Spousal support can be based

From page 12

But Sharon's health, which hadn’t been all that good, started to get worse, and she was admitted to hospital for psvchiatric problems. Ry now, Frank was supporting the family.

Three years after getting married, the Bracklows sepa- rated. In 1995, after another three years, they were divorced. Frank paid Sharon $400 a month in spousal sup- port until 1996.

Fast forward to the pre- sent. Sharon hasn’t worked since becoming ill and proba- bly never will, She lives in subsidized housing in Burnaby and gets $787 3 month in disability benefits. Frank is remarried, and at the time of trial was earning $3,764 a month and paying $2,284 monthly as his share * of his new houschold expens- cs.

Should Frank have to con- tinue supporting Sharon just because she is sick? Does the

fact that they were married mean he has a lifelong obliga- tion to her? Or in this age of second and third marriages, should he be allowed to move on and forge a new life with new commitments?

The Supreme Court of Canada recently decided Sharon is legally entitled to support.

Up until now, the law said that you could get spousal support, if, for example, you stayed home to look after the home and family and basically

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Elementary tune-up

sacrificed your own carcer opportunities. Upon divorce, you needed to be compensat- ed for what you gave up

because of the marriage. Now,

here, the court said you're also entitled to support if you have a “need” for it, even though the marriage didn’t create the problem.

“Marriage, while it may not prove to be ‘till death do us part,” is not to be under- taken lightly,” said the court. “It involves the potential for litelong obligation. There are no magical cut-off dares.”

How much Frank must pay has been left to the B.C. court to decide. The court must look at factors such as the length of time the Bracklows were married, their relative independence while married, and the amount of support Frank has already paid.

But this case does mean that you may be entitled to

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support trom a former spouse

when your marriage is over, if

your need for financial assis- tance arises from some cause thar has nothing to do with your marriage, such as an ill- ness or possibly even the loss of your job. “falk to your lawyer to

find out how much and for

how long.

— This colina has been written with the assistance of Daryl Collier of the North Vancouver law firm of Ratcliff & Company, Suite 500, 221 West Esplanade, 988-5201. The columun provides information only and must not be relied on for legal advice.

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Getting it: financial shape

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MICHAEL Soderling (right), a Biueridge elementary school student, recently had his bike inspected by Steve Chalmers of John Henry the Bicycle Man. Employees from the North Van store made a visit to inspect and tune up students’ bikes.

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