Pay the Other’s Fees

(j)  After  proofs  have  closed  in  the final hearing on all other

issues between the parties (or in conjunction with the final hearing, if

all parties so stipulate) and before  judgment  is  entered,  a  party's

petition  for  contribution to fees and costs incurred in the proceeding

shall be heard and decided, in accordance with the following provisions:

         (1)  A petition for contribution, if not filed before the final

    hearing on other issues between the parties, shall be filed no later

    than 30 days after the closing of proofs in  the  final  hearing  or

    within such other period as the court orders.

         (2)  Any  award  of  contribution  to  one party from the other

    party shall be  based  on  the  criteria  for  division  of  marital

    property  under  this  Section  503  and,  if  maintenance  has been

    awarded, on the criteria for an award of maintenance  under  Section

    504.

         (3)  The  filing  of  a  petition for contribution shall not be

    deemed to constitute  a  waiver  of  the  attorney-client  privilege

    between  the  petitioning  party  and current or former counsel; and

    such a waiver shall not constitute a prerequisite to a  hearing  for

    contribution.   If  either  party's  presentation  on  contribution,

    however,  includes  evidence within the scope of the attorney-client

    privilege, the disclosure or disclosures shall be narrowly construed

    and shall not be deemed by the court to constitute a general  waiver

    of the privilege as to matters beyond the scope of the presentation.

         (4)  No  finding  on  which  a  contribution  award is based or

    denied shall be asserted  against  counsel  or  former  counsel  for

    purposes of any hearing under subsection (c) or (e) of Section 508.

         (5)  A  contribution  award  (payable to either the petitioning

    party or the party's counsel, or jointly, as the  court  determines)

    may  be in the form of either a set dollar amount or a percentage of

    fees and costs (or a portion of fees and costs) to  be  subsequently

    agreed  upon by the petitioning party and counsel or, alternatively,

    thereafter determined in a hearing pursuant  to  subsection  (c)  of

    Section 508 or previously or thereafter determined in an independent

    proceeding under subsection (e) of Section 508.

         (6)  The  changes  to  this Section 503 made by this amendatory

    Act of 1996 apply to cases pending on or after June 1, 1997,  except

    as otherwise provided in Section 508.

(Source: P.A. 91-445, eff. 1-1-00; 92-306, eff. 1-1-02.)