Canada Case Law

AL v. MW

Court

Supreme Court of Nova Scotia

On balance of probabilities the court found AL credible and MW's allegations of sexual abuse and coercive control unproven; the child's best interests support shared parenting under AL's proposed eight‑day rotation with specific modifications; prospective child support set by shared‑custody set‑off to $475/month from April 1, 2026 and prospective s.7 expenses apportioned 63% AL/37% MW; retroactive table child support for Sep 2021–Aug 2022 was declined due to demonstrated burdens AL incurred to exercise parenting time, but AL was ordered to pay $31,536 by periodic payments of $350/month in add…

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• Parenting arrangements
• Best interests of the child
• Retroactive child support
• Section 7 special expenses
• Coercive control
• Alleged sexual assault

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A.A.L. v. A.F.L.

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

The court held that (1) relocation to Vernon by Ms. L is permitted and she will remain the primary caregiver because that arrangement best serves the children's stability and welfare given her primary caregiving role and available support; (2) a graduated parenting regime is ordered increasing Mr. L's unsupervised parenting time with specified transition periods; (3) on income the court accepted agreed imputations: Mr. L's income imputed to $192,370 (May-Dec 2024) and $239,130 (from Jan 1, 2025); Ms. L's income imputed to $65,000 up to Oct 1, 2025 and $75,000 thereafter; (4) child support and…

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• Relocation
• Parenting arrangements
• Child support
• Spousal support
• Cohabitation agreement interpretation
• Property valuation

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R.E.F. v. J.F.

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

Equal parenting was denied because the respondent has not demonstrated willingness and capacity to cooperate with claimant or to prioritize and reliably manage the childrens' extensive therapeutic, educational and routine needs given his hostility, unreliable history and resistance to joint management; court maintained primary residence with claimant, adjusted and slightly expanded respondent's parenting time, fixed child support on respondent income of $38,393 (producing $585/month effective April 1, 2026), apportioned s.7 special/extraordinary expense shares (claimant 71%, respondent 29%) r…

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• Parenting arrangements
• Special and extraordinary expenses
• Consent order enforcement
• Section 211 report
• Conduct orders (s.222 fla)

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Schaarschmidt v. Whitcroft

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

On the balance of probabilities the respondent engaged in serious, frequent and recent family violence, exposed the child to that violence, and demonstrated conduct and lack of cooperation that impairs his ability to meet the child's needs; claimant's and third‑party evidence were credible while respondent's evidence was not; accordingly, to protect the child's physical, psychological and emotional safety the prior parenting orders were varied to provide primary residence to the claimant, supervised parenting for the respondent, passport and travel control to the claimant, one‑year protection…

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• Parenting arrangements
• Best interests of the child
• Family violence
• Protection orders
• Variation of prior orders
• Psychological assessment

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M.J.F. v. G.J.F.

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

Court found BC could exercise jurisdiction over parenting because the children were physically present in BC and substantial evidence was available, but declined jurisdiction over divorce, property and support in favour of Washington on forum non conveniens grounds (more ties, property law and evidence in Washington, risk of multiplicity and conflicting orders); accordingly BC proceedings on divorce, property and support were stayed while BC retained jurisdiction over parenting and ordered reunification counselling and staged contact.

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• Jurisdiction
• Forum non conveniens
• Habitual residence
• Guardianship
• Parenting arrangements
• Child support

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Veal-Brake v. Pitts

Court

Supreme Court of Nova Scotia

On balance of probabilities the father will retain primary care because the children had lived with him for the relevant period, the mother’s credibility issues and delayed, sporadic contact undermined her claim to primary care, there was insufficient, detailed evidence to displace the status quo despite some finding of intimate partner violence, and risks from the mother’s historical alcohol use and conflictual behaviour were addressed by ordered restrictions; major decisions require consultation and adherence to third-party professional advice or, absent such advice, final decision by the f…

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• Parenting arrangements
• Decision-making responsibility
• Parenting time
• Best interests of the child
• Communication restrictions
• Alcohol restriction during parenting time

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C.M.S. v. M.M.S.

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

The court dismissed an application to compel a consent order based on a 2022 agreement and also dismissed a bid to change parenting time from five to seven nights per 14.

• Parenting arrangements
• Consent order
• Separation agreement
• Best interests of the child
• Child support
• Court procedure

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T.H. v. J.H.

Court

Newfoundland and Labrador Court of Appeal

The appeal is dismissed because the trial judge applied the correct legal framework (best interests of the children), properly relied on the Voice of the Child report, made no palpable misapprehension of the evidence when declining to find parental alienation, and rightly refused to resolve complex financial disentanglement on an interim record lacking full disclosure; constitutional challenges, a stay and additional evidence were out of scope for this interim appeal.

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• Parenting arrangements
• Decision-making authority
• Parental alienation
• Interim orders
• Child support
• Spousal support

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McGean v. Andrews

Court

Supreme Court of Nova Scotia

On a balance of probabilities the court found the father engaged in physical and emotional family violence toward the mother, including conduct in the child’s presence; given the demonstrated harm, lack of insight by the father and the child’s age, supervised parenting time pending completion of intimate partner violence programming is required, primary care and decision-making responsibility are awarded to the mother, and child support is set consistent with table amounts plus retroactive support payable in installments.

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• Family violence
• Parenting arrangements
• Supervised access
• Best interests of the child
• Child support
• Retroactive support

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I.A.M.M. v. H.F.S.S.

Court

Supreme Court of British Columbia

On costs after a family trial, the Court found the claimant substantially successful and awarded costs at Scale B, payable monthly over 24 months.

• Divorce
• Parenting arrangements
• Travel authorization
• Income imputation
• Child support and s.7 expenses
• Spousal support

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