February 22, 2024 – Many clients seek coverage for obtaining spousal support; however, every client brings a unique and potentially complicated broader context that must be considered when deciding on a path forward. For example, in addition to evaluating the client’s set of circumstances for their entitlement on a compensatory and non-compensatory basis for spousal support, Legal Aid Alberta also reviews the client’s current source of income.
This review is undertaken because spousal support, unlike child support, is considered taxable income in Canada. Because of this, spousal support can potentially cause other sources of income to be reduced, creating an adverse financial impact on the client. Claw-backs can have unintended effects on clients in several ways. A client who is now responsible for enforcing a judgement on the opposing party for part of their income which was previously secure now has no guarantee that this income will be received in a timely manner, or at all. In addition, the client would have now incurred a legal bill for assistance to obtain what could amount to a Pyrrhic victory, at least in part.
A friendly reminder to all students-at-law to get in touch with us at [email protected] when:
Timely updates of your profile will let us know if our Roster Relations team needs to reach out to you to see if we can offer any support.
Updates involving admission to the Bar will also allow us to ensure that we remove some of the restrictions that are imposed on students-at-law, such as the inability to take sole conduct of a criminal matter that has proceeded by Indictment.
