Although most divorces are settled outside the courtroom, an already stressful situation can become overwhelming if it goes trial.

While divorces are rarely ever like the heavy drama portrayed on TV or in movies, it is still important to prepare yourself before the date of your divorce trial.

Contested divorces are time-consuming, expensive and emotionally draining. Being organized makes things easier for both you and your attorney, while also making a good impression on the judge.

Walking into a lawyer's office, especially when your mind and emotions are occupied with a looming divorce, can seem intimidating. However, preparation will go a long way and ensure that you find a lawyer who best suits you and your situation.

When you schedule a consultation with an attorney, begin jotting down any questions you can think of that you'd like to discuss. Your time is valuable, and you should get as much information out of meeting an attorney as possible.

Having questions ready beforehand will not only help alleviate some anxiety, but it'll also help you assess whether the attorney is a good fit for you.

What is the difference between a dissolution and a divorce? In a divorce, the spouses are unable to agree on issues such as child support, property di...

In Ohio, the court that handles divorce and dissolution cases is the Court of Common Pleas which is located in each county. This means a particular county court has “jurisdiction” over a case.

Jurisdiction involves residency. Meeting Ohio residency requirements are usually easy and only a concern for a person who has recently moved or is planning a move shortly.

Thanks to the internet and easily available resources, more and more people are trying Do-It-Yourself divorce. In Ohio, this process is referred to as a pro se (on your behalf) divorce. Like any divorce, it involves completing paperwork, filing it with the correct court and attending a hearing. But is a DIY divorce right for you?

Who is a Good Candidate?

People wanting to do a DIY divorce are often concerned about the costs involved in hiring an attorney. Not everyone should do a divorce themselves, and several factors can make a difference. You and your spouse are good candidates for a DIY divorce if...

In Ohio, a dissolution is a non-adversarial proceeding to legally terminate a marriage. A Dissolution also means that the terms of the divorce are decided between the two parties before any documents are filed with the court.

Unlike a divorce, the negotiating couple is expected to voluntarily trade any information as part of their dissolution. The courts do not have subpoena power during dissolution and cannot put temporary orders in place or force either side to share information.

The court does allow professionals to be hired to evaluate a property or give financial advice.

Some people do allow their divorce to proceed without their participation. Reasons include apathy, guilt, fear, depression or because they are attempting to delay or stop the divorce.

This is never a good idea!

Failure to appear means you have skipped a scheduled court date without notifying the court. You can be charged with contempt of court, and the judge can issue a bench warrant for your arrest. You may also have to pay a fine.

While such measures don't usually happen in a divorce case, you still should always show up in court if required to do so.

Skipping your court hearing not only gives a bad impression but allows the other spouse to tell the court what they want.

If you aren’t there, you can’t disprove their story or defend your self! Once this testimony is part of the court record it becomes very hard to discredit later—because you didn’t show up in the first place to refute it!

Getting a divorce in Ohio often requires going through several court hearings and participating in numerous rounds of negotiation with your soon to be ex-spouse.

Ohio requires that you are a resident of the state for a minimum of six months to file for divorce. Since you will be filing your paperwork through a county court, it is best to look up and see what their residency requirements are—usually a minimum of 90 days.

When it comes to ending a relationship, the word “separation” can be a confusing term.

While there are many different types of informal separations, there is only one legal separation recognized in the state of Ohio. A legal separation does not terminate a marriage, and you are not free to remarry. Under Ohio law, there are only three ways to terminate a Marriage: Divorce, Dissolution or Annulment. 

  When it comes to divorce, child custody issues are usually emotional and sometimes become contentious. Unfortunately, this can mean that parent...

While you may have thought about filing for a divorce in Ohio for a long time, the news may come as a shock to your spouse. Divorce, no matter how amicable, is never a pleasant topic. Knowing how to tell your spouse you want a divorce can be complicated and nerve-wracking.

Think about your feelings. Do you want to get divorced? Or do you want your spouse to go to marriage counseling? Spend more time with you? Say "I love you" more? 

You may think that after hiring a divorce lawyer, you can simply wait around for your court date, but people who actively participate in their divorce will find things easier in the long run. There are actions you can take to make things easier and have your case over as quickly as possible.

According to the Pew Research Center, in 2013, four out of ten new marriages included one partner who had been married before, and two out of every ten new marriages were between people who had both been previously married. In many of these marriages, children from previous relationships are involved.

Creating a blended family means everyone’s roles shift. It may take time for one family to get used to living with another one, even if they all got along before.

When choosing a career path, or even a job that we need to have to currently satisfy a need—we tend to focus on things like salary, benefits, opportunities for advancement, and commuting time. Your lifestyle is often affected by this choice.

The number of hours you work, the stresses particular to that kind of job, and what type of people you deal with daily. What we often forget to consider is how this career could affect our relationship with our spouse.

Finding out or even suspecting that your spouse or partner is having an affair is one of the most hurtful things that can happen to a relationship.

Instant feelings of anger, shock, resentment and other negative emotions can set in quickly causing you to do things that can harm your future. Knowing that your partner is involved with someone else is hard enough, but knowing what to do can be even harder.

Even the experts have trouble agreeing, but the divorce rate for first marriages is believed to be between 36% and 42%.

As a Family Law Attorney, I see families at all of the different stages of the divorce process. Ending an unsatisfactory relationship isn’t necessarily a bad thing, but there is denying that it affects every family member.

During the divorce, parents must act responsibly—make children feel involved in key decisions throughout the process and not expose children to adult disagreements. Uncertainty about the future and being exposed to the constant conflict are what’s most damaging for children, not the fact of divorce itself.

One Size Doesn't Fit All

Child custody cases can be the most difficult ones in Family Law court. The “best interests” standard comes before the courts in all sorts of ways. these include divorce, dissolution, legal separation, juvenile custody, post-decree modifications, and step-parent adoptions to name a few.

Emotions are sky-high, battle lines are drawn and there is no holding back.

Child custody decisions are some of the hardest ones parents will ever make. They are also among the most important.

It has been an exciting and record-breaking 2015 for me and as the owner of Jack's Law Office (and quite the contrary for my beloved Cleveland Browns).

I wanted to share with you some highlights and in particular, my number-one top strategy for success in 2015, what we have on the drawing board for 2016,  and some fun times for the Carney-DeBords. (And let's not forget-with the Brown's hiring of baseball guru and analytic pro, Paul DePodesta, it could be a promising year-promising may be a stretch but hope for next year is the mantra for any real Brown's fan.)

Divorce usually means dividing up part of your life that you and your partner once shared. Issues like who gets what, how much time children will spend with each parent and other matters can be handled by lawyers or through the court system.

Unfortunately, neither the legal system nor an attorney can decide for one important asset the gets left out of the divorce process–your friends. Losing friends during a divorce can be as equally hurtful and confusing as losing any other important asset.

January is the time to make resolutions for the New Year. But as anyone with a health club membership can tell you, most people give up these resolutions by mid-February.

When it comes to your children, however, it’s important to resolutions that last. Newly divorced parents can and should learn from the mistakes of others.

The resolutions below will help you avoid these mistakes and create situations that will help instead of hurt your children.