Athens County Court of Common Pleas, Ohio Document Filing Requirements

CRITICAL

Applies to

Dissolution petition divorce legal separation or post decree pleading

When minor or dependent children are involved, specified pleadings and post-decree motions must state each party's date of birth in the caption.

When there are minor or dependent children involved, every dissolution petition, complaint for divorce or legal separation, or post-decree motion or pleading shall state each party's date of birth in the case caption.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Objection to finding of fact

If a party wishes to contest a finding of fact, a transcript of all the evidence submitted to the Magistrate relevant to that fact must be requested as set forth in Rule 24.09 or an affidavit relevant to that evidence must be provided if a transcript is not available.

If a party wishes to contest a finding of fact, a transcript of all the evidence submitted to the Magistrate relevant to that fact must be requested as set forth in Rule 24.09 or an affidavit relevant to that evidence must be provided if a transcript is not available.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Journal entry

If counsel cannot agree on an entry, each must submit their respective entry to the judge or magistrate for direction.

If counsel are unable to agree upon the entry, their respective entries shall be submitted to the judge or magistrate who will direct what entry shall be made.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Public record

Public records must not include Social Security numbers, full financial account numbers, or other information designated personal and private by law or court ruling; a financial account number may be listed in the stated abbreviated form.

The following information is deemed "personal and private" and may not be included in a public record: 1. Social Security number; 2. Full financial account number (it may be listed as e.g. " -- - _ 1234) and; 3. Any other information deemed personal and private by any federal or state statute, regulation, executive order, or court ruling.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Pretrial statement

Pretrial statements submitted at the conference must address the listed discovery, settlement, issues, stipulations, trial exhibits, financial records, witnesses, parental-rights, child-support, spousal-support, property-division, and property-listing matters, with the specified attachments and details.

At the conference, pretrial statements shall be submitted, with any social security numbers and other identifying personal and account information redacted in accordance with Local Rule 5.01(B). Any paper copies produced to opposing counsel or pro se party with such redacted information shall be provided to the Court without redaction which shall be kept in a separate non-public file: 1. Status of discovery and settlement negotiations; 2. Statement of issues involved; 3. Matters stipulated; 4. Exhibits to be used at trial (attach copies); 5. Financial documentation - at a minimum, include Federal Income Tax return for prior year plus attachments, paycheck stubs from previous six months, and bank statements for previous six months; 6. Names and addresses of witnesses to be called at trial (separate expert from lay witnesses and specify expert's field of expertise); ATHENS COMMON PLEAS COURT LOCAL RULES 7. If allocation of parental rights and responsibilities is contested, statement justifying award; 8. If relevant, suggested child support level and visitation schedule -attach copy of child support computation worksheet per child support guidelines and suggested visitation schedule; 9. If spousal support is requested, needs of payee and ability of payor to meet requests; 10. Suggested property division; 11. List of personal and real property, including fair market value, appraised value, deeds, legal description, etc.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Subsequent pleading motion or application

Must include

case number

Pleadings filed after the complaint, including motions and applications, must state the cause number and the names of the first plaintiff and first defendant on each side.

Pleadings filed subsequent to the complaint, including motions and applications, shall state the number of the cause, the name of the first party plaintiff and the first party defendant on each side.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Notice of appeal

File a civil or criminal docket statement and a copy of the appealed judgment entry with the notice of appeal.

You must also file the following documents with the notice of appeal: (1) a civil or criminal docket statement [Loc.R. 17]; and (2) a copy of the judgment entry from which the appeal is taken [Loc.R. 1].

CRITICAL

Applies to

Electronically filed document

Electronically filed documents requiring an attorney’s or filer’s signature must use a conformed or electronic signature and include the listed information.

Any document filed electronically with the Clerk that requires an attorney's or a filer's signature shall be signed with a conformed signature of "s/ (name) or electronic signature 'which will be accepted as if signed by hand for purposes of e- filing. All information listed below shall be included. The attorney's signature may be displayed as follows and the information following the signature is preferred in the following format: /s/Attorney Attorney Name Supreme Court ID Number 1234567 Attorney for (Plaintiff or Defendant) XYZ Corporation ABC Law Firm Address Telephone Fax E-mail

CRITICAL

Applies to

Temporary order

A temporary order must contain the quoted notice; an objection may be filed by proper motion and counter affidavit within 14 days.

'¿This order is granted upon application of (plaintiff/defendant) supported by affidavit. Objection to the order may be made by a proper motion and counter affidavit filed with the Court within fourteen (14)days, pursuant to Ohio Civil Rule 75(N)(2)."

