Can a husband refuse to pay spousal support to his ailing wife who has multiple sclerosis?

In Mahoney v. Mahoney, the spouses had lived separate and apart for 11 years prior to the commencement of divorce proceedings by the husband. During the period of separation, the husband paid spousal support to the wife pursuant to an interim order. Shortly before the commencement of the divorce proceedings by the husband, the wife was diagnosed as suffering with multiple sclerosis. She therefore sought spousal support but the husband resisted on the grounds that no causal connection existed between the wife's needs and the marriage. The court concluded that subsequent to Moge v. Moge the lack of a "causal connection" between the need and the marriage cannot defeat a claim for support under The Divorce Act in the absence of a final settlement agreement, and then awarded spousal support for the ailing wife. A similar conclusion was arrived at in Klassen v. Klassen.