2 total
Summary judgment granted dismissing biological mother's claim for face-to-face openness post-adoption.
The applicant child, a Crown ward with significant special needs, brought a summary judgment motion through counsel to dismiss the biological mother's claim for an openness order following his proposed adoption.
The biological mother sought to maintain the face-to-face access she had under the Crown wardship order.
The court found no genuine issue for trial, noting that the mother struggled to understand her changed role and that her volatility caused stress to the prospective adoptive parents.
Emphasizing that the purpose of an openness order is to support the success of the adoption, the court dismissed the mother's claim for face-to-face contact and ordered limited email openness as offered by the adoptive parents.
Summary judgment granted on custody; financial claims require trial.
The respondent father brought a motion for summary judgment dismissing the applicant mother’s claims for spousal support, property division, and sole custody.
The mother filed no responding materials and failed to appear on the motion.
The court held that summary judgment was not appropriate for the spousal support and property claims because the evidentiary record was incomplete, largely due to disclosure deficiencies.
However, relying on an uncontradicted Office of the Children’s Lawyer report and the father’s affidavit evidence, the court found no genuine issue requiring a trial on custody and access and granted the father sole custody with access to the mother.
The remaining financial claims were permitted to proceed to trial.