CRITICAL

Applies to

Notice of appeal

Must include

certificate of service

The notice of appeal form includes a certificate stating that it was mailed to plaintiff’s counsel by ordinary United States mail.

I, C.D., certify that this notice of appeal was sent by ordinary United States mail to , Counsel for Plaintiff, at , on .

CRITICAL

Applies to

Ex parte restraining order

An ex parte restraining order must restrain the moving party from the same actions and be mutual in effect.

The party presenting an ex parte restraining order for the court's approval shall include language restraining the moving party from the same actions from which the moving ex pang party from tre party seeks relief; that is, restraining orders shall be mutual in effect.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Notice of request for transcript

After the request is filed, the Assignment Commissioner/Court Reporter will estimate the transcript cost and file a notice granting an extension until the 14th day after the completed transcript is filed.

Upon the filing of such a request, the Assignment Commissioner/Court Reporter for the Domestic Relations Division will estimate the cost of the transcript and file a Notice of Request for Transcript granting an extension of time in which to file objections until the fourteenth day following the filing of a completed transcript.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Initial filing

A completed Designation Form must accompany the initial filing of every action; copies are available from the Clerk of Courts.

As a result of the Ohio Supreme Court's statistical reporting requirements, a completed Designation Form shall accompany the initial filing of all actions. (See form attached entitled Designation Form to Be Used by Counsel to Indicate the Category of the Cause.) Copies of this form are available from the office of the Clerk of Courts.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Supporting affidavit

An affidavit requesting exclusive use of the marital residence must identify all present occupants and their family relationships.

If requesting exclusive use of the marital residence, the affidavit must contain the names and family relationship of all present occupants of the home.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Motion to modify parental rights and responsibilities

A motion to modify parental rights and responsibilities must include the movant's attorney's professional statement that the attorney believes a bona fide basis for the motion exists.

Motions for modification of parental rights and responsibilities shall contain a professional statement by movant's attorney that he or she believes a bona fide basis for said motion exists.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Envelope

The separate envelope containing personal and private information must bear the stated non-public-information notice.

The information will be kept in a separate envelope within the case file marked as follows: The enclosed personal and private information has been deemed by the court as non-public. It is for the use of the court, attorneys of record listed in the case, and the clerk of court's office only. Any other person must have a court order to view the contents of this envelope. Violation of this court shall be contempt of court.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Proposed consolidation order

Must include

caption

Each proposed consolidation order must bear the captions of all cases to be consolidated.

All proposed consolidation orders shall be submitted electronically and shall bear the case captions for all cases to be consolidated.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Proposed order or entry

The attorney or filer submitting a proposed order or entry must sign it to indicate approval.

All proposed orders/entries shall be signed by the attorney/filer submitting the same, indicating the attorney/filer has approved the order/entry.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Final entry or decree

Every final entry or decree must state that neither party may use the other's credit and whether spousal support will be paid.

All final entries or decrees shall contain the following provisions: 1. Non-use of each other's credit. 2. Whether or not spousal support will be paid.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Instructional letter

The Clerk must include an instructional letter with service of process in the specified divorce, legal separation, and post-decree matters.

An instructional letter shall be included by the Clerk of Courts with service of process in each action for divorce or legal separation in which there are minor children and in each post-decree motion involving visitation or reallocation of parental rights and responsibilities.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Decree or order

Before filing, the original and at least four copies of a decree or other order containing child support payment provisions must be presented to the domestic relations assignment commissioner.

The original and at least four (4) copies of any decree or other order containing child support payment provisions shall be presented to the domestic relations assignment commissioner prior to filing.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Child support order

The appropriate child support calculation worksheet must be attached to the support order.

A copy of the appropriate child support calculation worksheet must be attached.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Domestic relations forms

Domestic-relations forms DR-1 and DR-2 must be used.

(C) The following domestic relations forms DR-1 and DR-2 shall be used and DR-3 may be used forthwith in compliance with these rules provided in the Appendix and are adopted by the Court (attached):

CRITICAL

Applies to

Dismissal entry

Dismissal entries must include a post-signature cc section with specified attorney and pro se party information for service.

All dismissal entries shall include a "cc:" section after the judges/magistrate's signature that includes attorney name, party represented, address and/or email address and any pro se parties name, party designation, address and/or email address for purposes of service.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Indigent party filing

An indigent party using the in-person process must e-file the affidavit of indigency and application to delay payment with the other documents.

The indigent party will then e-File his/her documents, including the affidavit of indigency and application to delay payment of the required deposit.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Support order

In domestic relations proceedings involving minor or dependent children, support orders must be accompanied by the specified orders securing payment.

