Jurisdiction To Award Child Support

In Illinois, courts have the power to award child support in dissolution, legal separation, declaration of invalidity (of a marriage), custody, and paternity/parentage proceedings. 750 ILCS 5/505(a); 750 ILCS 45/9, 45/14. Note also that, in addition to the statutory rights to child support, the Illinois Supreme Court in In re Parentage of M.J., 203 Ill.2d 526, 787 N.E.2d 144 272 Ill.Dec. 329 (2003), specifically found that the Illinois Parentage Act did not prohibit common law actions to establish parental responsibility and that the state’s public policy considerations support a finding in favor of allowing common law actions.

Certain jurisdictional arguments advanced by the respondent were rejected in In re Marriage of Hartment, 305 Ill.App.3d 338, 712 N.E.2d 367, 238 Ill.Dec. 645 (2d Dist. 1999). While the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act (UIFSA), 750 ILCS 22/100, et seq., provides a mechanism for reciprocal enforcement or modification of child support awards in states that have adopted it, the fact that the Illinois department of Public Aid utilized that Act to enforce a judgment against the respondent in Florida did not necessarily transfer exclusive jurisdiction of the controversy to Florida. Citing the Act at 750 ILCS 22/205(a), the court noted that by preserving the Illinois courts’ continuing jurisdiction over child support matters initiated here, the Uniform Act is in harmony with IMDMA §505(b), which permits a trial court to utilize its contempt powers to ensure compliance with its support orders. The Uniform Act is also in contempt powers to ensure compliance with its support orders. The Uniform Act is also in harmony with the common law principle that a trial court generally retains jurisdiction to enforce its own orders. See Kelly v. Warner, 119 Ill.App.3d 217, 460 N.E.2d 329, 77 Ill.Dec. 273 (3d Dist. 1983. (See also §4.42, et seq., below.

Back to Index

See Also: