My Spouse “Lied” on His/Her Financial Affidavit
Lies and Misrepresentations on the Financial Affidavit in Ohio Divorce Actions
In Ohio, when a divorce proceeding is initiated, the Plaintiff files his or her Complaint for Divorce along with his/her Financial Affidavit and other pleadings. The Financial Affidavit, a “sworn” statement made under oath disclosing the incomes, assets, liabilities of the parties and the monthly expenses of the Affiant. The Financial Affidavit, also called the Affidavit of Income and Expenses, is a very important pleading, as it provides the filing party the opportunity to request (1) temporary custody of the child or children, (2) temporary child support, and/or (3) temporary spousal support during the pendency of the proceeding. This Financial Affidavit is also the pleading that is relied upon by the Court in determining the amount of temporary support (child and/or spousal support). Accordingly, if the Plaintiff “lies” or “misrepresents” the incomes or earnings of either party, the resultant Temporary Order of Support may be improper and unduly burdensome to the Obligor (person ordered to pay support).
The first step to avoid a “bad” Temporary Order is to … Read More... “FINANCIAL AFFIDAVIT – WHEN YOUR SPOUSE LIES”
And so it begins…The constant jockeying, bargaining, organizing, planning, and fretting that shows up every holiday season as we are bombarded with images of “creating the perfect holiday”. We struggle to meet the needs wishes and expectations (and yes, sometimes, even the demands) of everyone in our lives. Realistically, we know we can’t please everyone (so you got to please yourself…), yet we still go at that long list of “should’s” with the tenacity of a dog with a juicy bone.
The legal concept of 
Jurisdiction is a common question in many cases. In Dayton, Ohio, the question arises in divorce or dissolution cases when married parties spend their entire married life as residents of one state; and when the marriage is in decline, one of the parties moves to another state and then seeks to have his/her divorce or dissolution in the state in which the party moved.
In Ohio, restraining orders are not available in dissolution proceedings but only in divorce, legal separation and annulment actions. Restraining orders have become somewhat “boilerplate” in as much as they are commonplace and routinely granted on an “ex parte” basis at the time the divorce action is filed. A “restraining order” is also executed by a Judge and issued by a Court restraining a party involved in a divorce proceeding from certain actions or activities during the divorce process. The general principle for restraining orders is to maintain the status quo of affairs at the time a divorce action is filed and to avoid “retaliatory” actions by a spouse.
Over the years Gregory Ramey, Ph.D., who is a local child psychologist and vice president for outpatient services at the Children’s Medical Center of Dayton, has allowed us to republish many of his “Family Wise” articles from the Dayton Daily News. He included an interesting question and answer in his column published in the Dayton Daily News on Sunday, August 28, 2011, that caught my attention. Here is the question and Dr. Ramey’s answer:
Think about this statement: “The rise of cohabitating households with children (where parents aren’t married, just living together) is the largest unrecognized threat to the quality and stability of children’s lives in today’s families.” That’s pretty strong stuff, but it’s exactly what a new research study concludes. While divorce has been the leading cause of the breakdown of the family and marriage for the last 40 years, the study shows that divorce is no longer the leading cause. The study shows that cohabitation is now the greatest threat to the welfare of children in the United States!