The applicant mother brought a motion for a temporary order to move the parties' 12-year-old child from a private school to a public school gifted program for Grade 7.
The respondent father opposed the motion, arguing the child should remain at the private school and that the issue required a trial.
The court found it had jurisdiction to make a temporary order regarding school choice if it was in the child's best interests.
However, the court dismissed the motion, finding the mother had not met the onus of demonstrating that a change in schools was in the child's best interests at this time, particularly given the child's preference to remain at his current school and the lack of comprehensive expert evidence evaluating both options.
The court ordered an independent assessment under section 30 of the Children's Law Reform Act to determine the issue for trial.
