What Is Maintenance, and Why Does Illinois Award It?
Plain-English answers on what spousal support really is, who it helps, and how Illinois thinks about it — plus a live estimator.
Maintenance is court-ordered spousal support paid after or during a divorce under 750 ILCS 5/504 — the modern Illinois term for what many people still call alimony. Its purpose is to address the economic disparity a divorce can create: to help a lower-earning spouse meet reasonable needs and work toward self-sufficiency, and to recognize the non-financial contributions, like homemaking and supporting the other spouse's career, that the marriage was built on.
What is maintenance?
Maintenance is court-ordered spousal support paid after or during a divorce, governed by 750 ILCS 5/504. It is the modern Illinois term for what many people still call alimony, and it can be paid on a temporary basis while a case is pending or as part of the final judgment. A maintenance award is not automatic in any divorce; it is a specific remedy the court reaches only after weighing the parties' financial circumstances against the statutory factors.
Why does maintenance exist?
Maintenance exists to address the economic disparity that a divorce can create between two spouses who built a single financial life together. Its purposes under Section 504 are to help a lower-earning spouse meet reasonable needs and work toward self-sufficiency, and to recognize the non-financial contributions — homemaking, raising children, supporting the other spouse's education or career — that allowed the marriage to accumulate what it did. In practical terms, it is meant to keep the spouse who earns less, frequently because of joint decisions the couple made, from being left unable to maintain a reasonable standard of living while they re-establish their own financial footing.
Two ways maintenance is paid
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Erik B. Diggs is the Founding Attorney of The Diggs Law Firm, a Chicago family law firm that focuses on contested divorce, property division, and parenting matters. He is admitted to practice law in Illinois and serves clients throughout Cook County and the surrounding area from 77 W Wacker Drive, Suite 4500, Chicago, IL 60601. Call 312-380-1070.
