Divorce – Page 9

Do you have to get a divorce in the state or county you were married in?

April 20, 2009

A Columbus Ohio Divorce Attorney article about divorce in Ohio

NO – NO – NO, a thousand times NO! This is by far the most common legal myth we encounter. Your friends and family will tell you with authority that they are CERTAIN that you have to get a divorce in the state you were married in. This is not true.

In order for a court to have jurisdiction, the state must have personal jurisdiction over at least one of the parties to the marriage. Generally, this means that you must get divorced in the state where at least one of the parties lives. While this jurisdiction will be enough to grant the divorce, in Ohio, if the Defendant is only served by publication (because his or her whereabouts are unknown), then the court does not have jurisdiction to make orders regarding the assets and liabilities of the parties, only to grant the divorce.

In addition, in order for a court to have jurisdiction over the custody of a child, a court must have jurisdiction pursuant to federal law (Parental Kidnapping Prevention Act or PKPA) and state law, which often follows the Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (UCCJEA).

To better understand which state has jurisdiction in your Ohio case, please call our office or the attorney of your choice to schedule a consultation.

You may also be interested in our “Divorce in Ohio” series by a Columbus Ohio Divorce Lawyer and Columbus Ohio Divorce Attorney about the process and options for ending your marriage in Ohio, and about Ohio divorce l aws.

The first articles in the series can be seen here, but there are many more:

Part 1 (Conciliation or Legal Separation), Part 2 (Dissolution or Uncontested Divorce), Part 3 (Reasons to Choose Divorce), Part 4 (Restraining Orders),Part 5 (Where will you live?), Part 6 (Paper Work), Part 7 (Health Insurance), Part 8 (Attorney Fees), Part 9 (5 Dirty Divorce Tricks), Part 10, (5 More Dirty Divorce Tricks).

In addition to the installments in the Divorce in Ohio Series (see links at top of the page), you may also find the following topics, which relate to divorce, to be helpful.

Adultery, Annulment, Alimony (Spousal Support), Best Interest of the Child, Child Custody, Child Custody Jurisdiction , Child Support (deviation), Child Support (how much), Child Support (how to pay), Child Support (lower), Child Support (myths), Child Support (resources), Child Support (sign up),Contempt, Dissolution, Divorce Basics, Divorce Myths, Foreclosure Mediation, Grandparents, Guardian ad Litem, House, How Long Your Divorce May Last, International Abduction,Legal Separation, Mediation, Moving, Packet of Forms vs. Getting a Lawyer, Prenuptial Agreements (Antenuptial Agreements), Shared Parenting, Temporary Orders, Temporary Orders Affidavits,

DISCLAIMER

10 Things You Should Know About Adultery / Infidelity and How it Relates to Divorce in Ohio

December 16, 2008

A Columbus Ohio Divorce Lawyer article about adultery as an issue in an Ohio divorce.

In Ohio, adultery (infidelity) is one of the statutory grounds for divorce. Incompatibility, gross neglect of duty, extreme cruelty, and habitual drunkeness are also grounds for divorce in Ohio. None of these grounds are more legally significant than any of the others – they will all suffice to allow the court to find that there are grounds to terminate the marriage.
In Ohio, as in most states, adultery is not legally relevant to custody matters. In the eyes of the law, a person can be a bad spouse and that has nothing to do with whether they are a bad parent.
In Ohio, adultery has no legal relevance to the division of property. A court will not give one spouse more property than they other in order to punish the spouse who has been unfaithful. In Ohio the primary purpose of the divorce court is to divide things and end things.
In Ohio, one spouse’s commision of adultery does not automatically mean that the other spouse will be awarded the marital home in the divorce. If the one spouse asks the other to leave as a result of adultery, the faithful spouse will not be any more entitled to have the house than he or she would have been if adultery were not an issue.
In Ohio, just because the marriage is ending after adultery, that does not mean a court will fail to consider shared parenting.
Once the marriage is over, the court will rarely enter an order requiring separation between the “object of affection” and the children. Unless a court finds a parent unfit, that parent will have the right to make their own child care arrangements.
When one spouse is leaving a marriage because of adultery, the other spouse may unnecessarily prolong divorce litigation in order to maintain a connection. While adultery is not legally relevant, it is not unusual for divorce litigation to confuse the feelings surrounding infidelity with the legal issues surrounding the end of the marriage.
If one of the parties alienates the children by disclosing the other parent’s infidelity, or worse, by stating the infidelity as the reason for the end of the marriage, a court may find that the disclosing parent is unable to put the needs of the children before their own need for vindication. A pattern of such behavior, with no regard to the strain it causes on the children, could result in custody of the children being awarded to the party who committed adultery, rather than the party who chose to discuss the adultery with the children.
In Ohio, the court does not care if you were a good spouse to the unfaithful party, and you did not cause the end of the marriage. The court only cares that the marriage is ending and things have to be ended and divided. You will not be awarded any more spousal support (alimony) than you would received otherwise, and the court is not going to order the leaving party to “find a way” to let you maintain the exact same lifestyle that you lived before the end of the marriage. The court is going to expect you to live as if the income available to the parties is now being divided among two households.
Be honest with your lawyer about infidelity – it is never a good thing for your lawyer to find out about any relevant information by surprise.

