Ohio Family Law Blog

Seeing a Divorce Lawyer for the First Time – Thoughts from a Divorce Lawyers Summer Extern

Share this post!

A Good Divorce/Dissolution Attorney Cares, Even About The Little Things

As an extern with the Dayton, Ohio, law firm of Holzfaster, Cecil, McKnight, & Mues, I’ve had the opportunity to sit in on a number of divorce/dissolution consultations. As my time here is drawing to a close, here are a few truths I’ve gleaned from my time here at the office.

No two clients are ever the same. Some cry, some just want to get it over with, some crack jokes for most of the consultation. The occasional client will do all of the above during the course of a single meeting.
Nothing you can say will be shocking or weird or too much. This one may seem counterintuitive based on the first statement, but it is true. Every divorce is entirely unique, but after a while, the different components start to look similar.
Yes, we do listen to everything you say. Sometimes, I’ve watched clients start to look a little concerned, especially with the amount of notes that Chip or another attorney is taking. Believe me, he’s listening. Those notes also help him, or

I’ve Been Served with a Divorce, Do I Really Need to Talk With A Lawyer?

Share this post!

Schedule An Appointment With An Experienced Divorce Lawyer

Avoid “Getting The Shaft”, Talk To An Experienced Divorce Lawyer!

Like most veteran divorce lawyers, I have seen lots of situations where a party ignores a summons and complaint for divorce, to his/her peril. The excuses I frequently hear are:

I’m too busy;
We have only been married for just a short time;
My spouse will treat me fairly;
I don’t need to spend money for a lawyer
I am too depressed to deal with it, and if I ignore it, I can fight it later if necessary; or
My spouse will get everything anyway since I have been a lousy spouse.

Truthfully, all of these “excuses” are poor ones. Scheduling an appointment with an experienced divorce lawyer is not an expensive pro-active investment. Some lawyers even offer a free initial conference.

What will happen if you simply ignore the divorce filing?

The case will be set for a non-contested default hearing;
Your spouse (and his/her divorce lawyer) will submit a Final Decree of Divorce for the Court’s approval;
There will be little inquiry by the Judge

My Ex Is Named As Beneficiary On My Life Insurance Policy? What Happens If I Die?

Share this post!

Divorce Effectively Acts As a Termination of the Beneficiary Designation..Right?

An issue that comes up more often than many may think is the following scenario: One spouse names the other spouse as beneficiary of a life insurance policy. Couple gets divorced. Beneficiary designation is never changed. Policy owner dies. Does the ex-spouse get the life insurance proceeds? For many years, this question was covered by case law arising from different jurisdictions, with some jurisdictions coming to the conclusion that if the beneficiary designation wasn’t changed, the ex-spouse still received the proceeds and others concluding that the divorce effectively acted as a termination of the beneficiary designation.

Clarity has been brought to this issue as it is now covered by statutory law here in Ohio, namely Ohio Revised Code Section 5315.33, which states that the termination of marriage revokes the designation of a spouse as a beneficiary. Two exceptions exist. One is if the designation of beneficiary or the judgment of decree granting the divorce specifically provides otherwise. Second is if the parties later remarry each other. Other than under those two exceptions, the termination of the … Read More... “My Ex Is Named As Beneficiary On My Life Insurance Policy? What Happens If I Die?”

Blast From The Past: Custody Wars: My Lawyer Suggested that I Fabricate a Child Abuse Allegation!

Share this post!

PUBLISHER’S UPDATE: Here is one of my favorites posts written by custody expert Judianne Cochran from back on September 18th, 2010! We have a ton of interesting articles in our archives of the Ohio Family Law Blog. Use our Search tool and enjoy a few oldie but goodies!

Using False Allegations In Family Law Custody Cases. Will I get A Better Position?

In recent years there has been a steady and alarming increase in the use of false allegations of vague, unsupported claims of domestic violence and even vaguer claims of child abuse, used solely in an attempt to find a shortcut to a presumed better position in custody cases.

What is more alarming is the observation that more often than not the attorneys of record for the litigants making these claims have been those unschooled in and relatively new to the family law arena, who have chosen to step outside their actual specialty and add a minor “division” of family law to their practices. Often, a new, young, unskilled associate is added to the practice to handle these family law issues.

Some of these practitioners use … Read More... “Blast From The Past: Custody Wars: My Lawyer Suggested that I Fabricate a Child Abuse Allegation!”

Can I Change my Mind After Signing Divorce Papers in Ohio?

Share this post!

Second Thoughts? Dismissal May Be Permitted Based On How Far The Divorce Case Is Along

The answer to this question likely depends on how far along your divorce case has progressed, as well as the reason to dismiss it. The earlier in the preceding you decide, the more likely the answer will be “yes”.

Withdrawal of Complaint: If you have just filed the complaint for divorce and no answer has been filed by your spouse, you may dismiss your complaint without permission of the Court. No problem!
Dismissal After Your Spouse Has Filed an Answer/Counterclaim: At this point both parties have requested a divorce. Even though you had initiated the case, you do not have the option of dropping the whole case. If you dismissed your complaint, your spouse could proceed with his/her request for a divorce. The simple solution is for both sides to file a joint agreed upon dismissal entry signed by all parties and the lawyers. The Court would allow that as long as all Court costs have been paid.
Dismissal After Trial (But before a Decision). So, this point would arise very

Are Married or Single Women Happier?

Share this post!

A New Book From Happiness Expert Raises Questions About The Longevity Of Married Women

Do Married Women Feel Happy In Their Marriage? Maybe Not Says Happiness Expert

As little girls, many of us dream about that wedding, the white picket fence, babies, and living the perfect life. Who knew that same studies have shown that the happiest in the subgroup of women in the population is actually women who are unmarried and childless?

According to happiness expert, Paul Dolan, a professor at the London School of Economics, studies support that women who are unmarried and childless are the happiest. He says that marriage and raising babies which are the traditional markers associated with success do not correlate with happiness. ln his book Happy Ever After he reported on a study from the American Time Use Survey.

They studied levels of misery and levels of pleasure in separated, divorced, windowed married and unmarried individuals. Dolan says that “the study found that the level of happiness reported by those who were married was higher than the unmarried, but only when their spouse was in the room”. Unmarried … Read More... “Are Married or Single Women Happier?”

Common Law Marriage in Ohio – Does it Still Exist?

Share this post!

Ohio No Longer Recognizes Common Law Marriage After 1991

I’m sure most, if not all, have at least heard of the term “common law marriage“. By legal definition, a common law marriage is a marriage that doesn’t quite rise to the level of a legal, formal marriage, but is created by the two parties, who co-habit together and hold themselves out to their community as married. A legal marriage has a licensing component, and a certain level of solemnization requirement that might not be met by a common law marriage.

While common law marriages aren’t scarce, they are less common than they used to be. Prior to the widespread availability of easy transportation and the internet, people in remote areas of the country, especially out west, would need to wait around for the circuit-riding pastor to arrive in order to officially wed. Without a formal schedule, people began to pair off and held their own ceremonies before their family and friends and would hold themselves out in the community as married, even without all of the official paperwork being filed. After so long, no one … Read More... “Common Law Marriage in Ohio – Does it Still Exist?”

Page 38 of 127

1 … 36 37 38 39 40 … 127