2 total
Child ordered returned to Portugal under Hague Convention; mother's wrongful retention and grave risk defences rejected.
The applicant father brought a motion under the Hague Convention for the return of his four-year-old daughter to the Azores, Portugal.
The respondent mother had travelled to Canada with the child for a temporary visit but refused to return, remaining in Canada with her new partner.
The court found that the child's habitual residence was Portugal, the father possessed and exercised rights of custody through his joint decision-making authority over overseas travel, and he had not acquiesced to the retention.
The court rejected the mother's defence that returning the child posed a grave risk of harm due to alleged domestic violence, finding her evidence lacked credibility and did not meet the stringent threshold.
The child was ordered returned to Portugal.
Grandparents granted temporary contact order over mother's objections due to child's close historical relationship.
The applicant grandparents brought a motion for a contact order with their seven-year-old granddaughter after the respondent mother cut off contact due to ongoing family conflict.
The mother argued that her parental autonomy should be respected and that the grandparents' contact should be at her discretion.
The court found that the mother's decision to terminate contact was arbitrary and not in the child's best interests, given the child's close historical relationship with the grandparents.
The court granted a temporary contact order providing for monthly in-person visits, alternating between day visits and overnights, as well as weekly virtual contact.
