In what circumstances will the court interfere with a discretionary award of spousal support under the Divorce Act?

British Columbia, Canada


The following excerpt is from P.(N.A.) v. W.(D.M.), 2003 BCCA 390 (CanLII):

It is well settled that this court may interfere with the discretionary award of spousal support under the Divorce Act only where the trial judge has erred in principle, significantly misapprehended the evidence, or made an award that is otherwise clearly wrong: Hickey v. Hickey, 1999 CanLII 691 (SCC), [1999] 2 S.C.R. 518 at para. 11.

The appellant alleges the trial judge’s award failed to recognize the fundamental principle enunciated by L’Heureux-Dubé J. in Moge v. Moge 1992 CanLII 25 (SCC), [1992] 3 S.C.R. 813 at 870: As marriage should be regarded as a joint endeavour, the longer the relationship endures, the closer the economic union, the greater will be the presumptive claim to equal standards of living upon its dissolution.

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