What is the test for a court to determine custody of a child when the child is in a new community?

The sole consideration in determining custody is the "best interests of the child". The court must balance all relevant factors in making this determination. When relocation (or mobility) is an issue, the proposed move to a new community must inform the consideration: Falvai v. Falvai, 2008 BCCA 503, at paras. 24–25.

In assessing "best interests" within a relocation context, a court should pay attention to: (a) the desirability of maximizing contact between the child and both parents; (b) the views of the child; (c) the custodial parent's reason for moving, only in the exceptional case where it is relevant to that parent's ability to meet the needs of the child; (d) disruption to the child of a change in custody; and, (e) disruption to the child consequent on removal from family, schools, and the community he or she has come to know: Falvai, at para. 27, citing Nunweiler v. Nunweiler, 2000 BCCA 300.