Court of Appeal

Judge:

The Honourable Mr. Justice Jamie W.S. Saunders

Appeal Heard:

February 19, 2014, in Halifax, Nova Scotia

Subject:

Primary Care.  Access.  Application to Vary.  Standard of Review.  Reasonable Apprehension of Bias.  Mediation.

Summary:

A father appealed from a trial judge’s dismissal of his application to secure primary care of his two children by moving them to live with him in Manitoba.  He complained that the judge overlooked important evidence, failed to fairly consider his plan for the children and was biased against him in the way in which she heard the case.

Held:

Appeal dismissed.  The trial judge fairly considered all of the evidence; did not overlook or misconstrue any evidence ; made strong findings of fact favouring the position advanced by the mother; and properly applied the law when addressing the needs and best interests of the children.  While some of the judge’s remarks may have sounded sharp or offensive to the appellant and left him with the sense that the judge was “against him”, the impugned exchanges, when considered in context, did not give rise to a reasonable apprehension of bias.

Judges strive to be courteous and respectful to all persons who appear before them.  This necessarily includes a sensitivity as to how particular words might be interpreted. 

Given the history of ongoing divisive litigation in this case, mediation was urged to negotiate a more satisfactory solution.