Spousal Child Support Imputing Income Lawyers help ensure proper income is used to ensure paying and recipient spouses meet their legal obligations. MacLean Law’s Spousal Child Support Imputing Income Lawyers have noticed an ongoing problem with:
- under-reporting of income whether it be business owners;
- spouses who slack off or quit their jobs after an action is started;
- parents who hide cash income; and
- often parties do not understand what their true incomes are!
The term imputed income refers to the treatment of an individual’s income in BC and Calgary support and property division cases as if it is greater than what they SAY they are actually earning.
Lorne N MacLean, QC founder of our team of Spousal Child Support Imputing Income Lawyers explains BC Courts are increasingly fed up with gamesmanship in family cases and the phrase: ” if you don’t produce income and asset documentation in your family trial don’t complain if we draw the worst possible interpretation of your financial circumstances.”
Tough Spousal Child Support Imputing Income Lawyers 604-602-9000
Our firm has had a number of high profile high net worth non disclosure wins where we obtained:
- Anton Pillar raid orders that discovered over 2.7 million of hidden undeclared cash (see jail below for citation);
- orders for forensic audits at expense of the non disclosing party;
- a 6 month jail sentence for perjury;
- gross ups of income for one of Canada’s highest combined child and spousal support awards of over $83,000 a month;
- arrest warrants to bring uncooperative witnesses to court!
- special costs awards including a recent win of over $400,000 for part of a family action before trial;
- several sucessful income imputation awards.
If you need our help click here to get started on finding the hidden income and family property.
JP Boyd recent article on non -disclosure he says:
Recent research by the Canadian Research Institute for Law and the Family shows that difficulties with disclosure are getting worse, despite the abundance of rules and regulations making disclosure compulsory and the critical necessity of proper disclosure in disputes dealing with child support, spousal support and the division of property and debt.
Boyd calls for escalating penaties for non disclosure and clear warnings on all court firms. We agree!
Spousal Child Support Imputing Income Lawyers Act Across BC and In Calgary 1-877-602-9900
In a recent case the BC Supreme Court imputed income against a husband who provided inadequate and disorganized income documentation and who admitted to throwing some documents away that would have enable a proper calculation of his income. In DMB v DWAL the court summarized the law:
Law on Imputing Income and Insufficient Disclosure
[138] The calculation of a spouse’s income for child support purposes is governed by sections 15-20 of the Federal Child Support Guidelines, S.O.R./97-175. Section 16 mandates line 150 income as the starting point. That amount is then adjusted under Schedule III of the Guidelines which addresses several deductions and allowances.
[139] Section 19(1)(f) permits imputing of income for child support purposes where there has not been proper disclosure of a spouse’s income. Section 19(1)(g) permits the Court to impute income to a spouse where the spouse unreasonably deducts expenses from income. Section 21 sets out the payor spouse’s obligation to file and produce tax returns and in addition financial statements where they are self‑employed. Sections 22 and 23 permit the court to draw an adverse inference where the required financial information is not produced and to impute income in such amount as the court considers appropriate.
[140] The onus is on the party seeking to impute income to show on a balance of probabilities, on a rational and evidentiary basis, that income should be imputed.
[141] In W v. T, 2017 BCSC 1523, Kent J. summarized the law on disclosure and determination of a spouse’s income in the context of a self-employed individual as follows:
[92]It is of course central to any determination of a spouse’s income for child support purposes that the spouse make full and proper disclosure of all financial information necessary for that determination. Non-disclosure has often been called the “cancer” of family litigation. Insofar as child or spousal support claims are concerned, s. 19(1)(f) permits imputing income to any spouse who fails to make proper disclosure of his or her income information.
[93] The disclosure requirements set out in the Guidelines are supplemented by Rules 5-1 and 9-1 of the Supreme Court Family Rules which pertain to financial disclosure and discovery of documents respectively. Among other things, these rules provide for:
· mandatory production of detailed financial statements and supporting documentation;
· ongoing and updated disclosure where information becomes inaccurate or incomplete by virtue of later changed circumstances;
· production of corporate documentation and information both by the spouse holding the corporate interests and by the corporation itself; and
· in the event of non-disclosure, imposing fines, drawing adverse inferences and/or attributing income in such amount as the court considers appropriate.
[94] The burden of proving the reasonableness of deductions from business income, whether in the context of self-employment or within a wholly-owned corporation, lies with the spouse making the deduction. It is the obligation of that spouse to fully disclose the financial information and documentation relied upon to justify the deduction of each expense. It is not the other party’s responsibility to hire, nor is it the court’s obligation to appoint, an accountant or other professional to assess and challenge the reasonableness of the deduction, although of course both are at liberty to do so in appropriate circumstances. For a recent affirmation of these principles, see Cunningham v. Seveny, 2017 ABCA 4. [Emphasis added by Kent, J.]
Don’t Delay Contact Our Spousal Child Support Imputing Income Lawyers Now!
Spousal Child Support Imputing Income Lawyers at MacLean Law will tenaciously pursue missing income and assets and obtain relief to discourage attempts to deceive you and the Court on what the true income and family property is. Contact us today toll free at 1-877-602-9900. Click here for our offices
