January 6, 10:23 PMMontreal Headlines ExaminerShuyee Lee

Should a Montreal man who owes thousands of dollars in child support be denied the use of his passport?

That's what lawyers were debating at the Montreal courthouse today as they wrapped up their final arguments in an unprecedented constitutional challenge over a federal law that revokes passports or driver's licences over unpaid child support payments.

Defence lawyer Clemente Monterosso says his client, 46-year-old St. Leonard resident Francisco Caruso, can't pay the over 80-thousand dollars he owes in child support for his three kids since his 2001 divorce.

"Everything he had, he left to his wife so has nothing right now," Clemente said.

And that's why his passport was revoked. But Caruso says he needs it to go to South America to try to start up an export business.

Monterosso says the measure is unconstitutional.

"This is a fundamental right, we're talking about mobility rights that are guaranteed in the Charter of Rights. He should not be deprived of this right just because he's not paying alimony."

Federal government lawyer Alexander Pless says Caruso had over eight years to get his act together.

"If the person wanted to demonstrate that they could, in fact, earn some money and that it was a credible claim, that they could enter into an agreement, they would take that into consideration. There was no such request in this case," Pless said.


Pless argued that the inconvenience to Caruso is small when you look at the big picture as well as the welfare and well-being of his kids and others in their situation, and that these outweigh Caruso's inability to travel.