The Spousal Support Advisory Guidelines are not legislated guidelines. Although they assist family lawyers and the courts in determining the appropriate range of spousal support in a case, the SSAG are not binding on a court. A judge has the inherent discretion to determine what he/she considers the appropriate quantum of support. In Fisher v. Fisher, the Ontario Court of Appeal held that...
A court has limited jurisdiction to vary a final Order for spousal support on a temporary basis (Crawford v. Dixon 14 RFL (5th) 267 Ont SCJ). The moving party must demonstrate that he/she has a prima facie case, there must be a clear case of “hardship or urgency and the applicant must come to court with clean hands”. The court will look at the means of the parties and determine if...
This is a difficult issue for a lot of payors. However, a party has to recognize that a marriage is a partnership. Once the partnership breaks down one party may have to compensate the other party. (more…)
