An application under the Hague Convention for the return of a five-year-old child to Germany.
The applicant father sought an order that the respondent mother return their son to Germany after she wrongfully retained the child in Canada.
The respondent opposed the application, claiming that return would expose the child to grave risk of physical or psychological harm under Article 13(b) of the Convention.
The court found that the child was habitually resident in Germany, that the father held custody rights, and that the child was wrongfully retained.
The court rejected the respondent's Article 13(b) defences, finding insufficient evidence of domestic violence, that parenting competence was not relevant to a return order, and that the respondent's real motivation was economic and social rather than protective of the child.
The court ordered the child's return to Germany with undertakings from the father regarding interim support and the child's care pending German court proceedings.
