The court ordered the return of a wrongfully removed seven-year-old child to Mexico under the Hague Convention, finding the mother failed to establish grave risk of harm or sufficient child maturity to object.
The applicant father sought an order under the Hague Convention for the return of the parties' seven-year-old son to Mexico.
The respondent mother opposed, relying on two exceptions: grave risk of harm due to alleged abuse and the child's resistance to return.
The court found that the mother failed to meet the high evidentiary threshold for grave risk of harm, noting a lack of objective evidence and the father's amenability to the justice system.
The court also determined that the child, at seven and a half years old, had not reached an appropriate age and degree of maturity for his views to be determinative, as his objections were inconsistent and influenced by his new environment rather than fear for his safety.
The father's application for the child's return was granted, with specific undertakings for the child's protection and transition in Mexico.
