“Section 19(1) of the Federal Child Support Guidelines permits a court to impute income of someone in Dad’s position if it considers it appropriate in the circumstances. The section provides a non-exhaustive list of relevant circumstances, including (d), applicable when “it appears that income has been diverted” and (f), when “the spouse has failed to provide income information when under a legal obligation to do so”.
In this case, I am satisfied Mom has established a statutory basis to permit the imputation of income on both grounds: Michaud v Kasali, 2016 ONSC 443, at para. 47. However, as Justice McGee explains in Michaud, that is not the end of the exercise. There must be evidence available in the motion record capable of grounding the inference or imputation:
Rule 19(1)(f) of the Rules is no more than an invitation to fill in the blank when a payor fails to provide income information, as it is when a payor is in default, or his pleadings are struck. The amount to be imputed must still be grounded in the evidence. The question to be asked is: what amount is reasonable in the circumstances?”