Local
Rule 1.4
DOMESTIC RELATIONS CASE
FLOW MANAGEMENT PROCEDURE
1.4 (A) Purpose. In compliance with the Rules of
Superintendence for Courts of Common Pleas and for the purpose of maintaining
and improving the timely disposition of domestic relations cases, the following
case‑flow management procedure is being adopted. It is not intended that
this rule supersede any present rule, but only that it spell out the duties and
responsibilities of counsel and the case management procedure.
1.4 (B) Active Cases. All active cases shall be indexed
by case number on the court's docket. Each active case shall also be
periodically reviewed. The periodic review shall include review of deadline
dates established by time limitations taken from the court's rules for proof or
failure of service, pretrial hearings, motion responses, hearing dates,
objections to magistrate’s decisions, preparation of entries, filing of
entries, and case inactivity.
1.4 (C) Complaints. After the complaint is filed,
service of summons shall be checked in thirty days. If service is complete and
no answer has been filed, the case shall be assigned before the magistrate for
an uncontested action.
If service is
incomplete, notice shall be served on plaintiff's counsel directing that unless
service is obtained, the case will be dismissed. If after fourteen (14) days no
effort has been made to obtain service, the case shall be dismissed.
Counsel of record shall
be notified of any complaint that has been dormant for three months. If, after
notification to counsel of record, the case file reflects nothing has been done
or no pending court date has been set, the case may be dismissed by the court
without prejudice.
1.4 (D) Temporary Orders.
Along with
the complaint for divorce and/or answer filed, the parties shall submit the
general information, financial affidavits and child support guidelines
worksheets. In all cases in which
temporary orders are being requested the court form “Proposal for Temporary
Orders” shall also be filed, which will then be considered in drafting the
temporary orders, covering temporary custody, child support and/or spousal
support. Collateral matters which the
parties wish for the court to consider in the temporary orders (i.e. exclusive
use of marital home, other property, autos, bank accounts, etc.) must be
specifically requested in that party’s proposal with sufficient reasons to
enable the court to properly draft equitable temporary orders. If fourteen (14) days have elapsed from the filing
of an affidavit and no response has been filed, the party requesting the
temporary order shall notify the court’s domestic relations case manager, and
the court shall enter a temporary order based upon the affidavits filed. The party requesting the temporary order may
submit a proposed temporary order for the court’s consideration at that time.
Temporary orders shall
be determined based upon the affidavits filed by the parties. Either party may file a written request for
oral hearing seeking modification of the temporary order. The oral hearing will be before the
magistrate. Such written requests for
oral hearings seeking modification of temporary orders which are made more than
fourteen (14) days after the filing of the temporary orders must be based upon
a change of circumstances relating to facts contained within the initial
affidavits, which facts were not reasonably known to or anticipated by the
parties at the time the affidavits were filed.
Written requests for oral hearings seeking modification of temporary
orders shall specify with particularity each of the following items:
1.
The
specific portions of the temporary order to which the party objects; and
2.
The
specific reasons for the objection to each such portion of the temporary order;
and
3.
The
specific modifications to the temporary order which the objecting party
suggests that the court adopt.
Within
ten (10) days after the filing of a request for oral hearing seeking
modification of a temporary order, any other party to the case may file such a
request of her or his own, specifying with particularity the specific portions
of the order to which the party objects, and the specific modifications to the
temporary order suggested by such objecting party.
Within
twenty-eight (28) days of the timely filing of a request for oral hearing
seeking modification of a temporary order, the court will conduct the oral
hearing. The oral hearing will
ordinarily be scheduled for one-half hour, but if a party deems that time
insufficient, that party shall notify the domestic relations case manager of
the court as soon as possible that he/she believes more time is necessary. If the court calendar reasonably permits,
more time may be scheduled.
The
parties are not required to present evidence at the oral hearing, but they may
do so, within the sound discretion of the court.
All
parties must attend the oral hearing unless excused by the court for good
cause.
The
only matters in the temporary order which will be reconsidered at the oral
hearing are those which are specified with particularity in a party’s timely
filed request for oral hearing. No
evidence or arguments will be permitted and no modifications will be made
concerning matters not specified with particularity in the request for oral
hearing.
The
policy of this rule is for parties and their counsel to be thorough and
diligent in the preparation of all pleadings, temporary order requests,
affidavits, and requests for oral hearing seeking modification of temporary
orders. The fact that an oral hearing is
available is no substitute for proper preparation of the documents that are
filed initially in the case. Matters not
raised appropriately in the initial pleadings, temporary order requests,
affidavits, and requests for oral hearing seeking modification of temporary
orders, ordinarily will not be considered at the oral hearing concerning
modification of temporary orders.
The
oral hearing concerning modification of temporary orders is not for the purpose
of allowing parties to bolster deficient or incomplete initial filings.
1.4 (E) Status Conferences, Pre-Trial Conferences and Disclosure.
After an answer is filed, the case will be
scheduled for an early case management status conference before the
magistrate. Attorneys may be present in
person or by telephone, and clients must be available to the attorneys in
person or by telephone. The case
management status conference will deal with preliminary matters such as setting
discovery deadlines, setting an initial pre-trial, arranging for appraisals, a
guardian ad litem, possible mediation, the need for counseling or conciliation,
identification of disputed and undisputed issues, discussion of discovery
issues, and other appropriate matters.
