Jennifer Breithaupt Smith

The applicant father brought a Motion to Change seeking to eliminate child support arrears accumulated between August 2016 and August 2018, arguing he was unable to work due to severe wrist pain and subsequent surgeries.

The respondent mother argued he should have found comparable work.

The court found that while the father was technically intentionally underemployed, his underemployment was reasonably required by his health needs under section 19(1)(a) of the Federal Child Support Guidelines.

The court fixed the arrears at $0.00 but declined to order the mother to reimburse funds already collected by the Family Responsibility Office.

The applicant father brought a motion for civil contempt against the respondent mother, alleging six breaches of a final parenting order.

The court found the mother in contempt for failing to enroll the child in an extracurricular activity and for failing to cooperate in obtaining a passport for the child.

The other alleged breaches were dismissed due to ambiguity in the order or the court exercising its discretion.

The mother was ordered to pay a $57 fine for the passport application fee and to enroll the child in specific extracurricular programs.