Legal Question in Family Law in Canada

Spousal Support

Mine is a complex question. I am American (husband), and she is Canadian (wife), and I am currently seeking a divorce that I am in the process of filing for. We have been married for just over six years and have had an unofficial separation for at least 2 of that. She is now demanding spousal support, we have no children, or joint assets, bills or debts of any kind. I am a contractor working for an American firm and stand to make just under $100,000 on this contract alone.

She has been recently laid off from work and has yet to get another job (my guess is to prove to the court why I should pay her maintenance) and she has no more than a few hundred to her name.

Is she intitled to any of my earnings or future pay from my contracts and what is the likelyhood that she may be awarded spousal support if she contests the divorce and takes me to court? Any help with this question would be greatly appreciated, thank you.


Asked on 7/08/07, 6:20 pm

1 Answer from Attorneys
Donald McLeod Donald R. McLeod Law Corp.

Re: Spousal Support

The answer to this question depends to a great extent on what Province is involved; citizenship is completely immaterial. What does mattter is the jurisdiction in which each person lives. The law varies from Province to Province and from State to State.This questioner says that there are no joint assets; this is very unlikely to be the case. In British Columbia, most assets are joint regardless of whose name they are registered in. As to whether or not spousal support is a possibility, there is far too little information given to even hazard a guess. This area is too complex to deal with in an email or even a few short ones; the questioner should consult a lawyer from the British Columbia Branch of the Canadian Bar Association. The branch will arrange a consultation for a nominal fee, usually $25. The number can be found in hte Telus phone book under "lawyers".

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Answered on 7/08/07, 9:02 pm


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