Richards and Richards

This matter concerned an application by Mr Richards (the husband) to vary a spousal maintenance order made in favour of Ms Richards (the wife). The original order, made by Federal Magistrate Spelleken on 7 June 2011, directed the husband to pay $544 per week in spousal maintenance. The husband sought to reduce this amount to $272 per week, while the wife cross-applied to increase it to $621.89 per week. The original order had been an interim measure pending the finalisation of property settlement and parenting proceedings.

The Court was required to determine whether to vary the existing spousal maintenance order, and if so, by how much. This involved considering the provisions of section 83 of the *Family Law Act 1975* (Cth), which permits the court to increase or decrease maintenance payments only if satisfied that the circumstances of either party have changed sufficiently to justify such an alteration since the order was made or last varied. The court also had to assess the parties' respective needs, capacities to contribute to their own support, and reasonable weekly expenditure requirements.

Justice Forrest found that the circumstances had indeed changed since the original order. Specifically, the wife had returned to part-time employment, earning approximately $750 per week. The court applied a needs-based approach, assessing the wife's reasonable weekly expenditure requirements and her capacity to meet them from her income. A shortfall was then identified, and the husband's income and expenditure were considered to determine his capacity to contribute. The court disallowed the wife's claim that her payment of school fees and extracurricular activities for the children should increase her spousal maintenance entitlement, stating that spousal maintenance orders could not be used to disguise child support obligations.

Ultimately, the court varied the spousal maintenance order, decreasing the weekly payment from $544 to $310. The court also indicated that in the final property division orders, the wife would be appointed as a co-trustee of a trust established for the benefit of the children.