M. Fraser

The applicant father brought an urgent motion to prohibit the respondent mother from relocating their eight-year-old child from Petawawa to Stittsville.

The mother brought a cross-motion seeking permission to relocate the child pending trial.

The mother had sold her home and purchased a new one in Stittsville without prior notice to the father, contrary to their separation agreement.

The court applied the principles for interim mobility, finding that the move would drastically disrupt the status quo and that there were genuine issues for trial regarding the father's involvement and the child's views.

The court dismissed the mother's cross-motion and ordered that the child remain in Petawawa pending trial.

The applicant mother sought the return of her four-year-old child to Virginia under the Hague Convention, alleging wrongful retention by the respondent father in Ontario.

The father conceded the retention was technically wrongful but argued the application was brought more than a year after the retention and the child was 'now settled' in Ontario under Article 12.

The court found the child had been living exclusively with the father for over two years in a stable environment, contrasting with the mother's history of substance abuse and child protection involvement.

The court concluded the child was settled in her new environment and dismissed the application for return.