Standards

Beyond the mechanics of the petition for temporary support, however, the statutory bases for the actual award (and amount) are precisely the same as those for permanent support set forth in IMDMA §505 and discussed in detail in this chapter. In re Marriage of Rogliano, 198 Ill.App.3d 404, 555 N.E.2d 1114, 144 Ill.Dec. 595 (5th Dist. 1990). See also Marshall J. Auerbach and Albert E. Jenner, Jr., Historical and Practice Notes, S.H.A. (1980), c. 40, ¶501.

An award of temporary support, like an award of permanent support, depends on the financial ability and current circumstances of the parents. Their circumstances, however, including finances and budget, are frequently in a state of flux during a dissolution action. Thus, the trial court can and must exercise its discretion, consistent with the guidelines set forth in §505(a)(1), to derive a fair award that will apply during the pendency of the action and expire by operation of law upon final judgment. 750 ILCS 5/501(d)(3).

In awarding temporary support, a trial court has considerable discretion, so it can; for example, take this financial flux into account. The court’s decision to award temporary support will not be set aside unless contrary to the manifest weight of the evidence. Marriage of Rogliano, supra, 555 N.E.2d at 1118. In Rogliano, the trial court’s assessment of $700 per month as the father’s temporary child support obligation was affirmed even though the father was unemployed during the pendency of the action. (A strict application of the §505 guidelines would have resulted in no support being awarded under those facts.) The father in Rogliano was a physician who was out of work during the pendency of the action but reemployed by its end, the mother’s net income was insufficient to support both herself and the child, and there were assets available that the father could liquidate in order to meet his living expenses of $3,500 per month even during the pendency of the dissolution. The court also considered the fact that the father had returned to work at the time of the final hearing (and was earning approximately $7,100 per month). Cf. In re Marriage of Bush, 191 Ill.App.3d 249, 547 N.E.2d 590, 138 Ill.Dec. 423 (4th Dist. 1989), which enforced but did not rule on the propriety of a temporary support amount set higher than the final award.

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