Family Law Problems?

Spousal maintenance and financial support

Married couples and now defacto couples have a legal obligation under the Family Law Act to provide financial support to one another including in some circumstances following separation. If that financial support is not forthcoming, then either party to a marriage or a defacto relationship is entitled to seek an order that the other party provide such financial support called Spousal Maintenance. Mostly this only becomes an issue following separation.

There are two requirements for a successful Spousal Maintenance claim and they are as follows:

1. A party must demonstrate that they have need and this is done by showing that there is a gap between their weekly income (not including centrelink benefits in most cases) and their reasonable, weekly expenses.
2. That the other party has a capacity to pay Spousal Maintenance, because their weekly income exceeds their reasonable, weekly expenditure.

The court may order Periodically Spousal Maintenance. If it does so, most commonly the court will make such an order for a fixed period of time, to allow a party to retrain and establish themselves in the workforce. Alternatively the court may order Lump Sum Spousal Maintenance by giving a party a greater share of the assets in the property settlement.

A Spousal Maintenance Order can be negotiated with the other party and formalised as a Consent Order. Often however, it is necessary to make application to the court for a Spousal Maintenance Order..

It is very important that you obtain legal advice prior to making an Application for Spousal Maintenance or defending such an Application.