Military Divorce in Ohio

Deciding how to split up a couple’s accumulated assets is a challenging but necessary task before any divorce can be finalized. This already tough job can be made even more complicated if one or both spouses is an active duty or retired member of the military. In such situations, one of the couple’s biggest assets is almost always the military spouse’s pension. This pension, and all the rules that come along with it, make military divorces generally more complex than those of nonmilitary families. 

Military pensions are often worth significant amounts of money and more than the dollar figure, an added benefit is that the money is guaranteed for the rest of the military spouse’s life. The Wall Street Journal says that a lieutenant colonel in the Air Force who has put in 30 years of service will receive a pension worth $72,288 a year. The pensions are not paid in lump sums, but if they were, the present day value of the pension would easily exceed $1 million. What makes this even more valuable is that there is no minimum retirement age. It’s conceivable that someone who enlisted at 18 could retire at 38 and go on to receive a pension, including yearly cost of living increases, for decades into the future.

The state in which a spouse files the divorce petition can be one challenging aspect of the division of a military retirement pension. This can be tricky because, while a service member may be stationed at a base in Ohio, they may have a permanent residence in another state. Adding an additional wrinkle is that an estranged nonmilitary spouse or ex-spouse could reside in yet another third state. Depending on the state, the nonmilitary spouse could lose out on the retirement benefits if certain forms are not filled out correctly.

The length of the marriage is another factor that can contribute to the difficulty of dividing up the military retirement pension. When the marriage overlaps the military spouse’s service period by 10 or more years, the nonmilitary spouse receives benefit payments directly from the government. If the marriage lasted fewer than 10 years of the service period, then the government will not enforce a court order from the nonmilitary spouse for a share of the retirement pension. In that case, if the military spouse does not agree to provide a share of the retirement benefits directly to the nonmilitary spouse, then the matter will have to be settled in a divorce court in the appropriate state.

Military retirement pensions are also governed by a complex system of both state and federal rules. Therefore, even when a nonmilitary spouse gets court-awarded retirement benefits after filing for divorce in the appropriate state, state and federal rules can still make collecting those benefits a challenge.

If you find yourself facing the prospect of divorce, contact an experienced Ohio family law attorney who can help guide you through the difficult process. Count on the expertise of Twinsburg family law attorney Carol L. Gasper.

Source: “Divorce: Splitting Up a Rich Military Pension,” by Ellen Schultz, published at WSJ.com.

See Our Related Blog Posts:

Attention Baby Boomers: Your divorced mom (or dad) may be entitled to additional Social Security benefits

Treasury Department Decision May Leave Those Behind on Child Support Penniless

Grounds for Divorce in Ohio

Ohio is a mixed state when it comes to divorce. This means that you can use either fault or no-fault grounds as the basis for seeking a divorce. You might consider using fault grounds is to gain an advantage in a contested child custody case or a dispute about the division of marital property or the appropriateness or amount of alimony.

There are 11 grounds for divorce in Ohio. They appear as a list in Chapter 3105.01 of Ohio Code. Two are considered no-fault grounds: living separate and apart without cohabitation for one year and incompatibility. The remaining nine grounds are known as “fault” grounds.

“No fault” divorce describes any divorce where the spouse asking for a divorce does not have to prove that the other spouse did something wrong. To get a no fault divorce, one spouse must simply state a reason for the divorce that is recognized by the state, in Ohio this can be either that the couple has been living separate and apart for one year or that there is incompatibility. Incompatibility is a statement about the condition of the marriage, and it does not mean that either spouse has specifically done something wrong.

A claim of incompatibility means that the couple has personality conflicts that are so severe that married life is impossible and that the marriage probably should not have taken place. One important thing to note about this ground is that it cannot be denied by one of the parties. So if your spouse objects to incompatibility, then a different ground will have to be used to get a divorce.

In Ohio, the fault grounds for divorce include adultery, cruelty or violence, desertion, alcohol addiction, imprisonment, validity of a prior marriage, fraudulent contract, gross neglect of duty, and the procuring of an out-of-state divorce by one of the parties (an out-of-state divorce may not release a party from marital obligations in Ohio).

One defense that is often seen when a fault divorce is alleged is that there has been “condonation.” This refers to a kind of forgiveness that means that the complaining spouse was aware of the bad behavior but chose to continue to remain in the marriage anyway. For example, if your spouse had an affair years ago and you forgave him, you cannot then file for divorce based on his adultery. Fault behavior that is condoned cannot be the basis for a divorce.

In order to file for a divorce in Ohio, the plaintiff must have been a resident of the state for at least six months. The divorce action is commenced when the petitioning party files a complaint with the court of common pleas in the appropriate Ohio county.

If you find yourself facing the prospect of divorce, contact an experienced Ohio family law attorney who can help guide you through the difficult process. Count on the expertise of Twinsburg family law attorney Carol L. Gasper.

See Our Related Blog Posts:

How Divorced Ohio Parents Can Claim Dependent Children

Treasury Department Decision May Leave Those Behind on Child Support Penniless

How does custody modification work in Ohio?

The process of dealing with a child custody modification can be complicated. First things first, either parent can request a modification in custody in writing to which the other parent may or may not agree. When the other parent does not agree, the parent filing for custody modification can then take the matter to court.

Ohio courts will consider modification of a child custody order only if the parent requesting the custody modification is able to prove a substantial and material change in circumstances. Only after the court has been satisfied that the change in circumstances is both substantial and material, will it then move on to consider what is in the best interest of the child. The reason for this is to prevent constant back and forth motions to change custody which would be destabilizing for the children. It also helps prevent the court from becoming overburdened with frequent and repetitive modification requests.

