Keeping Control Of Ohio Divorce Expenses

Everyone knows how expensive an Ohio divorce can be, between the lawyers and the court costs you’re already talking about a substantial amount of money for most families. Complicated cases can lead to ballooning expenses when child custody issues arise or complicated finances exist. Throw in the bills for accountants, psychologists, custody evaluators and mediators and you’re talking about some serious money expended fighting your former partner. In some cases of especially egregious, a messy divorce is unavoidable, but these cases are few and far between and massive bills should not be expected in most normal cases.

Among the biggest ways to keep costs under control is to create a budget. Talking with an experienced Ohio family law attorney before launching your case and drawing up a limit is a good way to take the emotion out of the process. Coming up with a legal action plan where you work with your attorney to estimate costs in advance takes some of the possibility for heated decisions away. Rather than reacting in anger and lashing out, a legal case map that was done prior to the start of the process can help keep costs in check and your case on track.

Another critical way of keeping costs low is to avoid going to court at all costs. Solving the matter through negotiation with your spouse is by far the fastest and cheapest way to end a marriage. Mediation is another method to consider so that you can avoid appearing before a judge. The fact is that litigation is a very expensive process and your Ohio family law attorney will have to spend a considerable amount of time and money preparing for each court appearance, thus driving up your legal tab. Just remember that every minute your attorney works on your case is another minute you’ll be billed. By working things out privately you can take a big step to lower your overall divorce bills.

Another important strategy to keep costs under control is to try and stay sane while dividing up assets. In the midst of a divorce it can be hard to resist the urge to fight over every last cup and saucer, resist that temptation. You need to fight against the urge to argue and try to ask yourself whether it is worth thousands to fight over a couch that cost a few hundred.

If you find yourself facing the prospect of complicated divorce and have questions about your rights and options, 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. Stephan.

Source: “How to Keep Divorce Costs Down,” by Deborah Jeff, published at HuffingtonPost.com.

See Our Related Blog Posts:

How do you decide between separating and divorcing?

What to do if you divorce and still work with your ex?

Grandparents Caring for Grandchildren without the Custody Battle: Ohio’s Caretaker Power of Attorney

        U.S. census figures indicate that some 6.7 million children in the United States are being raised by grandparents and other relatives. That's roughly one in 12 children, about 10 times the number of children in the U.S. foster care system. Often, grandparents are raising their grandchildren without having any legal custody, making it difficult for them to access services of any kind. Grand families, a term referring to situations where children are being raised by grandparents or other relatives, exist for many reasons, often because the parent(s) face a temporary crisis, such as a serious illness, financial problem, or lack of housing.

    
       In 2004, the Ohio Legislature addressed this problem by creating the caretaker power of attorney through which parents consent to the grandparent having parental rights and responsibilities for the children on a temporary basis. This parental consent to the grandparent(s) care allows the children to have access to educational and medical services which, in the past, might have been denied absent an order granting the grandparent legal custody, an expensive and emotional proposition. By providing legal documentation to the grandparent caregiver who has consent of parents, the power of attorney eliminates expensive legal custody battles and/or children services intervention.

       The Ohio caretaker power of attorney currently may be used only to allow grandparents to have parental rights and responsibilities; it does not cover any other relative or other third party who may be providing for children. However, the Ohio Legislature is considering expanding the power of attorney to allow other third parties, beyond grandparents, to act as caretakers. See 2009  Ohio HB 197, introduced in the Ohio House of Representatives in May, 2009.

       Intended to cover only temporary situations where parents are unable to care for their children, the power of attorney cannot be effective for longer than a one year period. The power of attorney may grant the grandparent the custodial parent’s rights and responsibilities regarding the care, physical custody, and control of the child, including the ability to enroll the child in school, receive information from the school, consent to school related matters and medical treatment. Notably, the power of attorney does not act as a grant of legal custody to the grandparent nor does it affect the rights of the parent in any future legal proceedings.

       The Ohio statute governing caretaker powers of attorney prescribes the form and content that must be used as well as specific notices that must be given. In most situations, the power of attorney must be signed by both parents. It must be filed with the juvenile court where the grandparent resides within 5 days of its creation.

       No court hearing is required to make the caretaker power of attorney effective, provided that it is the first power of attorney. Should subsequent powers of attorney be filed, the court is required to schedule a hearing no later than 10 days after filing.

      The Ohio Legislature’s creation of the grandparent caretaker power of attorney provides a cost effective way for grandparents to care for grandchildren in situations where parents are temporarily unable to do so and consent to the arrangement. I urge the Ohio Legislature to adopt 2009 Ohio HB 197 to expand the power of attorney beyond grandparents so that others caring for children may have an easier time getting access to education and medical services.

       For more information contact Carol L. Gasper at clgasper@msn.com

Terminating the Ohio Marriage: Divorce and Dissolution Overview

A Hudson, Ohio client met with me recently to discuss the possible termination of her marriage. While we would like to believe that the marriage contract lasts forever, more than fifty percent (50%) of all marriages will terminate before forever. In Ohio, Divorce and Dissolution are two separate legal actions by which the marital contract is terminated. The key difference between the two processes is that with divorce, there is heavy court involvement because the court system is used to resolve all issues relating to the termination of the marriage perhaps because you and your spouse cannot reach agreement on any number of issues, from how marital property will be divided to how parenting of the children will be arranged. With dissolution, the net result is the same, i.e., termination of the marriage, but there is much less court involvement than divorce because the husband and wife agree upfront on how issues will be resolved and simply petition the court to approve their agreement. Big difference.

As War of the Roses illustrates, divorces can be nasty, costly affairs, with couples fighting in high drama fashion about how the assets will be divided or, worse, fights about who will have custody of the children. These fights are usually presented to the court by way of legal filings and hearings ….think expensive lawyer fees. In addition, think long protracted court case. The typical divorce action takes one year to complete.

Dissolution is neither nasty nor costly. Step one in dissolution process is for you and your spouse to reach agreement on property division, parenting issues, and whether and to what extent spousal support will be provided. This agreement, the separation agreement, is then presented to the court with the Petition for Dissolution. Step two in the dissolution process is a hearing before the court scheduled no earlier than 30 days and no later than 90 days after the filing. The dissolution hearing is a very quick affair in which the court reviews the dissolution petition and separation agreement with the parties, assuring that it is, in fact, the agreement that was intended.

When you have decided to move on and terminate your marriage, it is a sad affair. You can make it less painful in terms of costs and time, by choosing the dissolution route. There are, however, many situations in which dissolution is not an option, perhaps because one party is simply unreasonable and wants the other party to enter into a lopsided agreement. Consult an attorney to explore these and other options.

Carol L. Gasper can be reached at (330) 425-1599.