This rule applies to all domestic relations proceedings, both pre- and post-decree, whenever there are minor or dependent children of the parties. 26.01 Pursuant to R.C. 3121.03, all support orders shall be accompanied by orders securing payment, as set forth below: (A) Notice to Income Provider to Withhold Obligor Income/Assets; and Addendum Withholding Notice to Parties to a Support Order; and/or (B) Order to Seek Employment; and Order to Obligee.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Request for service by publication or public sale notice

For publication service or a public-sale notice, proposed text must be submitted to an Athens County newspaper for setup and a cost determination.

When submitting a request for service by publication or for publication of public sale notice, the proposed text is to be submitted to a newspaper of general circulation in Athens County for set up and determination of printer's fee/publication costs.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Proposed order or entry

Proposed orders and entries submitted through the e-Filing System must not have a blank Judge’s or Magistrate’s signature line.

Because proposed orders and entries submitted via the Court's e-Filing System may be signed electronically, the proposed orders and entries shall not contain a blank signature line for the Judge's/Magistrate's signature.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Re filed complaint

A re-filed Complaint submitted electronically must include a case designation/information sheet identifying the judge assigned to the original action.

When submitting a re-filed Complaint for electronic filing, the filing party shall also submit a case designation/information sheet, identifying the judge assigned to the original action.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Electronically filed document

Must include

certificate of service

Every electronically filed document must include a Certificate of Service stating the manner of service or notice for each entitled party and identifying the e-Filing submission date as the service date.

A Certificate of Service is still required when a party files a document electronically. The Certificate of Service shall state the manner, including by e-Service if applicable, in which service or notice was accomplished on each party entitled to service. The Certificate of Service shall set forth the date on which the attached document is being submitted for e-Filing, and shall designate that date as the date of service of said document.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Financial disclosure form

The financial disclosure form includes the applicant's certification that its information is true to the best of their knowledge and that they cannot prepay the case costs or fees.

_ hereby certify that the information I have provided on (Print Name) this financial disclosure form is true to the best of my knowledge and that I am unable to prepay the costs or fees in this case.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Motion to extend time

Must include

certificate of service

The motion-to-extend-time form includes a certificate of service.

CERTIFICATE OF SERVICE I, C.D., certify that this Motion to Extend the Time, was sent by ordinary United States mail to , Counsel for Plaintiff, at , on .

CRITICAL

Applies to

Stipulation or other document

When a document requires multiple signatures and lacks actual physical signatures, the filer must sign it, confirm in writing that all required signatories agree and state how agreement was obtained, then electronically file it identifying all signatories.

When a stipulation or other document requires two or more signatures (and there are not actual physical signatures): a.) The filing party or attorney shall sign the stipulation or document him/herself as follows: "s/ John Smith". b.) The filing party or attorney shall then confirm in writing that the contents of the documents are acceptable to all persons required to sign the document. The filer will indicate the agreement of all other counsel and/or parties at the appropriate place in the document, along with the method they obtained the agreement (i.e. via email), usually on the signature line. c.) The filing party or attorney shall then file the document electronically, identifying all of the signatories, e.g., /s/ Jane Doe, /s/ John Smith, etc.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Proposed assignments of error

If you do not order a complete transcript, you must file proposed assignments of error.

In addition, do not forget that if you do not order a complete transcript, you must file proposed assignments of error.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Affidavit

When an individual defendant who was served with summons fails to answer, the plaintiff must file an SCRA-compliant affidavit by the trial, default-hearing, or final-disposition date.

In any action or proceeding in which an individual who is a defendant has been served with summons, but has failed to answer, the plaintiff shall on or before the trial day or other date of default hearing or final disposition in such action or proceeding file with the court an affidavit in compliance with Servicemembers Civil Relief Act of 2003 and its amendments.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Pleading motion or application

Pleadings, motions, and applications must state the court, county, and state and each party's name and address if known.

and shall state the name of the court, county, and state, and shall state the name and address, if known, of each party.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Appellate record

When an alleged error occurred during a hearing or trial, the appellant generally must provide the relevant transcript; a transcript is unnecessary when the alleged error rests solely on a ruling based on a document or written motion.