All
contested cases will be pre-tried unless a pre-trial is waived by all
parties. Pre-trials will be before the
magistrate and all parties and counsel are to be present unless excused for
cause. In appropriate cases, the court
may have more than one pre-trial, if directed by the magistrate. If appropriate, guardian ad litem reports and
status conferences will be combined by the court with a pre-trial or case
management status conference.
Ordinarily,
post-decree motions will be pre-tried unless they are not contested, in which
case the initial hearing date may be considered a final hearing on such motions
if the court deems it appropriate. A
notice of the following effect should be included with such post-decree
motions:
The hearing scheduled on the above
motion will be considered a pre-trial conference before the court, rather than
a hearing on the merits, unless the party against whom the motion is brought
does not appear at the hearing and does not file an objection to the requested
relief, and if no such appearance or objection is made, the court may proceed
to the merits of the motion at the scheduled hearing.
The
parties are requested to file and exchange pre-trial statements no later than
the day of the pre-trial. If the
circumstances at the subsequent pre-trial are similar to those in a prior
pre-trial, no supplemental pre-trial statement is required, but if the
circumstances appropriately call for one, one may be filed by any party. (See appendix of this Local Court Rule for a
suggested form with marital asset/debt valuation sheet attached.)
At
pre-trials, the court and counsel will discuss appropriate matters including
trying to narrow the issues in controversy, possible stipulations as to
authenticity of documents, exchange of expert and other reports and records,
exchange of appraisals, stipulations as to values and amounts, any remaining
issues of asset valuation and liability amounts, issues relating to the
division of household goods and furnishings and other assets, parenting issues,
and possible settlement. The court may
make such pre-trial orders as it deems appropriate to aid in the disposition of
the action.
If
appropriate, the court may also schedule a settlement conference before the
magistrate at which the focus will be an effort to settle the case.
If
a contested case appears to be relatively uncomplicated, the court will
schedule a pre-trial and final hearing date at the initial case management
status conference. If a contested case
appears to be complex, the court will, at an appropriate pre-trial conference,
attempt to schedule the case for final hearing on the merits.
It
is mandatory that the parties exchange with each other, as soon as is
reasonably practicable after an answer is filed, all of the following:
1.
The
identity of all pensions, profit sharing and retirement benefits, including
IRA’s and the most recent summary; and
2.
Copies
of all real estate deeds and vehicle titles and any appraisals intended by the
parties to be used in the case; and
3.
Copies
of the last three years income tax returns unless already in the possession of
the other party; and
4.
Documentary
proof of current income from all sources; and
5.
Copies
of the most recent statements on all bank accounts, life insurance policies,
mortgages, mutual funds, and other asset and debt accounts; and
6.
The
identity and location of any safety deposit box; and
7.
The
identity of all entities which hold assets in which either party has an
interest, including but not limited to beneficial interests in trusts, and
tangible and other personal property held for the benefit of a party. Also, the identity of all such assets which
are being held for the benefit of a party.
1.4 (F) Dissolutions. Counsel of record or the parties
shall be notified of any inactivity after sixty (60) days from the filing of
the petition. Unless for good cause shown, the matter will be set for final
hearing or dismissed within thirty (30) days.
1.4 (G) Post‑Decree Motions. Post‑decree motions shall be brought to the domestic
relations case manager for the magistrate before filing to be assigned a
hearing date.
1.4 (H) Continuances. Continuances shall not be granted
orally and must be in writing. A request for continuance, before it is granted,
shall contain the new date for hearing, the reason for the request, whether or
not opposing counsel consents, and must be approved by the magistrate before
being submitted to the judge.
1.4 (I) Magistrate’s Decision.
After a
hearing, a decision shall be approved by the magistrate before being submitted
to the court with the judgment entry. If
any party makes a request for findings of fact and conclusions of law or
findings and conclusions are otherwise required by law, the magistrate’s
decision shall include findings of fact and conclusions of law. Counsel and/or
party have fourteen (14) days in which to object to the decision. Upon
objections being filed, the judgment shall be automatically stayed. The report
shall be reviewed by the judge, and if no changes are necessary, an entry shall
be issued stating that the decision is approved as written. If changes are
necessary, an amended entry shall be issued.
1.4 (J) Judgment Entries.
1.
In
actions where the parties have resolved the matter by agreement prior to
magistrate hearing, the parties shall reduce their agreement to writing and
shall submit their written MEMO entry to the court. A formal entry shall be submitted and signed
by the parties within fifteen (15) days after the memo entry for the judge and
magistrate to sign. Failure to comply with this rule will result in a fourteen
(14) day notice to dismiss. Upon no response within the additional fourteen
(14) days, the court will dismiss the motion.
2.
Orders
for child support shall be stated in terms of a monthly amount payable weekly,
bi‑weekly, semi‑monthly, or whenever the payer is paid. The entry
shall also require one or both of the parties to maintain health insurance for
the children and the amount for extraordinary medical, dental, optical, etc.,
shall be included. The entry shall also provide for the child support, and/or
spousal support to be paid through the Ohio Child Support Payment Central with
the appropriate processing fees included by wage withholding.
1.4 (K) Copies. Counsel shall prepare for use by
the child support enforcement agency one copy of each judgment entry filed with
the clerk.
(Effective
(Revised
(Revised September 2, 2009)