Blas et al. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), (2014) 457 F.T.R. 182 (FC)

• Judge: Russell, J.
• Court: Federal Court (Canada)
• Case Date: February 12, 2014
• Jurisdiction: Canada (Federal)
• Citations: (2014), 457 F.T.R. 182 (FC);2014 FC 629

Blas v. Can. (M.C.I.) (2014), 457 F.T.R. 182 (FC)

MLB headnote and full text

[French language version follows English language version]

[La version française vient à la suite de la version anglaise]

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Temp. Cite: [2014] F.T.R. TBEd. JL.001

Daniel Gamez Blas and Rosa Maria Mar Alvarado (applicants) v. The Minister of Citizenship and Immigration (respondent)

(IMM-2401-13; 2014 FC 629; 2014 CF 629)

Indexed As: Blas et al. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration)

Federal Court

Russell, J.

June 27, 2014.

Summary:

The applicants, citizens of Mexico, applied for permanent residence on humanitarian and compassionate grounds. They claimed that they would face hardship in Mexico based on individual threats and country conditions that included pervasive violence and poverty, and that it was in the best interests of their Canadian-born daughter to remain in Canada where she was shielded from violence and poverty. An immigration officer refused the application. The applicants applied for judicial review.

The Federal Court allowed the application and returned the matter for reconsideration by a different immigration officer.

Aliens - Topic 4

Definitions and general principles - Children - [See Aliens - Topic 1206 ].

Aliens - Topic 1206

Admission - Immigrants - General - Upon compassionate or humanitarian grounds - The applicants, citizens of Mexico, applied for permanent residence on humanitarian and compassionate grounds - They claimed that they would face hardship in Mexico based on individual threats and country conditions that included pervasive violence and poverty, and that it was in the best interests of their Canadian-born daughter to remain in Canada where she was shielded from violence and poverty - An immigration officer refused the application - The Federal Court allowed the applicants' judicial review application - The officer's best interests of the child analysis lacked justification, transparency and intelligibility to such an extent that it rendered the decision unreasonable - The child's interests were not distinguished from those of her parents, and were lost in the consideration of unusual and undeserved or disproportionate hardship - The officer stated that the child's best interests were to remain with her parents, but this merely stated the obvious and missed the point - The point was to examine, in light of the fact that she obviously would remain with her parents, what impact their removal to Mexico would have on her given the violent conditions she would be exposed to there - See paragraphs 52 to 66.

Cases Noticed:

New Brunswick (Board of Management) v. Dunsmuir (2008), 372 N.R. 1; 329 N.B.R.(2d) 1; 844 A.P.R. 1; 2008 SCC 9, refd to. [para. 12].

Agraira v. Canada (Minister of Public Safety and Emergency Preparedness) et al. (2013), 446 N.R. 65; 2013 SCC 36, refd to. [para. 12].

Lemus et al. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2012] F.T.R. Uned. 639; 2012 FC 1274, refd to. [para. 13].

Bichari v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2010), 362 F.T.R. 7; 2010 FC 127, refd to. [para. 13].

Inneh v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2009] F.T.R. Uned. 37; 2009 FC 108, refd to. [para. 13].

McLean v. British Columbia Securities Commission (2013), 452 N.R. 340; 347 B.C.A.C. 1; 593 W.A.C. 1; 2013 SCC 67, refd to. [para. 14].

Guxholli v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2013), 444 F.T.R. 309; 2013 FC 1267, refd to. [para. 15].

Alcin et al. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2013] F.T.R. Uned. 608; 2013 FC 1242, refd to. [para. 15].

Diabate v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2013), 427 F.T.R. 87; 2013 FC 129, refd to. [para. 15].

Tarafder v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2013), 437 F.T.R. 190; 2013 FC 817, refd to. [para. 15].

Kanthasamy v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2014), 459 N.R. 367; 2014 FCA 113, refd to. [para. 16].

Lemus et al. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2014), 461 N.R. 310; 2014 FCA 114, refd to. [para. 16].

Mills v. Workplace Safety and Insurance Appeals Tribunal (Ont.) (2008), 237 O.A.C. 71; 2008 ONCA 436, refd to. [para. 18].

Abraham et al. v. Canada (Attorney General) (2012), 440 N.R. 201; 2012 FCA 266, refd to. [para. 18].

Canadian Human Rights Commission v. Canada (Attorney General) et al. (2013), 444 N.R. 120; 2013 FCA 75, refd to. [para. 18].

Pictou Landing Band Council et al. v. Canada (Attorney General) (2014), 456 N.R. 365; 2014 FCA 21, refd to. [para. 18].

Farwaha v. Canada (Minister of Transport, Infrastructure and Communities) (2014), 455 N.R. 157; 2014 FCA 56, refd to. [para. 18].

