Dianne Sousa

The Children's Aid Society brought a motion for a temporary order placing nine children in the mother's care under supervision, and for the father's access to be supervised at the Society's discretion.

The mother and father consented to the placement with the mother.

The father opposed supervised access for the younger children, while the children, through their counsel, requested that all access be supervised and occur with all siblings present due to allegations of physical and verbal abuse.

The court granted the temporary order, placing the children with the mother and ordering that the father's access be supervised at the Society's discretion, with the condition that at least two of the three eldest children be present during visits.

The Children's Aid Society brought a motion for summary judgment seeking an order for extended society care without access for a 22-month-old child who had been in care since birth.

The mother opposed the motion, seeking a six-month supervision order.

The Society argued that the mother's longstanding mental health issues and inconsistent access justified the order.

The court dismissed the motion, finding that genuine issues for trial existed, particularly given the Society's acknowledgment that the mother's mental health had been 'fairly stable' since early 2018 and conflicting evidence regarding the quality of her access visits.

The court emphasized the highly cautionary approach required for summary judgment in child protection cases.

The Children's Aid Society brought a temporary care and custody motion for three children (M.T., C.P., and G.Z.) due to exposure to parental conflict and domestic violence.

The Society sought to place two younger children with the mother and the eldest with the father, subject to supervision.

The mother sought placement of all children with her, while the father sought placement of all children with him.

The court considered the children's views and preferences, which were consistent and independently expressed, and the parents' lack of cooperation and insight into the impact of their conflict.

The court ordered the placement of the two younger children with the mother and the eldest child with the father, both subject to the Society's supervision and specific terms and conditions, finding this to be the least intrusive and disruptive placement.