2 total
The court retroactively terminated a father's child support obligation and erased arrears due to his disability.
The respondent, Christopher Eric Waltham, brought a motion to change a 2005 child support order, seeking termination of his obligation retroactive to the child's 18th birthday and a reduction of arrears.
The court found a material change in circumstances due to the respondent's health issues and ODSP qualification.
Despite late formal notice, the court exercised discretion to retroactively decrease support to January 1, 2017, citing the respondent's understandable fear of the applicant.
The child support obligation was terminated as of August 31, 2018, as the child was no longer a minor, not in full-time education, and not unable to withdraw from parental charge.
Arrears were recalculated and significantly reduced, with most held funds to be returned to the respondent.
All eight children remain in Society care pending trial.
In a child protection status review involving eight children, the court considered whether the children should remain in the care of the Children’s Aid Society pending trial and whether certain children required independent legal representation.
Applying the Child and Family Services Act, the court determined that three of the older children should receive legal representation under s. 38, while younger children were too young to meaningfully instruct counsel.
The court found that the Society established ongoing protection concerns including inadequate supervision, poor school attendance, domestic violence exposure, and the caregiver’s inability to manage the children’s needs.
Proposed placements with family members and the return of several children to the mother’s care were rejected due to insufficient information and unresolved risk factors.
All children were ordered to remain in the Society’s care on an interim basis with access arrangements for family members.
