A. Chris

Following a four-week parenting trial where the applicant father was granted custody, he sought full recovery of his costs.

The court found that the respondent mother had acted in bad faith throughout the proceeding by spoofing emails, falsifying documents, and actively sabotaging the father's parenting time.

Applying Rule 24(8) of the Family Law Rules, the court awarded the father full recovery of his costs in the amount of $438,188.77, noting that the mother's conduct was designed to inflict maximum emotional and financial harm.

The applicant father sought custody of his young daughter after the respondent mother engaged in a severe pattern of parental alienation, false allegations of abuse, and the fabrication of electronic evidence.

During the four-week trial, the mother produced forged documents, including an altered paternity test and fake emails, before fleeing to India with her younger child.

The court granted sole custody to the father, finding him to be a capable and loving parent, while condemning the mother's extreme misconduct and misuse of electronic evidence.