Quebec mother sues DPJ for $4M after being accused of 'parental alienation,' losing custody of children

A Quebec mother deprived of contact with her children for over three years is suing the regional health authority of West Montreal (CIUSSS), the youth protection system (DPJ) and the Quebec Human Rights Commission (CDPDJ).

The $4-million lawsuit filed at a Montreal courthouse Monday alleges youth protection workers were not properly trained to deal with her case. It accuses them of having shown "gross negligence and wilful blindness" by "concealing domestic violence."

In the lawsuit, the woman alleges the saga began several years ago when her ex-husband called in youth protection.

She claims he was physically abusive to her and he claimed parental alienation, that she was essentially turning their children against him.

By law, the parents’ names cannot be publicly disclosed in order to protect their children’s identities.

The DPJ placed the pair's two children into group homes in 2019. The mother lost custody and has since only had limited supervised access to the children.

The suit claims efforts to regain access to her children have been unsuccessful because the system either ignored or was not equipped to handle the psychological effects of coercive control.

The case is seeking punitive and other damages due to the mother’s alleged suffering and the suffering of others like her.

"Even though the official discourse is that we have to put victims of domestic violence at centre stage, in fact, most of the time, these women who allege they were victims of domestic violence and fear for the safety of their children are suspected of suffering from mental problems and being alienating," says Andreea Popescu, the woman's lawyer.

The lawsuit also alleges that the CDPDJ failed its mandate to protect the children by not following up on a complaint filed by the mother. However, the CDPDJ told Noovo Info that it "does not have the jurisdiction to investigate this case since it is a situation that is the subject of a request for intervention by the youth court."

In a statement, the CIUSSS involved in the case said it could not comment because it is now a legal matter.

The suit comes days before changes to the Youth Protection Act take effect. The amendments require exposure to domestic violence to be taken into account and require workers to have training in domestic violence.

With files from Noovo Info