The two little girls found dead on Christmas Day in Oak Bay were at the centre of a custody dispute.

Six-year-old Chloe Berry and four-year-old Aubrey Berry were discovered in their father's apartment on Beach Drive across from the Oak Bay Marina.

Andrew Berry  was described in a court decision this year as an economist with B.C. Ferries. He's in hospital with self-inflicted wounds.

According to the May ruling, a restraining order was issued in 2013 preventing the father from contacting the mother or the children.

That ended when a written agreement was reached in November of that year.

The mother of the children went to court last year to raise concerns about Berry's parenting and to resolve issues around finances and family assets.

She testified in the court case that "following the passing of her own father, the Father became increasingly critical of her and called her foul names in the presence of the children, and the Mother felt she had lost her protector".

The mother also testified that the father said he would "blow up the house" if he didn't get a full breakdown of expenditures.

"The Father did not testify about this and I accept the Mother’s uncontradicted evidence," Justice Victoria Gray wrote in her ruling.

However, Gray also ruled that Berry "is a loving Father who has much to offer his daughters", notwithstanding all the criticism of his parenting from the mother.

"It is in the best interests of the girls to have significant parenting time with the Father," Gray stated in her decision. 

"On balance," the judge continued, "I am not persuaded that the Father's displays of poor judgment regarding the children have reached the level that the children should be deprived of significant parenting time with their Father."

The Ministry of Children and Family Development was made aware of allegations against the father.

There will be a candlelight vigil for the girls on Saturday (December 30) at 7 p.m. at Willows Beach in Oak Bay.