How have the courts in BC considered a claim for spousal support based on income disparity?

The respondent relies upon Dubey v. Dubey, 2008 BCSC 413 [Dubey] where the court considered a claim for spousal support by the husband in similar circumstances to this case. The parties had a somewhat longer marriage of 12 years. The husband made his claim based on the difference between the parties’ income. Much like here, the children had remained in the care of the mother after separation with the father having very little access. The mother was awarded sole custody. The mother had earned a consistently higher income than the father during the marriage and was likely to do so for the foreseeable future. The court considered a range of factors in denying the father’s claim, including the father’s young age, the fact that he had worked throughout the marriage and was able to pursue his own occupational goals, the parties’ self-sufficiency, and the mother’s ongoing financial responsibility to care for the children.