Cleveland Law Library Weblog

Ohio Supreme Court Creates Online Map of Courts with Specialized Dockets

The Ohio Supreme Court has created a great, interactive map of all Ohio Courts with specialized dockets. Users can search by Jurisdiction, Judge, County, and Docket Type. A search of Cuyahoga County showed that

Cleveland Municipal Court has Human Trafficking, Mental Health, Drug, and Veterans Treatment dockets

Cuyahoga County Common Pleas (General Division) has Human Trafficking, Mental Health, and Drug dockets

Cuyahoga County Common Pleas (Juvenile Division) has Mental Health, Drug, and Family Dependency dockets

South Euclid Municipal Court has a Mental Health docket

Click here to read the Ohio Supreme Court's press release.

1st Week for New & Improved Help Center @ Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Court in the Cuyahoga County Courthouse

Today marks the 1st successful week for Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Court's new and improved Help Center in Room 29 (basement) of the Cuyahoga County Courthouse.  Although staff in the new Center cannot provide legal advice, they will be able to provide:

• court forms at no cost
• instructions on how to complete court forms
• a review of filled-out forms for completeness and adequacy
• information about court processes, practices, and procedures
• an explanation of the purpose and options available through the Court
• follow-up to ensure all paperwork is ready for final hearings
• notary public services
• help finding free or low cost legal services and programs, including mediation programs

The new Center has 1 computer for lawyers and another for self-represented litigants. These computers will enable users to prepare court forms and calculate child support.

Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Court Introduces E-Filing Today, 4/17/17

Effective today, April 17, 2017, E-Filing is now available in the Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Court. As part of the launch of this new service, the Court issued E-Filing Administrative Order 1.0 containing the general rules for E-filing.

The Court's Press Release explains that:

"Attorneys may now electronically file all new domestic relations cases, except domestic violence, beginning April 17, 2017. Other filings in existing cases such as affidavits, briefs, motions, will also be accepted. Self-represented parties may participate in the e-filing program but will not be required to do so. “This is a major step forward in the Court’s efforts to provide access to justice and make our system more convenient. By investing in technology, we expect increased efficiencies and tremendous cost-savings to taxpayers,” said Administrative Judge Rosemary Grdina Gold. “The time saved from improved processes will allow us to focus on better serving the needs of our customers.” The e-filing system will allow court documents that are filed electronically to be integrated into the Court’s electronic case management system. ... There are no additional costs to e-file – users will pay the same filing fees charged for filing paper documents."

The Press Release also identifies the advantages of the new E-filing system.

An E-Filing Account Application, an E-Filing User Guide, and a list of Frequently Asked Questions can be found in the E-Filing portion the Clerk of Courts’ website: http://coc.cuyahogacounty.us/en-US/efiling.aspx.

An E-Filing Training Video will be coming soon on the Clerk of Court's web site.

Ohio Supreme Court Board Issues Advisory Opinion on Judges Performing Civil Marriages of Same-Sex Couples

On the heels of the Supreme Court's decision in Obergefell v. Hodges, the Ohio Supreme Court's Board of Professional Conduct has issued Advisory Opinion 2015-1. The Syllabus of this Opinion states that:

"A judge who exercises the authority to perform civil marriages may not refuse to perform same-sex marriages while continuing to perform opposite-sex marriages. A judge may not decline to perform all marriages in order to avoid marrying same-sex couples based on his or her personal, moral, or religious beliefs."

The full text of the Opinion can be found at this link, and the Supreme Court's press release can be found at this link.

Cuyahoga County DR Court Adopts Local Rule 38: Parenting Coordination

The Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Court has just adopted Local Rule 38: Parenting Coordination, effective today, November 20, 2014. This new Rule creates a new role for a Parenting Coordinator in working out disputes involving children. Appointments can be made for the following situations:

"(A) The Court may order parenting coordination, sua sponte or upon written or oral motion by one or both parties, when one or more of the following factors are present: 

(1) The parties have ongoing disagreements about the implementation of a parental rights and responsibilities or companionship time order and need assistance; 

(2) There is a history of extreme or ongoing parental conflict that has been unresolved by previous litigation or other interventions and from which a child of the parties is adversely affected; 

(3) The parties have a child whose parenting time schedule requires frequent adjustments, specified in an Order of the Court, to maintain age-appropriate contact with both parties, and the parties have been previously unable to reach agreements on their parenting time schedule without intervention by the Court; 

(4) The parties have a child with a medical or psychological condition or 
disability that requires frequent decisions regarding treatment or frequent adjustments in the parenting time schedule, specified in an order of the Court, and the parties have been previously unable to reach agreements on their parenting time schedule without intervention by the Court; 

(5) One or both parties suffer from a medical or psychological condition or 
disability that results in an inability to reach agreements on or make adjustments in their parenting time schedule without assistance, even when minor in nature; 

(6) Any other factor as determined by the Court."