Family Law

Domestic Relations, Divorce, Dissolution, Custody Issues

Under Ohio law there are three ways for a husband and wife to end or alter their marital relationship: 1) Legal separation, 2) divorce, and 3) dissolution of marriage.

1. What is a legal separation?
A legal separation is a civil lawsuit that does not legally end a marriage, but allows the Court to issue Orders concerning property division, spousal support, allocation of parental rights or responsibilities, child support, and parenting time for any children. The parties remain married, but live separately.

2. What is a dissolution of marriage?
A dissolution of marriage is an action where the parties mutually agree to terminate their marriage. In order to pursue the end of a marriage through dissolution, both parties must reach a complete agreement on the division of all property, spousal support, child support, and any other child issues including parenting time. I strongly recommend to all my clients who wish to end their marriage that the best possible way for all parties involved to terminate the marriage is through a dissolution. A dissolution is quicker than a divorce and a lot less emotionally draining on all parties, including the children.

3. What is a divorce?
A divorce is a civil lawsuit to end a marriage. In a divorce, the party seeking the divorce is asking the Court to make a final decision and issue Orders concerning property, support, and children. Unless a divorce is settled, it will go to trial before the Judge and/or Magistrate to determine all the issues related to the parties.

There are many complicated issues when dealing with the termination of a marriage. Disputes frequently arise about the division of the property, how to divide real estate, whether spousal support is appropriate, who will obtain custody of the children, whether shared parenting is appropriate, what sort of visitation or parenting time will the parties have, etc. The following discusses some of the frequently asked questions when it comes to divorce, dissolution, or legal separation.

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