Christopher J. Unruh

The payor brought a motion to change seeking to terminate child support for three adult children and spousal support due to his impending retirement for medical reasons.

The recipient opposed the termination of spousal support and sought retroactive arrears.

The court found that the payor's retirement at age 56 with an unreduced pension was reasonable given his documented health issues and the stressful nature of his employment.

The court terminated child support on consent, declined to order retroactive arrears, and ordered step-down spousal support for a transitional period, followed by nominal support of $1 per month.

The applicant father and respondent mother sought a determination on the primary residence of their two children and child support.

The children had been living primarily with the father on his farm for over three years.

The mother, who had overcome post-partum depression and improved her life circumstances, sought primary care.

The court found it was in the best interests of the children to maintain stability and ordered joint custody with primary residence remaining with the father.

The mother was granted specified access and ordered to pay child support according to the Guidelines, with her arrears fixed at zero.

A family law trial addressing custody, access, child support, section 7 expenses, spousal support, and property equalization following the parties’ separation after an approximately eleven-year marriage with two children.

Custody and primary residence with the mother were ordered on consent, with supervised access for the father at his cost.

The court fixed guideline child support and arrears, determined responsibility for special and extraordinary expenses, and rejected certain claimed section 7 items such as chiropractic treatment while permitting others including hockey and school food programs subject to limits.

The mother’s claim for spousal support was dismissed due to lack of compensatory or needs-based entitlement.

Instead of equalization, the father was ordered to assume full responsibility for the parties’ joint line of credit.