Cincinnati Family Law & Divorce Blog: What Are My Rights if My Spouse Has Cheated?

Few people find it fair to learn that the answer to this question, in most Ohio cases,  it is none.  It seems fundamentally unfair that a married person can commit adultery and face no consequences, monetary or otherwise. Yet, in an Ohio court of law, there are no penalties against people who have committed adultery and, in fact, rarely will a court even be interested in hearing the details. The reason for this is a court looks at  marriage like a business partnership.  It is the obligation of the court to determine the assets and debts of the marital partnership and equitably divide those assets and debts, and to then decide if support is appropriate.  Nowhere will you find among the factors a court is to consider  whether someone was at fault. The few exceptions to this rule relate to financial misconduct or the determination of the best interest of children. If...