Case comment: Relocation to the United Arab Emirates

F. v. N. 2022 SCC 51 The mother and father lived in Dubai in the United Arab Emirates (“UAE”) for nearly a decade with their two children, who are under the age of 5. Neither parent is a citizen of the UAE but the father has a residency permit which allowed him to sponsor the…

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Case summary: Abraham v. Gallo 2022 ONCA 874

This is an interesting decision where the mother in this case sought a declaration that a foreign divorce was not valid in order to proceed with a claim for spousal support under the Divorce Act. The father argued that the divorce was valid and sought to dismiss the mother’s claim for spousal support due to…

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Recent Case: Changing a final parenting order

Luke's Place

This case involved a father who wanted to change a final order about parenting that had been made over 7 years earlier. In order to change a final order, the father brought a motion to change and had to prove that there had been a “material change in circumstances” since the making of the final…

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Recent Case: Sale of the matrimonial home

Scanga v. Scanga 2023 ONSC 3592 This decision stems from an appeal in a family law case involving the sale of a matrimonial home. One party sought exclusive possession while the other sought to have the house sold and the proceeds divided. By way of background, the parties married in 1996 and separated in 2019…

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Recent Case: Family Reunification Therapy

C.B. v. E.G. 2023 ONSC 1571 This is an interesting decision concerning a father seeking family reunification therapy in order to repair his fractured relationship with his 17-year-old daughter. The mother and father, in this case, had joint decision-making and parenting time of their two children (one who is now 18 and the 17-year-old). The…

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Recent Case: Imputing Income Beyond the Minimum Wage

Osanebi v. Osanebi 2023 ONSC 2546  This is an endorsement based on an application for an uncontested trial.  The mother in this case sought the following relief: a divorce, decision-making responsibility for her two children and child support. The mother and father were married for 6 years before they separated. The father relocated to Nigeria and has not been involved in the children’s lives…

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Case Law: Temporary Parenting Orders and Religion

SMO v MJO, 2022 ONSC 5084 Written by: Yiwei Bian, Student Volunteer and Thijiba Sinnathamby, Staff Lawyer This is an interesting court decision that addresses how to reconcile one parent’s desire to raise their children in their faith when the other parent is concerned about the faith itself and how its administration effects the children. The…

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Recent Case: Retroactive Child Support and Imputing Income

Ogunware v Ganiyu, 2022 ONSC 5254 This is a trial court decision where the issues before the court were whether the father should pay retroactive child support to the mother to the date of separation and whether an income of $100,000 should be imputed to the father for child support. The mother and father began…

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Recent case: Best interests of the child and family violence

A happy Black mother and her daughter hugging and smiling outdoors

McIntosh v Baker 2022 ONSC 4235 This case provides a thorough analysis of the best interest of the child test in the context of family violence. While this case touches on property issues and child support, it will not be the focus of this case comment.   The applicant mother and respondent father have three young…

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Case update: Status quo and maximum contact

woman's hands on thick book

In the case of Theriault v Ford 2022 ONSC 3619, the court considered what “status quo” and “maximum contact” mean within the context of the amendments to the Divorce Act and Children’s Law Reform Act. This case involves parents of two children who were married to each other for 8 years before separating. The father was charged with…

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