This urgent motion and cross-motion concerned the primary residence and schooling of the parties' four-year-old child, Zakaria.
The parents, residing in Ottawa and Cambridge respectively, had previously shared equal parenting time.
The dispute arose when the Applicant unilaterally enrolled Zakaria in an Ottawa school and withheld the child, despite the Respondent's prior efforts to formalize an agreement for Zakaria to attend school in Cambridge.
The court, applying the best interests of the child principle under the Divorce Act, found the Applicant's unilateral actions disruptive and uncooperative.
The court ordered Zakaria to reside primarily with the Respondent in Cambridge and attend Chalmers Street Public School, establishing an interim parenting schedule that allows the Applicant extended weekend time, even if it means the child misses school days.
The Applicant was also ordered to serve the divorce application promptly.
