Toronto Child Support Lawyers
financially supported by his/her parents. A “ dependent child” means any child under the age of 18, unless the child is married, or the child is 16 years of age or over and has voluntarily withdrawn from parental control. A parent can be a biological, adoptive or step father/mother.
When parents separate or divorce, there is a legal responsibility on the non-custodial parent to pay child support to the extent that he/she can. The custodial parent is entitled to child support even if she remarries or starts co-habitating with someone else.
Child Support Payors
The following persons have a legal obligation to pay child support:
a) a person who is the biological or adoptive parent of a child;
b) a person who is not the biological or adoptive parent of a child but stands in the place of a parent to the child or a person who has demonstrated a settled intention to treat a child as his/her own.
Quantum of Child Support
The child support payable depends on the gross income of the payor parent and the number of children for whom support is to be paid.
The custodial arrangement between the parents of a child also has an impact on the amount of child support payable eg
Imputing Income
Under certain circumstances, the court may refuse a payor’s statement of income and may attribute to the payor an amount of income that is reasonable based on the payor’s work history, past income or education. The judge will then apply the Guideline amount based on his/her “imputed income”. The circumstances include where the payor fails to provide the required income or financial disclosure, is deliberately unemployed or underemployed, or is self employed or working “under the table” and there is a reason to believe he/she does not report all the income.
Duration of Child Support
Child support payment must continue long as:
a) the child is under 18 years of age and is still under the care of a parent or,
b) the child is 18 years of age or over and under the care of one of his/her parents but unable by reason of illness, disability or other cause to withdraw from their charge or obtain the necessaries of life or,
c) the child is over the age of majority and pursuing full-time post-secondary education.
A party can seek an order varying a support order (terminating, suspending, increasing or decreasing) if there has been a material change in circumstances which has occurred since the making of the last support order.
Payments by the Support Payor
The general rule is that the court determines the basic child support amount by using the Child Support Guidelines. However, the court can order an amount that is not according to the Guidelines in certain circumstances.
Special expenses
In addition to the basic guidelines child support amount, the court can order additional payments. The support payor may be required to contribute towards certain additional expenses relating to the child including:
The parents are required to share the special expenses in proportion to their gross incomes. The child’s contribution towards his/her expenses would be deducted before the expense is divided between the parents.
Age of the child
The guideline amount applies to a child under 18 years. For a child over 18 years, the court has discretion to order the guideline amount or a different amount it deems reasonable and suitable under the circumstances.
Income over $150,000
When the support payer makes more than $150,000 a year, the table amount is paid on the first $150,000. For the extra income, the court may also order the table amount or in some circumstances, a lower amount based on the financial ability each parent and the means, needs and circumstances of the children.
Step parents
As a general rule, the court must consider the guideline when determining support payable by a step parent. However, where the child has another parent who is obligated to pay support e.g birth parent, adoptive parent or another step-parent, the court may order the step-parent to pay an amount that is different from the amount set out in the guidelines.
Medical and dental insurance
Where medical or dental coverage is available to the support payor through work or at a reasonable rate, the court may order the parent to obtain or continue medical and dental coverage for the child, in addition to the support payments.
Undue hardship
In some circumstances, the court may order a child support amount that is higher or lower than the considerable amount, if following the guidelines amount would cause undue hardship to one of the parents or to the child. Circumstances that could cause undue hardship include:
Even if the court determines that the Guideline amount would cause undue hardship to the payor, the court will not change the amount unless it would cause the payor’s household to have a lower standard of living than the support recipient’s household.
Child Support Recipients on Social Assistance
As a general rule, parents on social assistance are legally obligated to make reasonable efforts to seek support payment from the other parent, failing which their social assistance benefits could be terminated or reduced.
However, they are not expected to go after the non -custodial parent for child support under the following circumstances:
(However you can obtain a support order as soon as he starts working.)
At this time, the Guidelines do not require child support payments from a parent who makes less than $10,820 a year.
The amount of any child support received by a parent on social assistance is deducted from his/her social assistance benefits. When there is a history of non-payment, the child support payment can be assigned to Ontario Works (OW) or Ontario Disability Support Plan (ODSP). These government agencies can then go after the defaulting payors to recover the support payment.
To speak with a Toronto child support lawyer, please call (416) 972-0404.
Every spouse has an obligation to support him or herself i.e . each spouse has a duty to be self-supporting or self-sufficient. However, under certain circumstances, the court may order a spouse to pay spousal support to the other spouse.
Entitlement to Spousal Support
The following persons are entitled to spousal support:
a) a spouse or former spouse. This includes persons who are married to each other or who have entered into a marriage that is void or voidable, in good faith, on the part of the person seeking to assert a legal right; or persons that have entered into a polygamous marriage in a jurisdiction that allows it.
b) Unmarried persons who have cohabited continuously for a period of not less than three years.
c) Unmarried persons who are in a relationship of some permanence and are the natural or adoptive parents of a child.
Factors considered:
In making a determination as to whether to order spousal support, the court takes into consideration the condition, means, needs and other circumstances of each spouse. Whether the court would order one spouse to financially support the other after the relationship breakdown, how much the court would require for spousal support or for how long the support payments would last, depends on many factors including the following:
The spouses are entitled to be compensated for contributions made during the marriage and economic disadvantages, advantages or losses sustained as a result of the marriage breakdown e.g.:
a) one spouse sacrificing his/her career for the sake of the family by staying at home, looking after the children, the other spouse and the home.
b) ongoing childcare responsibilities affecting a spouse’s capacity to earn reasonable income;
c) physical or psychological problems of the dependent spouse.
The party seeking support must establish he/she has a need and that the other party has the ability to pay spousal support. If need is established but the proposed payor does not have the ability to pay, no support will be payable e.g. proposed payor is on social assistance.
Need may not be established in a situation where both parties were economically independent during the marriage.
Quantum of Support
The court determines the appropriate amount of spousal support having regard to the conditions, means, needs and other circumstances of the parties.
In determining the quantum or amount of spousal support payable, one of the factors considered is the length of time the parties have cohabited. For marriages of short duration, support may not be granted or it may be granted on a limited time basis.
Spousal support orders could be in lump sum or periodic payments.
Duration of Spousal Support
Where the marriage is of short duration or there are no children and both parties are young, healthy and can work and meet their needs, the duration of spousal support can be time limited i.e. support is paid for a specific period of time.
However, if the marriage is of long duration, with children and one spouse staying at home to raise the children at the expense of furthering his/her career, the duration of spousal support may be indefinite.
To speak with a Toronto spousal support lawyer, please call (416) 972-0404 or toll free (855) 396-1207.
