Spousal Maintenance Estimator

24/11/2025
Knowledge

How To

The Spousal Maintenance Estimator helps family lawyers estimate potential spousal maintenance payments. Although there is no fixed formula for determining maintenance, the tool offers a structured method for assessing eligibility – considering both the applicant’s reasonable need and the respondent’s capacity to pay – while also providing an estimated amount of maintenance payable.

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The Spousal Maintenance Estimator is included in all LEAP subscriptions at no extra cost.

Key Features:

The Spousal Maintenance Estimator (SME) is designed to support family lawyers in advising clients, conducting negotiations, and preparing Court documents.

Needs Assessment: Identifies maintenance requirements by comparing the applicant’s reasonable expenses with their income shortfall.
Capacity to Pay: Assesses the payer’s income, essential expenses, and capacity to provide support after meeting their own financial needs.
Customisable Inputs: Enables entry of financial details from Part N of the Financial Statement, with the flexibility to adjust the applicant’s needs to reflect a reasonable standard of living and to refine the respondent’s capacity to pay by excluding discretionary or avoidable expenses.

Getting Started

To access the Spousal Maintenance Estimator:

Open a matter in LEAP.
Click the Spousal Maintenance Estimator from the LEAP ribbon.

Initial Assessment

This section requests confirmation of 4 crucial facts that are highly relevant for every Spousal Maintenance Application. These are:

Whether this claim for spousal maintenance is being made on behalf of the Applicant or Respondent.
It is possible that a party who is a Respondent in the substantive proceedings might be the Applicant in either an interim or final application for spousal maintenance, and vice versa.
The date of the client’s most recent financial statement, if prepared.
The date of the other party’s most recent financial statement, if prepared.
Whether the Applicant is now married/living in a de facto relationship with a new partner.
Under s75(2)(m)/90SF(m) of the Family Law Act and 205ZK(3) Family Court Act (de factos WA), the financial circumstances of that new cohabitation is highly relevant and it is unlikely any spousal maintenance order against a former partner would be viable.

Needs Assessment

The first stage is to identify the Applicant’s need for spousal maintenance. This covers:

Applicant’s Income/adjusted income
Applicant’s Expenses/adjusted reasonable expenses
Applicant’s Need (income-expenses)

Assessment of Applicant’s Income/Adjusted Income

Collects the following information:

Applicant’s income (including total salary before tax, investment income, and income from business/partnership/company/trust)
Government benefits
Spousal maintenance currently received
Adult Child maintenance currently received
Child support currently received
Benefits from employment/business
Other income

Applicant’s Expenditure

Itemises expenditure areas, including:

Income tax
Superannuation
Mortgage/rent
Loan repayments
All areas from Part N of the Financial Statement
Up to 10 additional expenditure areas for the user to add at their discretion

Customisable inputs to offer reasonable adjusted expenditure is also available:

In a spousal maintenance application, the applicant can claim reasonable expenses that they are currently unable to afford, if the other party has the capacity to pay them. Sections 75(2)(g)90SF(2)(g) of the Family Law Act / 205ZD (3)(g) Family Court Act (de facto WA) provide the Applicant is entitled to a standard of living that, in all the circumstances, is reasonable.

Applicant's Need

Calculates the Applicants need by subtracting the Applicant’s expenses/adjusted expenses from their income/adjusted income. If the Applicant’s need surpasses their income/adjusted income, then an assessment of the Respondent’s capacity to pay can proceed.

Respondent's Capacity to Pay

Establishes if the Respondent concedes to pay the Applicant’s need. If so, no assessment of the Respondent’s income and expenditure is required.

If the Respondent does not concede that they have the capacity to pay the Applicant’s needs, it proceeds to an assessment of the Respondent’s financial information.

This is similar to the Applicant’s needs assessment, but instead the calculation at the end is to identify the Respondent’s capacity to pay. The following will be required, and is presented in the same format as seen for the Applicant already:

Respondent’s income/adjusted income
Respondent’s expenses/adjusted reasonable expenses
Respondent’s capacity to pay (income-expenses)

Assessment of the Quantum of Spousal Maintenance Claim

Scenario 1: Respondent has capacity from income

If the Respondent has capacity from their income to pay for the Applicant’s need for spousal maintenance, an application can be made.

Scenario 2: Respondent does not have capacity from income

Choose whether it is appropriate in this case that the Respondent use his/her own capital to pay the applicant periodic maintenance.

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While periodical spousal maintenance is ordinarily paid out of income if the respondent has sufficient capital, the applicant’s legitimate claim for periodical spouse maintenance can be paid or partly paid from that capital.

If the response to this is ‘no’, then no claim can be made.

Last Modified Date

24/11/2025 12:04 pm

Title

Spousal Maintenance Estimator

URL Name

Spousal-Maintenance-Estimator-AU

Resolution