DISCLAIMER

Who Gets the House? 10 Things You Need to Know About What Happens to Your House in an Ohio Divorce.

October 25, 2008

A Columbus Ohio Divorce Lawyer article about who gets the house in a divorce.

1. In Ohio, fault doesn’t matter. It doesn’t matter if you think it is the other person’s fault that the marriage is ending. It doesn’t even matter if you convince the Ohio court the divorce is the other person’s fault, the marriage is ending and you did nothing to contribute. Under the law, that has nothing to do with who gets the house.

2. In Ohio, the court’s goal when dividing property in a divorce is to divide things and end things. The court does not care AT ALL that you were a good spouse. The court will NOT give one spouse enough support to keep the house and give the other spouse barely enough to afford a studio apartment, EVEN if you have children.

3. The house usually comes with a mortgage, and always comes with taxes, insurance and maintenance. In Ohio, if you cannot pay the mortgage, taxes, insurance and maintenance on the marital residence, then a court is unlikely to award you the marital residence.

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4. In Ohio, Even if you could pay the mortgage on the house with a reasonable spousal support award, if your spending history while the divorce is pending shows that you are more likely to spend spousal support living your previous life style, and ignoring the mortgage, then you probably STILL will not be awarded the house.

5. In Ohio, if neither of you can afford the house now that the marriage is ending, then the house should probably be put up for sale. Generally, the spouse who is least able to afford a similar house after divorce AND is not the person who initiated the end of the marriage is unlikely to be cooperative in selling the house. For example, they may be inflexible on price, refuse to follow the advice of the realtor regarding decluttering, refuse to cooperate with scheduling showings, fail to maintain the residence properly, etc.

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6. In Ohio, If one spouse wants to keep the house, and intends to refinance the house into his or her name only, strong consideration should be given to doing the refinance while the divorce is pending. If they can’t qualify for a loan while the divorce is pending, they will be unlikely to qualify for a loan afterwards either. In the meantime, you can’t qualify to buy a new house either because your name is still on the old mortgage. If the refinance can be accomplished later, it can be done now. Remember the old adage – act in haste, repent at leisure.

7. In Ohio, just because the house is titled in one parties’ name or the others, only, does not mean that the house is separate property under Ohio law.

8. In Ohio, Just because one of the parties owned the house prior to marriage, does not mean that the house is STILL separate property. It may have become “transmuted” into marital property under Ohio law.

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9. The parties may simply not have enough money to pay the house payment while the divorce case is pending (temporary orders). An Ohio court may order neither party to pay the house payment while the divorce is pending, if it finds the parties do not have enough money to do so.

10. Being awarded the house in a divorce is not a victory if you can’t afford it and it will be foreclosed as soon as the divorce is over.

CALL NOW at (614) 225-9316

The first articles in the series can be seen here, but there are many more:

In addition to the installments in the Divorce in Ohio Series (see links at top of the page), you may also find the following topics, which relate to divorce, to be helpful.

Adultery, Annulment, Alimony (Spousal Support), Best Interest of the Child, Child Custody, Child Custody Jurisdiction , Child Support (deviation), Child Support (how much), Child Support (how to pay), Child Support (lower), Child Support (myths), Child Support (resources), Child Support (sign up),Contempt, Dissolution, Divorce Basics, Divorce Myths, Foreclosure Mediation, Grandparents, Guardian ad Litem, How Long Your Divorce May Last, International Abduction,Legal Separation, Mediation, Moving, Packet of Forms vs. Getting a Lawyer, Prenuptial Agreements (Antenuptial Agreements), Shared Parenting, Temporary Orders, Temporary Orders Affidavits, Where to File for Divorce

DISCLAIMER

Temporary Orders Affidavits

August 16, 2008

What is the difference between temporary orders and temporary restraining orders?

