Spousal maintenance is an area of divorce law that raises questions around three major issues: entitlement to support; quantum of that support; and length of time support will be payable.

The answers to these questions are situation specific. In many rulings different judges have awarded different amounts in similar situations. Accordingly, there is very little predictability in this area of the law.

In past years the emphasis of the courts was directed toward "self-sufficiency". In other words, the dependent spouse was under a great deal of pressure to re-enter the workforce and to become self-sufficient in the minimum amount of time.

There is now recognition that in the case of a traditional marriage of long duration it may not be feasible for a dependent spouse to become self-sufficient. Hence, spousal maintenance in such a situation may be payable for the rest of the life of the dependent spouse.

Further a recent major decision of the Supreme Court of Canada, (the "Moge" decision), has sent a very strong message to the trial courts that maintenance awards, both child and spousal, have generally been too low and it is time for a shift towards higher awards.

Once again, the end result is that a negotiated settlement regarding spousal maintenance may be much more satisfactory than a court-imposed order. This is another area where a client must work very closely with their lawyer as they wind their way through this very fluid and unsettled area of divorce law.