One such substantial and material change would be if the custodial parent is relocating to another state and the move will impact the child’s life. Some courts switch custody from one parent to the other, although the increasingly common approach is to ask the parents to work out a plan under which both parents may continue to have significant contacts with their children.

Another thing that can prompt a modification is if there is a significant change in the lifestyle of the custodial parent, which the other parent feels will adversely affect the child. For instance, if the custodial parent finds a new job that has longer working hours or the parent is leaving the child alone for long periods of time the court will consider modifying custody based on these factors.

Also, if one parent begins drinking heavily or taking drugs, the other parent may file a request for modification of the visitation order. What amounts to a substantial enough change to warrant a revision can vary greatly depending on your jurisdiction and even your particular judge. Parents seeking a change of custody due to the alcohol abuse or chemical dependency of the custodial parent will need to provide the court with more than mere allegations of wrongdoing. Evidence of convictions for driving under the influence, drug convictions, or other compelling evidence should be presented along with evidence that substantiates the effect of a parent's chemical dependency on the child.

If you find yourself facing the prospect of divorce, contact an experienced Ohio family law attorney who can help guide you through the difficult process. Count on the expertise of Twinsburg family law attorney Carol L. Gasper.

See Our Related Blog Posts:

What Will Happen to Your House in a Divorce?

How Does ‘Equitable Division’ Work in Ohio?

Do Ohio Family Law Judges Really Have a Gender Bias?

We hear a lot about how the courts are biased in favor of mothers when handing down child custody decisions. A few studies indicate that there might be more to the story as other factors come into play to explain why fathers are less involved in their children’s lives post-divorce.

The following statistics come from a Pew Research Center analysis of the National Survey of Family Growth (NSFG). According to the report, a married father spends on average 6.5 hours a week taking part in primary child care activities with his children. This compares to an average of 12.9 hours for married moms. The study points out that two-income households are now the norm and that the data reveals more mothers are busy working and caring for the children. This gap and the increased time spent caring for children may be one reason why women are more likely to retain primary custody after a divorce.

Even more surprising are the statistics regarding fathers time with children post-divorce. The data discussed in the Huffington Post shows that when fathers and children live separately, only 22% see their children more than once a week. An additional 29% see their kids one to four times a month. Sadly, a full 27% of dads have no contact with their children at all. These numbers further reflect a possible reason for the gap in custody awards during a divorce.

Many might argue that family courts send the message that fathers are not essential to raising children and that it’s because of these judicially created parenting plans that they are unable to spend quality time with their children. This is not the whole truth as information from DivorcePeers.com indicates that in 51% of cases both parents agreed that the mother would become the custodial parent. In another 29% of custody cases, the decision was made without any third party involvement. Eleven percent of custody cases had a resolution for custody made during mediation and five percent were resolved after a custody evaluation. This means that only 4% of all custody cases went to trial and of that 4 percent, only 1.5% went through custody litigation.

This means that a full 91% of custody cases are decided without the interference of supposedly biased judges. The claims of bias should be discarded and instead replaced with engaged fathers willing to fight for more time with their children during the divorce process.

If you find yourself facing the prospect of divorce, contact an experienced Ohio family law attorney who can help guide you through the difficult process. Count on the expertise of Twinsburg family law attorney Carol L. Gasper.

Source: “Dispelling The Myth Of Gender Bias In The Family Court System,” by Cathy Meyer, published at HuffingtonPost.com.

See Our Related Blog Posts:

How does ‘equitable division’ work in Ohio?

Attention Baby Boomers: Your divorced mom (or dad) may be entitled to additional Social Security benefits

What Will Happen to Your House in a Divorce?

One of the most common questions that Ohio divorce attorneys hear is is: “What will happen to the house?” While courts do have the power to order the sale of the marital residence, what happens to the house usually is left up to the parties themselves. Typically, the house situation has a lot to do with whether there are children residing in the home and whether one party can afford to buy out the interest of the other, either through cash or by offsetting the equity (or debt) with other assets.

As we mentioned, the first consideration is usually whether minor children are residing in the home. If there are children in the house and it has been their home for a significant period of time, the courts are often reluctant to order the property sold and the children uprooted. Usually, the Court will give the party residing in the house a chance to come up with a plan to make the mortgage payments and retain the property.

Judges prefer to have the parties themselves come up with a plan regarding the house than have to order the home sold. Even if the parties refuse to decide amongst themselves, a judge may still decide not to order a sale until the children are grown and gone. The court is also able to offset the equity in the house against the value of other assets (including retirement funds, stocks, bonds, etc.).

If there are no minor children living at home the sale of the house becomes more likely. This is doubly true if the equity in the house represents the primary marital assets of the couple. If there are other assets, they can often be used to buy out the value of the marital home if one party is adamant about not selling. Though judges usually don’t have a problem allowing one party to “buy out” the other, this can be tricky if not impossible when there are limited financial resources.

If a “buy out” does occur, the value of the home must first be determined. Certified real estate appraisers are often used to arrive at a fair number. The appraisals are then coupled with the rest of the couple’s financial picture to determine each spouse’s interest in the home.

Given the current real estate market many couples are reluctant to sell and take a loss. Even when they do agree to sell the house the process can take a significant amount of time and no court order can speed that along.

If you find yourself facing the prospect of divorce, contact an experienced Ohio family law attorney who can help guide you through the difficult process. Count on the expertise of Twinsburg family law attorney Carol L. Gasper.

Source: “Dividing Real Estate in Divorce - What Happens to the House?,” by Maury D. Beaulier, published at HG.org.

See Our Related Blog Posts:

How Divorced Ohio Parents Can Claim Dependent Children

Attention Baby Boomers: Your divorced mom (or dad) may be entitled to additional Social Security benefits