Alimony and Child Support in Ohio: New Directions after Dissolution

Recent decisions by the Ohio Supreme Court will undoubtedly have significant impact upon post-dissolution alimony and child support. In rejecting basic premises upon which domestic relations courts have historically ordered such payments, the court has set new directions. Traditional notions of sex-based roles in the support of the family have been set aside and new standards, based upon the needs of the parties and the factual circumstances in particular cases, have been established. As a result, the husband\u27s statutory duty to support his wife and children during marriage will no longer govern his responsibilities toward the family following dissolution, and neither parent will be required to support the children beyond the age of majority. These trends represent significant advances in the development of Ohio matrimonial law. To acquaint the practitioner with these advances, and to suggest some of the implications of current judicial thinking, this Article will review several problem areas in the determination of post-dissolution alimony and child support