Often, in divorces involving complex assets, the question arises – “Can I get spousal support during the divorce process?”
Divorces involving complex assets can take longer to process through the legal system. Your divorce attorney can help insure you are able to pay for your living expenses and meet your financial obligations, during the pendency of the case, by asking the courts to award temporary support.
Section 501 of the Illinois Marriage and Dissolution of Marriage Act allows a court to award a spouse temporary support while the case is pending. The court sets an amount that is to be paid each month for maintenance or child support or both. This is a short term remedy and is not the final amount awarded at the end of the case.
In order to obtain temporary support, the spouse must file a Petition for Temporary Support. The Petition must allege that the party seeking support is without sufficient income or assets to meet the needs of that party and/or the children. The Petition must also allege that the opposing spouse has the income and ability to pay support. The Petition for Temporary is accompanied by an affidavit which details the categories and amounts of living expenses.
Each county in the State of Illinois requires all divorce litigants to prepare an affidavit of expenses in some form. In Cook County, the form is called “Disclosure Statement Pursuant to Rule 13.3.1(B)” (form #CCDR 0604) and can be found on the Clerk of the Circuit Court of Cook County website, Court Forms, Divorce Division. In Lake County, the form is called “Financial Affidavit 11.02” (form 171-12 FD33) and can be found on the Lake County Circuit Clerk website, Court Forms Online. In DuPage County, the form is called “Financial Disclosure Statement Pursuant to Local (Or Supreme) Court Rule” (form 3417) and can be found on the DuPage County Clerk of the Circuit Court website, Online Court Forms.
Customarily, a short hearing on the issue of support is held after which, the Court makes a monetary award based upon the individual facts and circumstances of each case. In addition to the expenses of each party, the court may also take into consideration factors such as: the lifestyle the parties enjoyed while residing together; whether there are small children in need of child care; the employability of a spouse; the debts of the parties; and the like.