Case information

Family law — Custody — Immigration — Refugee claim — Mother taking children from home in Kuwait without father’s consent and claiming refugee status in Canada — Father making application for return of children under s. 23 of the Children’s Law Reform Act, R.S.O. 1990, c. C.12 — Is a court deciding an application to return abducted children to their habitual residence required to await the outcome of a refugee application? — In an abduction case, what deference is owed to an application judge’s findings concerning whether a child’s evidence has been influenced by the abducting parent? — What is the test for the admissibility of fresh evidence on appeal where the welfare of a child is at stake? — Are appellate courts required to provide reasons when allowing a contested motion for fresh evidence?

Case summaries are prepared by the Office of the Registrar of the Supreme Court of Canada (Law Branch). Please note that summaries are not provided to the Judges of the Court. They are placed on the Court file and website for information purposes only.

(SEALING ORDER) (COURT FILE CONTAINS INFORMATION THAT IS NOT AVAILABLE FOR INSPECTION BY THE PUBLIC)

The parents are both Jordanian citizens who were married in Kuwait in 2008 and lived there throughout their marriage. The parties have three children who are all under the age of twelve. The applicant father still resides and works in Kuwait. They separated in March 2018 after a domestic conflict that occurred in the family home. The father moved out of the family home that day. He obtained a court order that provided him with 12 hours of weekly access time with the children. The mother continued to reside in the family home with the children and she applied for custody and alimony. The court refused the father’s request that the mother and children be required to surrender their passports. In May 2018, the mother and children left Kuwait without the father’s knowledge or consent and travelled to the United States on visas. They crossed the border into Canada, where the mother made a refugee claim on her own behalf and on behalf of the children. In October 2018, the father applied for a return order under s. 23 of the Children’s Law Reform Act that would compel the children to be returned to Kuwait. The mother maintained that the children would suffer serious harm if returned to Kuwait. The application judge granted the father’s application for a return order, finding that the children were not at risk of serious harm if returned to their habitual residence. This decision was overturned on appeal and the father’s application for a return order was dismissed.