circumstance or condition exists. 2017, c. 14, Sched. 1, s. 125 (4). Offence (5) A person referred to in subsection (6) is guilty of an offence if, (a) the person contravenes subsection (1) or (2) by not reporting a suspicion; and (b) the information on which it was based was obtained in the course of the person’s professional or official duties. 2017, c. 14, Sched. 1, s. 125 (5). Professionals and officials (6) Subsection (5) applies to every person who performs professional or official duties with respect to children including, (a) a health care professional, including a physician, nurse, dentist, pharmacist and psychologist; (b) a teacher, person appointed to a position designated by a board of education as requiring an early childhood educator, school principal, social worker, family counsellor, youth and recreation worker, and operator or employee of a child care centre or home child care agency or provider of licensed child care within the meaning of the Child Care and Early Years Act, 2014; (c) a religious official; (d) a mediator and an arbitrator; (e) a peace officer and a coroner; (f) a lawyer; and (g) a service provider and an employee of a service provider. 2017, c. 14, Sched. 1, s. 125 (6). Volunteer excluded (7) In clause (6) (b), “youth and recreation worker” does not include a volunteer. 2017, c. 14, Sched. 1, s. 125 (7). Director, officer or employee of corporation (8) A director, officer or employee of a corporation who authorizes, permits or concurs in the commission of an offence under subsection (5) by an employee of the corporation is guilty of an offence. 2017, c. 14, Sched. 1, s. 125 (8). Penalty (9) A person convicted of an offence under subsection (5) or (8) is liable to a fine of not more than $5,000. 2017, c. 14, Sched. 1, s. 125 (9). Section overrides privilege; protection from liability (10) This section applies although the information reported may be confidential or privileged, and no action for making the report shall be instituted against a person who acts in accordance with this section unless the person acts maliciously or without reasonable grounds for the suspicion. 2017, c. 14, Sched. 1, s. 125 (10). Solicitor-client privilege (11) Nothing in this section abrogates any privilege that may exist between a lawyer and the lawyer’s client. 2017, c. 14, Sched. 1, s. 125 (11). Conflict (12) This section prevails despite anything in the Personal Health Information Protection Act, 2004. 2017, c. 14, Sched. 1, s. 125 (12). Section Amendments with date in force (d/m/y) 2020, c. 25, Sched. 1, s. 26 (6) - 01/03/2021 2021, c. 21, Sched. 3, s. 3 - 01/10/2021