How to Obtain Temporary Child Support

How to Obtain Temporary Child Support

Let’s say that you are a spouse whose primary role is raising the children and keeping the house. Your spouse is the primary breadwinner. You are seeking a divorce, but if the breadwinner leaves and takes their money with them, you and your children may be in dire financial straits. This would allow the primary breadwinner to bully the spouse raising the children into an unfavorable (albeit fast) financial settlement. For that reason, the Illinois courts allow spouses who are raising children or otherwise left destitute by the divorce to file temporary motions for child support and alimony.

Temporary Child Support Orders

In a divorce proceeding, one spouse may not remove all financial support for their husband or wife and their children. The court will order temporary child support based on a petition that you file. The court tends to favor maintaining lifestyles that were exactly the way they were prior to marital strife. So the court generally puts in a temporary child support order that would cover the child’s living expenses with enough left over the pay expenses related to daily living. This is all the more important when one spouse is the primary breadwinner. The court can also order temporary relief related to spousal support or alimony. In other words, the court will put in a temporary order requiring the other spouse to provide you with enough money to raise your children and pay your bills. This order remains in effect until a permanent order can be entered into court documents.

Petitioning the Court for Temporary Child Support

The court will not decide on a matter related to temporary child or spousal support unless one of the litigants requests the order. The order requires that the petitioner supply information related to their finances and their financial obligations to the court. The judge generally looks over the filing, does a bit of math, and then determines whether or not the motion is valid.

Temporary motions for child support are among the most common preliminary motions filed in divorce cases. The court will assume that any and all financial support that was available during the marriage, should also be available during the divorce. While the court will render a decision on this basis, child support and alimony has not yet been decided, and the court may not use a temporary order as the basis for a final order. 

This essentially means that one spouse can put in a request for temporary child support based on sworn affidavits and financial records, and the court will not necessarily delve into the validity of these claims. So temporary child support orders can be changed based on new information, evidence of false documentation, or changes to the financial situations of either spouse.

Talk to an Illinois Divorce Attorney Today

If you are considering divorce, what happens to your finances will be a major consideration. Will you be able to support yourself, pay your bills, support your children? SAM LAW OFFICE LLC understands how important having a decision is and will move quickly to ensure your petition is entered. Call today to learn more.