Jasmeet Dhaliwal

The applicant father sought primary residence and opposed the respondent mother's proposed relocation to Mexico with their one-and-a-half-year-old child.

The mother, who had precarious immigration status in Canada and could not work, sought to relocate to Mexico where she had family support and employment prospects.

The court found that the child's primary residence should remain with the mother, who had been the primary caregiver since birth.

The court permitted the relocation, finding it was in the child's best interests given the mother's need for stability and the father's inconsistent exercise of parenting time and escalating conflict.

The mother was granted sole decision-making responsibility, and the father was granted regular virtual parenting time and in-person parenting time when travelling to Mexico.

The parties engaged in a high-conflict custody dispute over their 6-year-old son following their separation.

The mother sought sole custody, while the father initially sought joint custody but amended his claim to sole custody at trial.

A section 30 assessment recommended a parallel parenting regime, but the court rejected this due to the entrenched conflict and inability of the parents to communicate effectively.

The court awarded sole custody and primary residence to the mother, finding she was better positioned to provide a stable environment and multidimensional guidance, and was more likely to foster the child's relationship with the father.

The father was granted a specified access schedule.

The court also ruled on the admissibility of out-of-court statements made by the child regarding alleged physical discipline in the father's home, finding them inadmissible for the truth of their contents due to reliability concerns.

The father was ordered to pay child support in accordance with the Guidelines.