Marriages can end for a lot of different reasons. Sometimes, a couple simply grows apart and decides they no longer wish to be married. In other cases, one spouse commits bad acts that cause irreparable damage to the marriage.

Ohio law treats these situations differently. A split based on fault is called a "divorce," whereas a split based on mutual desire to leave the marriage is called a "dissolution." Whereas divorces are usually contested proceedings, dissolutions involve minimal court participation.

Your Ohio divorce lawyer can help you decide which path is best for your particular situation.

What to Expect in Fault-Based Ohio Divorce

Divorce will be granted only if it can be proven by witness testimony that one of the spouses is at fault for ending the marriage. Ohio law specifies nine so-called "fault grounds." They are:

  • Adultery
  • Bigamy
  • Willful abandonment of the marriage for at least one year
  • Extreme cruelty or abuse
  • Habitual drunkenness
  • Gross neglect of duty
  • Creating a "false contract" of marriage, for example by misrepresenting material facts that led to the agreement to marry
  • Imprisonment in a state or federal correctional institution
  • Procurement of a divorce outside the state of Ohio

A fault-based divorce can be initiated by one spouse serving divorce papers to the other spouse. However, Ohio law requires a six-week "cooling off" period before the divorce can be finalized.

A divorcing couple may choose to resolve the terms of their divorce on their own. If they cannot, the couple will have a trial before a judge. The judge will review all the relevant evidence and will issue a divorce order that controls property division, child custody, spousal support, payment of court and attorneys fees and any other contested issue properly brought before the court.

Source: Ohio State Bar Association, "Divorce and Dissolution: What's the Difference?"