Shah v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2011), 399 F.T.R. 146; 2011 FC 1269, refd to. [para. 19].

Singh et al. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2009), 340 F.T.R. 29; 2009 FC 11, refd to. [para. 19].

Aboudaia v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2009] F.T.R. Uned. 740; 2009 FC 1169, refd to. [para. 19].

Rebaï v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2008] F.T.R. Uned. 19; 2008 FC 24, refd to. [para. 19].

Sinniah v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2011] F.T.R. Uned. 794; 2011 FC 1285, refd to. [para. 20].

Arulraj v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2006] F.T.R. Uned. 313; 2006 FC 529, refd to. [para. 20].

Hawthorne v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2002), 297 N.R. 187; 2002 FCA 475, refd to. [para. 20].

Alberta Teachers' Association v. Information and Privacy Commissioner (Alta.) et al., [2011] 3 S.C.R. 654; 424 N.R. 70; 519 A.R. 1; 539 W.A.C. 1; 2011 SCC 61, refd to. [para. 25].

Khosa v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2009), 385 N.R. 206; 2009 SCC 12, refd to. [para. 27].

Walcott v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2011] F.T.R. Uned. 248; 2011 FC 415, refd to. [para. 34].

Caliskan v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2012), 420 F.T.R. 17; 2012 FC 1190, refd to. [para. 35].

Paul v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2011), 384 F.T.R. 15; 2011 FC 135, refd to. [para. 37].

Sylvester v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) et al. (2012), 403 F.T.R. 168; 2012 FC 17, refd to. [para. 41].

Williams v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2012] F.T.R. Uned. 79; 2012 FC 166, refd to. [para. 41].

Elenes Gaona at al. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2011] F.T.R. Uned. 660; 2011 FC 1083, appld. [para. 42].

Legault v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2002), 288 N.R. 174; 2002 FCA 125, refd to. [para. 44].

Serda et al. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2006] F.T.R. Uned. 209; 2006 FC 356, refd to. [para. 44].

Ramirez et al. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2006), 304 F.T.R. 136; 2006 FC 1404, refd to. [para. 44].

Vidal and Dadwah v. Minister of Employment and Immigration (1991), 41 F.T.R. 118 (T.D.), refd to. [para. 44].

Chieu v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2002] 1 S.C.R. 84; 280 N.R. 268; 2002 SCC 3, refd to. [para. 44].

Adams v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2009] F.T.R. Uned. 741; 2009 FC 1193, refd to. [para. 44].

Owusu v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2003), 228 F.T.R. 19; 2003 FCT 94, refd to. [para. 44].

Piard et al. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2013] F.T.R. Uned. 64; 2013 FC 170, refd to. [para. 44].

Davoudifar v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2006] F.T.R. Uned. 194; 2006 FC 316, refd to. [para. 47].

Selliah et al. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2004] N.R. Uned. 132; 2004 FCA 261, refd to. [para. 47].

Jeffrey v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2006] F.T.R. Uned. 350; 2006 FC 605, refd to. [para. 48].

Herrera Andrade v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [2012] F.T.R. Uned. 742; 2012 FC 1490, refd to. [para. 48].

Newfoundland and Labrador Nurses' Union v. Newfoundland and Labrador (Treasury Board) et al. (2011), 424 N.R. 220; 317 Nfld. & P.E.I.R. 340; 986 A.P.R. 340; 2011 SCC 62, refd to. [para. 48].

Ragupathy v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2006), 350 N.R. 137; 2006 FCA 151, refd to. [para. 48].

Rachewiski et al. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2010), 365 F.T.R. 1; 2010 FC 244, refd to. [para. 48].

Kisana v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2009), 392 N.R. 163; 2009 FCA 189, refd to. [para. 51].

Baker v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration), [1999] 2 S.C.R. 817; 243 N.R. 22, refd to. [para. 53].

Mangru et al. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2011), 392 F.T.R. 333; 2011 FC 779, refd to. [para. 53].

Joseph et al. v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2013), 440 F.T.R. 36; 2013 FC 993, refd to. [para. 59].

Chandidas v. Canada (Minister of Citizenship and Immigration) (2013), 429 F.T.R. 55; 2013 FC 258, refd to. [para. 60].

Counsel:

D. Jean Munn, for the applicants;

Camille N. Audain, for the respondent.

Solicitors of Record:

Caron & Partners LLP, Calgary, Alberta, for the applicants;

William F. Pentney, Deputy Attorney General of Canada, Calgary, Alberta, for the respondent.

This application for judicial review was heard in Calgary, Alberta, on February 12, 2014, before Russell, J., of the Federal Court, who delivered the following judgment and reasons at Ottawa, Ontario, on June 27, 2014.