The Supreme Court of Canada established defined the limited situations when a BC spousal support review can be ordered on BC spousal support awards in the Leskun. The British Columbia spousal support review order is still used as a tool to encourage a reluctant spouse to take steps to move in part or in whole towards self- sufficiency.
BC SPOUSAL SUPPORT CONSENT ORDERS VARIATION AND MIGLIN TWO STEP TEST FOR VARIATION OF SPOUSAL SUPPORT
In Turpin v Clark the BC Court of Appeal partially allowed a husband’s appeal from a BC spousal support judgment allowing the wife’s upward quantum variation to comply with the Spousal Support Advisory Guidelines of a Consent step down BC spousal support Order.
HIGH INCOME BC SPOUSAL SUPPORT AND CHILD SUPPORT GUIDELINES CALCULATION AND GROSS UP FOR LOWER TAXES
BC spousal support and child support awards start with a proper calculation of the BC paying spouses spousal and child support guideline income which can be taken from tax returns, financial statements showing pre- tax corporate earnings and in cases of foreign income a figure that may be grossed up to reflect a Canadian equivalent income for exchange rate differences and to take into account the income may be received on a tax free basis or on a reduced tax basis compared to the prevailing rates in Canada. Income will often also include bonuses, severance pay and overtime.
BC Family Law High Net Worth Spousal Support Income Update
Lorne MacLean, high net worth BC divorce lawyer and his BC MacLean Family Law Group handle many high BC spousal support income and high BC family asset net worth cases and recently obtainbe a combined child and spousal support award of almost $30,000 per month. Many high net worth BC family asset cases not surprisingly involve high BC spousal support income as well. Until recently it had been thought that a BC high net worth family asset award to a spouse of perhaps 3 to 4 million dollars would mean the BC spouse with a lower income would not be entitled to spousal support as they would be receiving a generous award of family assets which could be used to generate income and as well the capital could be slowly used up as well over the lifetime of the spouse. The recent BCCA case of Chutter has turned this idea upside down.
Leskun – Spousal Misconduct and BC Spousal Support
The long awaited British Columbia case involving, spousal misconduct and BC spousal support, of Leskun came down on June 21, 2006. The BC spousal support case broke ground on the issue of what- if any- impact should spousal misconduct and its consequences have on spousal support awards and what proof should be required. One of […]
LESKUN- SPOUSAL MISCONDUCT AND BC SPOUSAL SUPPORT
The long awaited British Columbia case involving, spousal misconduct and BC spousal support, of Leskun came down on June 21, 2006. The BC spousal support case broke ground on the issue of what- if any- impact should spousal misconduct and its consequences have on spousal support awards and what proof should be required. One of […]
Spousal Support and the Duty of Self Sufficiency
One of the most contentious issues on marriage breakdown is should one spouse be supported by the other and if so how much will be paid and for how long. A huge issue that often arises is over what the lower income spouse can earn. I often tell clients that the theory used by Robin […]
Will I be paying Spousal Support Forever?
Spousal Support Awards under BC Family Law Legislation by Alison Ouellet British Columbia Spousal Support awards come in various forms. Awards can be time-limited, permanent or reviewable. But what does all this mean? Is there ever any certainty as to how long the payor will be paying for? The simple answer is no.
