The ruling in Ottawa Thursday overturned a British Columbia Court of Appeal ruling over a couple who separated in 2003 and divided $1.7 million in family assets, the Canwest News Service reported.

In a 6-1 ruling, the justices ruled the wife was also responsible for about $140,000 in future debt incurred by the husband, who had bought into tax-shelter motion picture limited partnerships during the final years of the marriage, the report said.

"It seems self-evident that, generally speaking, both assets and debts need to be considered to ensure fairness upon the breakdown of a marriage," Justice Michel Bastarache wrote in the ruling.

The decision was a precedent in Canada for post-divorce division of contingent debts related to a marriage, the report said.