Guideline Income
Guideline income is the calculation of income available for support by a payor spouse in a family law context, calculated in accordance with the Federal Child Support Guidelines.
It is this calculated income that BC courts generally rely on to set child and spousal support payment obligations. While sometimes this is a straightforward calculation and the services of an expert may not be required, complex guideline income situations can arise in many situations, such as:
- A payor spouse has an interest in a private business, or in many businesses.
- A spouse is the beneficiary of an employee stock option program.
- The spouse has a unique compensation structure.
- A spouse derives significant income from foreign sources or sources that are taxed at lower rates.
We regularly provide opinions within the Collaborative Divorce process. We have also testified as an expert witness in BC on guideline income matters. Regardless of the situation, our goal is to provide an objective, independent, and understandable opinion to assist you in resolving your matter.
What makes us different is we’re a boutique firm with extensive experience in matrimonial matters. We’re small enough to be efficient and flexible but large enough to take on even the most complex guideline income calculations. Our experience and knowledge in this area provides us with the ability to provide efficient and understandable conclusions to assist you in moving forward.
FAQs
We recommend you discuss this with your legal advisors. As situations get more complex (such as one or both parties owning businesses), an objective opinion on available income can help cut through the complexity. Further, an independent opinion can facilitate parties in moving forward with an equitable resolution.
This will depend on the complexity of the situation (employment compensation arrangements and/or number and complexity of business interests). Fee estimates will be provided at the onset of an engagement.
Your first step should be to discuss the results with your legal counsel. In situations like this, we can assist in several ways, including calculating our own independent opinion of available income, critiquing the work of the existing expert, or advising counsel on potential areas of the existing report that may need to be revisited.