Temporary Restraining Orders

In family law, sometimes temporary restraining orders are made at the beginning of the case. These orders are general orders and usually are not specific to the facts of a certain case. In custody cases between parents who were not married, they are usually limited to an order that the minor child cannot be permanently removed from the state of Ohio. In divorce cases, temporary restraining orders require that the other party refrain from harassing you at work or at home, selling, hiding or giving away assets, incurring debt in your name, changing beneficiaries of life insurance, canceling health insurance and taking the minor child and permanently leaving the state.

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Temporary Orders

In an Ohio divorce or custody cases, Temporary Orders are orders which the court issues to establish how the parties are going to operate while their case is pending.Temporary orders are VERY important because even though they are temporary, they often set a precedent that determines how the case is going to turn out at trial.For this reason, it is very important that for both parties and witnesses giving affidavits in support of temporary orders to do their best job of collecting and presenting information in support of the position they are supporting in their temporary orders affidavit.

If you want to learn more about Temporary Orders in Ohio divorce, custody and visitation cases, you may be interested in purchasing a copy of Virginia Cornwell’s ebook on Temporary Orders in Ohio Divorce and Custody Cases. You can click the e-book photo on the left or click the icon in the sidebar on any page that looks like this ->

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Here are some examples of forms affidavits that Ohio counties use. Please note the first link, from the Supreme Court of Ohio can be used in divorce and legal separation cases in any county in Ohio, although the county may require their own form IN ADDITION to the Supreme Court’s form. These forms contain SOME of the relevant information the court needs. Courts change their web sites from time to time, so if the link that you try does not work, try another one. In addition, you may have to copy and paste the link into your browser if it does not work the first time you try it. There is also a form affidavit for temporary orders available from the Supreme Court of Ohio Web Site that can be used in any Ohio County – for divorce or legal separation cases only.

http://www.supremecourt.ohio.gov/JCS/CFC/DRForms/

http://www.perfectprobate.com/pdf/hamiltondomesticrelations/2456.pdf

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We have never yet seen a form which contains all of the information which should be submitted with temporary orders affidavits. Especially when there are children involved, it is nearly impossible to create the perfect form for temporary orders affidavits. This means that in addition to whatever local forms a county uses for temporary orders affidavits (if any ), the party to the litigation also needs to submit narrative affidavits and/or give testimony at a hearing, depending on the local court’s preferred procedure.

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DISCLAIMER

Can I just get a packet of free divorce, dissolution, visitation or custody forms? Do I need a lawyer?

July 16, 2008

Many times people find themselves asking these questions. At a minimum, you need to do some research. Now that the internet has become an integral part of our lives, there is information available to a regular joe that we never had access to before. Look around on the internet, get some information, and then ask yourself this question- If I’m wrong about this, can I live with the consequences?

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Hindsight is always 20/20, but generally, the law expects us to live with the consequences of the agreements we make, for better or for worse. Many times people sign forms from divorce or custody “packets” without the advice of a lawyer, reasoning that they can always go back to court later if they need to. Unfortunately, people are sometimes shocked to find that they gave their ex-spouse or significant other sole custody of the children when they thought they were receiving shared parenting. In the law, the WRITTEN words matter. In addition, the law places the burden of understanding the legal meaning of the documents on the person who signs them. The more you have to lose, the less you can afford to take chances.

You are rarely required to have a lawyer. Generally, you are free to represent yourself in court. In addition, you don’t always need a lawyer. There are many things in family law that you can do without a lawyer. For example, you do not need a lawyer to get a marriage license. Most of the time, you do not need a lawyer to change your name. You don’t need a lawyer to file for a protection order if you are a victim of domestic violence. Many people are able to handle their legal matter to their satisfaction without an attorney.

If you are not sure if you need an attorney, consider arranging a consultation. Remember, a consultation does not mean that you are agreeing to hire a lawyer. It means that you are paying for a block of an attorney‘s time in order to ask questions and receive information about the law. Some attorneys offer free consultations, many do not. What is most important is the quality of information you receive during your consultation. A consultation is not simply an “audition” for the lawyer. You are entitled to receive information and answers during that consultation, even if you cannot afford to hire a lawyer. The information you receive during this consultation will help you make some very important decisions.

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Your time is valuable. If you are going to take the time to meet with an attorney, you want to get all you can from that time. Make a list of questions you would like to ask or topics you would like to discuss. Take the time to take notes. If you have previous court or administrative orders that in any way might relate to your case, bring a copy with you to the consultation. Otherwise, the advice you receive may be useless because the attorney was not able to review your current court orders. If you don’t have a copy of your court order, you can get one from the clerk of court in the county in which your orders were issued, or from the agency that issued the orders. You will be receiving a lot of information in a short period of time, and you want to remember it all.

CALL NOW at (614) 225-9316 or contact us by e-mail.

DISCLAIMER