When you have been in a marriage or de facto relationship there is an obligation to financially support your partner after your separation.
However, there is a threshold test in determining whether spousal maintenance will be payable. In essence, it is a balancing act between one party’s capacity to make payments after they have met their own reasonable living expenses against the other party’s need as a consequence of any shortfall between their income and their own personal living expenses.
Generally speaking, if both parties are in paid employment, an order for spouse maintenance would be unlikely.
If an order for spouse maintenance is made, it is usually only for a short period of time to enable the weaker financial party to retrain, get back into the workforce or to provide financial support while you wait for your property settlement to be finalised.
If you think you might be liable for or entitled to spouse maintenance and you would like some advice about that please do not hesitate to contact us.
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If you believe you may be liable for or are entitled to spousal maintenance, please do not hesitate to contact us today for legal advice. Reid Family Lawyers has been assisting families in the Eastern Suburbs, Inner West, and Northern Beaches with spousal maintenance issues and concerns since 2006.