Opinion
01-06626
Submitted March 14, 2002
May 20, 2002.
In an action for a divorce and ancillary relief, the defendant husband appeals, as limited by his brief, from so much of an order of the Supreme Court, Suffolk County (Sgroi, J.), dated June 27, 2001, as directed him to pay pendente lite maintenance and child support, and the carrying charges on the marital residence.
Feldman and Feldman, Hauppauge, N.Y. (Steven A. Feldman of counsel), for appellant.
Butler, Fitzgerald Potter, New York, N.Y. (David K. Fiveson of counsel), for respondent.
Before: FRED T. SANTUCCI, J.P., MYRIAM J. ALTMAN, SANDRA L. TOWNES, STEPHEN G. CRANE, JJ.
ORDERED that the order is affirmed insofar as appealed from, with costs.
The purpose of pendente lite relief is to ensure that a needy spouse is provided with funds for his or her support and reasonable needs pending trial, and it is not to determine the correct ultimate distribution (see Albanese v. Albanese, 234 A.D.2d 489, 490). Pendente lite awards are to be determined with due regard for the preseparation standard of living (see Polito v. Polito, 168 A.D.2d 440, 441). A speedy trial is the proper remedy to rectify any alleged inequities in the order of pendente lite relief (see Albanese v. Albanese, supra; Gold v. Gold, 212 A.D.2d 503). Typically, pendente lite awards are not modified unless the payments are so prohibitive that the nonmoving spouse is prevented from meeting his or her own financial obligations (see Albanese v. Albanese, supra; Gold v. Gold, supra). In actions such as this, where there are wide discrepancies in the facts presented by each party's affidavit, the appropriate remedy is a speedy trial at which the facts may be examined in far greater detail and a more accurate appraisal of the circumstances of the parties may be obtained (see Felton v. Felton, 175 A.D.2d 794). Since the defendant commenced new employment not long before the plaintiff moved for pendente lite relief and the amount he will earn is contested by both parties, this court will not disturb the order of the Supreme Court.
SANTUCCI, J.P., ALTMAN, TOWNES and CRANE, JJ., concur.