Edward A. Rice

A child protection trial concerning an infant born to a mother whose three older children had recently been made crown wards.

The Children's Aid Society sought crown wardship without access for the infant.

The mother sought dismissal of the application or, alternatively, placement in her care with supervision.

The grandmother sought placement of the child in her care with supervision.

The court found the child was in need of protection based on the mother's history of poor judgment, inability to recognize safety hazards, dishonesty with the court and society, and failure to engage in necessary therapeutic interventions.

The court also found the grandmother posed unacceptable risks due to her own protection history, dishonesty, and breach of court orders.

The court made the child a crown ward without access, finding adoption was in the child's best interests.

The Children's Aid Society of Toronto brought a motion for summary judgment seeking an order to make the child C.S. a Crown ward and place her in the care and custody of the Society.

The respondent mother opposed the motion and sought either dismissal or, alternatively, a short-term Society wardship with transition to her care.

The court found no genuine issue requiring trial and granted the summary judgment motion, making C.S. a Crown ward.

The decision was based on the mother's intellectual disability, her inability to meet the child's needs consistently, her ongoing relationship with an abusive partner despite court orders prohibiting contact, the child's special needs including global developmental delay and possible fetal alcohol spectrum disorder, and the failure of the parents to demonstrate meaningful change or capacity to parent safely.