Karen Armstrong

The father applied for sole custody of his four-year-old daughter, who had been living with her maternal grandmother for almost four years.

The mother, who had significant mental health and substance abuse issues, supported the grandmother's claim for custody.

The court found that the grandmother's home environment was unstable and that she lacked insight into the mother's and her own deficiencies, including failing to protect the child from the mother's violent partner and failing to address the child's chronic head lice.

The court determined that the father offered a stable, loving, and comprehensive plan for the child's care.

Sole custody was granted to the father, with specified access to the mother and maternal grandparents.

The parties, who were never married, separated and signed a separation agreement giving primary residence to the applicant mother.

The respondent father later retired from the Armed Forces, moved to Sudbury, and sought custody of the children or a reduction in child support.

The applicant sought to set aside the separation agreement, claiming duress and lack of disclosure regarding the respondent's pension.

The court dismissed the application to set aside the agreement, finding it was negotiated with counsel and based on the applicant's own counterproposal.

The court also dismissed the respondent's claim for custody, maintaining the status quo to avoid disrupting the children, but ordered a review due to concerns about school absenteeism.

Child support was temporarily reduced based on the respondent's pension income, with a warning that income would be imputed if he did not secure employment.