Generally, when you believe a mistake occurred during a hearing or at trial, you must provide the Court of Appeals with a transcript of that hearing or portion of the trial. Without a transcript of those proceedings, the Court of Appeals will have no way to review what happened. In that instance, the law requires the Court of Appeals to presume the trial court acted properly. Because the law also requires the appellant to identify both the mistake and where it occurred in the record, in most situations you cannot win an appeal without the transcript when you allege that the error occurred during a hearing or at trial. On the other hand, if the error you allege occurred solely on the basis of the trial court’s action upon a document or written motion, such as summary judgment or a motion to dismiss, a transcript is not necessary; the document or motion and the exhibits will enable the Court of Appeals to review the decision.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Complaint or third party complaint

A party electronically filing a Complaint or Third-Party Complaint must also submit a confidential disclosure of personal identifiers and service instructions.

When submitting any Complaint or Third-Party Complaint for electronic filing, the filing party shall also submit a confidential disclosure of personal identifiers and instructions for service as required by the Ohio Rules of Civil Procedure.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Public journal entry

The public copy of a journal entry must say “redacted” wherever personal and private information was removed.

The copy not containing personal and private information (for the public file) will have the notion "redacted" at all places in the document where such information was removed.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Complaint

The plaintiff's attorney must state in the complaint whether the defendant is represented and name the defendant's counsel if known.

Plaintiff's attorney shall allege in the complaint whether or not Defendant is represented by counsel and shall name Defendant's counsel, if known.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Electronically filed document

Must include

certificate of service

An electronically filed document must include a Certificate of Service stating the service method for each party and identifying the e-filing submission date as the service date.

A Certificate of Service is still required when a party files a document electronically, The Certificate of Service shall state the manner, including by e-Service if applicable, in which service or notice was accomplished on each party entitled to service. The Certificate of Service shall set forth the date on which the attached document is being submitted for e-Filing, and shall designate that date as the date of service of said document.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Mediator report

At the conclusion of mediation, the court must be informed whether mediation occurred or was terminated, the settlement status, party attendance, and any future sessions and their dates and times.

At the conclusion of the mediation and in compliance with R.C. 2710.06 the court shall be informed of the status of the mediation including all of the following: a. Whether the mediation occurred or was terminated; b. Whether a settlement was reached on some, all or none of the issues; and c. Attendance of the parties. d. Future mediation session(s), including date and time.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Parental rights request

If an award of parental rights will remove a child from the marital residence, the request must provide the destination address and applicable school district, and any new child care provider’s name and address.

If an award of parental rights will result in removal of a child from the marital residence, give the address and school district, if applicable, to which the child is being taken and, if applicable, the name and address of a new child care provider.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Notice of appeal

If the record will include only part of the transcript, the appellant must file the intended assignments of error with the notice of appeal.

If less than the entire transcript of proceedings is to be included in the record, appellant must, at the time of filing the notice of appeal, file a statement of the assignments of error appellant intends to present on appeal.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Stipulation or other document requiring multiple signatures

The filing party or attorney must e-file the document and identify each other signatory using the stated written-authorization format.

The filing party or attorney shall then file the document electronically, identifying all of the other signatories as follows: "/s/ Jane Doe, per written authorization, by John Smith", etc.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Proposed order

Proposed orders or entries must identify the specific motions to which they apply.

The pro se party may present proposed orders/entries in either a Microsoft Word compatible format or Portable Document Format (PDF), unless the format is specified by the Assignment Commissioner or assigned Judge/Magistrate, and shall reference the specific motions to which they apply.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Temporary order

Every temporary order must specify which provisions take effect immediately and which take effect 14 days after service.

All temporary orders shall specify which provisions take immediate effect and which take effect fourteen (14) days after service.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Post decree motion

A post-decree motion must state the original order language, requested change, and complete and accurate reasons or bases, but may attach the original order instead of reciting its exact language; failure to provide the information results in dismissal.

Post decree motions shall contain the exact language of the original order sought to be changed, the change requested and a complete and accurate statement of movant's reasons and/or bases for change. Failure to supply this information will result in the motion being dismissed. A copy of the original order may be attached to the motion in lieu of reciting the exact language of the original order sought to be changed.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Cover page for exhibits and transcripts

Must include

caption, judge name, case number

Conventional exhibits and transcripts must have a cover page identifying the case caption, case number, assigned judge or magistrate, and filer information.

Such exhibits and transcripts shall be identified by a cover page using the caption of the case, the case number and the assigned judge/magistrate, and shall provide other information identifying the name and party designated of the filer.

CRITICAL

Applies to

Notice of scheduled mediation

A Notice of Scheduled Mediation must state the mediation's date, time, place, and contact information.

The court, on its own motion, or the motion of any of the parties may order disputed issues to mediation in whole or in part by Notice of Scheduled Mediation which shall, at a minimum indicate the date, time, place and contact information of the mediation.