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How will the court decide whether and how much money the wife should be given?

If the application is made by the wife during the marriage, the court will consider all the circumstances of the case, including the following factors, when deciding whether the order should be made and the amount of maintenance that should be paid to the wife:

(a) wife's financial needs;

(b) income, earning capacity, property and financial resources of parties;

(c) any physical or mental disability that wife might have;

(d) the age of the parties and the duration of the marriage;

(e) the contributions made by each spouse to the welfare of the family, including any contribution made by looking after the home or caring for the family;

(f) the standard of living enjoyed by the wife; and

(g) the conduct of you and your spouse, if the conduct is such that the court is of the opinion that it is inequitable to disregard it.

If the application for maintenance is made by the wife in a divorce proceeding, similar factors are considered and in addition, the court will consider:

(a) the value of any benefit to either spouse that will be lost as a result of the dissolution of the marriage; and

(b) the court will try to place the parties in the same financial position as they would have been if the marriage had not broken down and each party had discharged his financial obligations and responsibilities towards each other.