Ohio Divorce Legal Questions

It would be unwise to terminate your husband's phone line, but you are under no obligation to pay the phone bill unless and until the court orders it.In most situations, you can have your phone company move your own phone line to a different account in your sole name, which you would then pay.  Then leave your husband's phone line in the other account in both your names which, in the absence of a court order, you have no obligation to pay.If your husband doesn't pay, the phone company generally solves the problem for you.... Read More

If there is a divorce decree, you can't undo it. You CAN get remarried, but there is no way to undo the decree absent fraud or material mistake. If your divorce is still ongoing, you can always withdraw your complaint. If your spouse is the one who has filed a complaint, then you could ask the court for reconciliation mediation, which most courts provide.... Read More

If there is a significant discrepancy in income a court will often order the "wealthier" spouse to pay some or all of the "poorer" spouse's attorney fees. Many attorneys will agree to represent the "poorer" spouse for this reason, particularly if they can get temporary spousal support in the interim.   As to the second question, both parties are equally responsible for the household bills. He can be ordered to pay them through court action.... Read More

Alimony, called spousal support in Ohio, is a fact-specific analysis with many factors determining whether you will get support. The factors are under 3105.18 (http://codes.ohio.gov/orc/3105.18). Infidelity and abuse aren't speficially listed, but frequently are determined under point "n" under the statute. The biggest difficultly may likely be the lack of income on either side justifying an order of support.  ... Read More

If there is an OPERS pension then you should have received a Division of Property Order (DPO). You should be contacting OPERS directly and not bothering with either your ex-spouse or his lawyer to find out why they aren't making distributions. If they say that there is no DPO then someone (probably your husband's attorney) needs to file one. If there IS one, then OPERS does owe you from back in June.... Read More

A divorce will seperate and allocate debts, but that's only enforceable within the divorce court. To the cell phone provider, they do not care who is married or divorced. If the phone is SOLELY in his name, then he will SOLELY be required to pay for it as far as the cell phone provider is concerned.   As divorce court would also be unlikely to give you cell phone debt that he racked up under his own name, especially on these facts. Due to the fact that he is incarcerated, you will likely need to file for an uncontested divorce. These can be tricky, but many courts provide for forms that can be used to get you started.... Read More

You absolutely should have a lawyer for a dissolution. This is advice I would give anyone. I have never seen a DIY dissolution that I regarded as well-done. I have seen many with issues. I have seen quite a few where the non-represented party ended up with a raw deal, whether on purpose or by accident. As long as you have an attorney, whether or not your spouse gets one is his/her problem. But you should always have one. The cost for a dissolution is usually not too outrageous, If your spouse's lawyer is preparing the paperwork, you can get a lawyer to review that before you sign it for a pretty modest charge..this is a pretty significant event in your life with a lot of potential for things going very wrong. If your kids are still in high school and under 19, there may still be child support issues. If there is no child support, who can claim the children for taxes is generally determined by IRS rules rather than a court order, or even the agreement of the parties. If you provide more than half of the support for the child and they live with you more than half the year, you can claim them. (I'm not going to get into what constitutes living with?, that's another question altogether.) You might also consider whether it would be more financially beneficial to file jointly with your spouse (and negotiate in advance where the refund will be sent and how it will be split) if you are still married at the end of the year. (If you don?t get it filed pretty quick, the odds are that you will be.)... Read More

Depending on which county the divorce was filed in, determines whether you have a set trial date or not. Unless there is a trial related reason to continue the trial date, the divorce has to be finalized by then. As part of the divorce you can change your name. You then simply send that information to Immigration and they will issue a new green card in the new name. There is nothing suspicious about that. It's common to change one's name back to the maiden name as part of a divorce.... Read More