The lawyers and paralegals at Zoller|Biacsi receive child support questions from our clients and the general public daily. This blog addresses the lag time between the effective date of a support order and when the Ohio Department of Job and Family Services – Child Support Enforcement Agency – opens a case and begins to garnish child support from the parent who has been Ordered to pay support. This lag can be as short as 10 days and sometimes takes 6-8 weeks in our experience. Conscientious parents want to pay their child support on time so that neither the child nor the other parent is stress ..read more

When a potential client contacts our office, they often think they need to file for divorce.  This is not always the best option.  There are several alternatives to filing and being stuck in the Court system.  One of those options is Mediation. What is Mediation? Mediation is an alternative dispute resolution process wherein the couple works with the mediator and she assists in facilitating an agreement.  The mediator does not make decisions.  The mediator gathers information from the couple, explains the law, and helps to generate options concerning dividing assets, s ..read more

by John D. Zoller, JD, CDFA Experienced lawyers hear this question frequently.  Why can’t we just let the judge decide?  There are many answers to this question that come from frustration.  So, we asked a member of the judiciary what their answer to that question would be.  Here is the answer:   Unless there is an issue of domestic violence or mental illness, in most cases having the Judge decide should be the last choice. All other methods to find a solution to a problem should be completely exhausted before leaving a decision up to a Judge.  The area of fam ..read more

by John D. Zoller, JD, CDFA Mortgage Lending – We don’t know what we don’t know. Talk with people who do. One of you will face having to refinance your home or have to seek new home financing because of your separation or divorce.  Many people labor under some misconceptions about the mortgage qualification or underwriting criteria. Here are some pieces of information that may vary from your assumptions about mortgages: Rates and Rate Locks: There is a lot of current market volatility which pre-dated the Covid-19 Pandemic. That uncertainty led to historically low rates (3% on 30 yr. fixe ..read more

When a new client calls our office, that person has a unique story to tell.  As I have mentioned in other blog posts, our firm represents all kinds of people from all kinds of backgrounds and all kinds of lifestyles.  We have people who have cheated on their spouses, and we have those who have been cheated on.  We have people who accuse their spouses of substance abuse, and we have those who have been accused. We also hear from spouses who aren’t quite sure about divorce, but the other partner is ready and may have even retained an attorney.  It matters not if the client is ..read more

  That looks like some scary math that you were supposed to learn in high school, doesn’t it? Determining the value of a defined benefit plan is extremely important in family law because it represents the true value in today’s dollars of the future benefit payments that begin at a specific future retirement date (the Present Value). Those payments typically continue until the death of the participant spouse. Many people are pleasantly surprised to learn that the present value of their or their spouse’s defined benefit plan is very substantial and much, much higher than the cash or surrend ..read more

  In Ohio, guideline child support serves the basic needs of the child in the recipient’s home. That is food, shelter and clothing. Generally, the cost of extracurricular activities, sports equipment, travel for teams, lessons and so forth is not included in basic child support. The Ohio child support guidelines worksheet includes consideration of additional children, overnight parenting, the cost of health and dental insurance (but not vision coverage) and the cost of work-related childcare. Something called “Cash Medical Support” is also part of the guidelines. The Child Support Manual ..read more

A defined benefit plan is a type of retirement plan sponsored by an employer. The Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) covers two types of retirement plans: defined benefit plans and defined contribution plans. A defined benefit plan is commonly called a “Pension”. A defined benefit plan promises a specified monthly benefit at retirement. The plan may state this promised benefit as an exact dollar amount, such as $100 per month at retirement. Or, more commonly, it may calculate a benefit through a plan formula that considers such factors as salary and service – for example, 1 perce ..read more

The Ohio Department of Jobs and Family Services (ODJFS) administrates the child support system. ODJFS published a manual for calculating child support. The manual answers many questions and should be referenced when performing a calculation. Child Support Manual. The manual provides a line-by-line guide for child support worksheets. In Ohio, child support is determined by combining the gross income of both parents on a worksheet. The worksheet is absolutely required in every case, even if the parents agree not to exchange child support. Parents who pay or receive child support are required t ..read more

A mercenary, sometimes known as a soldier of fortune, is an individual who takes part in military conflict for personal profit, is otherwise an outsider to the conflict, and is not a member of any other official military. Mercenaries fight for money or other forms of payment rather than for political reasons or alignments with any particular group. Beginning in the 20th century, mercenaries have increasingly come to be less entitled to protections by rules of war than soldiers of a government’s army. When you hire a lawyer to go into court and fight for your side ..read more