In last month’s issue, I wrote about the link between immigration and human rights. This month, I would like to discuss one specific principle of human rights that has often been invoked in immigration court decisions – the so-called “best interests of the child.” In the landmark case of Baker v. Canada , decided by the Supreme Court in 1999, it was held that the best interests of the child principle enshrined in the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, to which Canada is a party, should be given serious consideration. This means that, when there are children involved or affected by a court or administrative ruling, officers and decision makers are duty-bound to be “alert and sensitive” to the needs and well-being of children who will be affected by their decision. This principle is especially relevant to applications based on humanitarian and compassionate considerations, where the applicant may invoke that his or her presence in or removal...