What is the effect of retroactive spousal support on the distribution of matrimonial property?

Corbeil v. Corbeil[35] raised the prospect that a retroactive spousal support order may require adjustment of what would otherwise be ordered in distribution of matrimonial property. Conrad J.A. reduced the proposition, in its most basic form, to the following: In simple terms, had the payor been ordered to pay and had paid support prior to trial, he would not have been able to save that money so it would not be available for distribution at trial. Thus, if there is to be a retroactive order, the payor’s assets must be reduced by the amount of that order.[36] However, she did not mean to establish an iron-clad formula. She found that a court must be very conscious of the implications of an order for retroactive spousal support on property division, and that “the effects of any payment on the respective property positions of the parties ... should be considered in every case.”[37]