Ohio Revised Code Search

...(A) The petitioner and the person sought to be adopted shall appear at the hearing on the petition, unless the presence of either is excused by the court for good cause shown. (B) The court may continue the hearing from time to time to permit further observation, investigation, or consideration of any facts or circumstances affecting the granting of the petition, and may examine the petitioners separate and apart ...

...After an assessor files a home study report under section 3107.031, a social and medical history under section 3107.09, or a prefinalization assessment report under section 3107.12 of the Revised Code, or the department of children and youth or department of health files a social and medical history under section 3107.091 or 3107.393 of the Revised Code, a court may do either or both of the following if the court det...

...(A) A final decree of adoption and an interlocutory order of adoption that has become final as issued by a court of this state, or a decree issued by a jurisdiction outside this state as recognized pursuant to section 3107.18 of the Revised Code, shall have the following effects as to all matters within the jurisdiction or before a court of this state, whether issued before or after May 30, 1996: (1)(a) Except with...

...(A) Appeals from the probate court are subject to the Rules of Appellate Procedure and, to the extent not in conflict with those rules, Chapter 2505. of the Revised Code. Unless there is good cause for delay, appeals shall be heard on an expedited basis. (B) Except as provided in division (C) of this section and subject to the disposition of an appeal, upon the expiration of six months after an adoption decree is i...

...(A) As used in this section, "the least detrimental available alternative" means the alternative that would have the least long-term negative impact on the child. (B) When a court makes a determination in a contested adoption concerning the best interest of a child, the court shall consider all relevant factors including, but not limited to, all of the following: (1) The least detrimental available alternative fo...

...(A) All hearings held under sections 3107.01 to 3107.19 of the Revised Code shall be held in closed court without the admittance of any person other than essential officers of the court, the parties, the witnesses of the parties, counsel, persons who have not previously consented to an adoption but who are required to consent, representatives of the agencies present to perform their official duties, and any other per...

...(A) As used in this section, "adoption file" means a file maintained by the department of health under sections 3107.12 to 3107.124 of the Revised Code. (B) An adopted person may request that the department of health disclose to the adopted person which court entered the interlocutory order or final decree of adoption regarding the adopted person if the adopted person seeks to do either or both of the followi...

...(A) Except when giving effect to such a decree would violate the public policy of this state, a court decree terminating the relationship of parent and child, or establishing the relationship by adoption, issued pursuant to due process of law by a court of any jurisdiction outside this state, whether within or outside the United States, shall be recognized in this state, and the rights and obligations of the parties ...

...If the adopted person was born in this state or outside the United States, the court shall forward all of the following to the department of health within thirty days after an adoption decree becomes final: (A) A copy of the adopted person's certificate of adoption; (B) The form prescribed under division (A)(1) of section 3107.083 of the Revised Code, if a parent filled out and signed the form pursuant to sectio...

...Upon issuance of a final decree of adoption, the court shall notify the child support enforcement agency administering a child support order pertaining to the adopted child. On receipt of that notice, the child support enforcement agency shall, pursuant to section 3119.89 of the Revised Code, terminate any order of support that exists for the child.

...(A) As used in sections 3107.38 to 3107.394 of the Revised Code: (1) "Adopted person" means a person who was adopted but is not an adopted person as defined in section 3107.45 of the Revised Code. (2) "Adoption file" means a file maintained by the department of health under sections 3705.12 to 3705.124 of the Revised Code. (3) "Biological parent" means a parent, by birth, of a person who is, or is to become, a...

...If the file of releases contains one or more releases that pertain to an adopted person and the department of health has an adoption file for the adopted person, the department shall transfer all of the releases pertaining to the adopted person, including releases for which withdrawals of releases were filed, to the adopted person's adoption file. An adopted person or lineal descendant of an adopted person wh...

...(A) The department of children and youth shall prescribe a contact preference form for biological parents. The form shall include all of the following: (1) A component in which a biological parent is to indicate one of the following regarding a person who receives, under section 3107.38 of the Revised Code, a copy of the contents of the adoption file of the parent's offspring: (a) That the biological parent wel...

...(A) A biological parent who had a biological parent's name redaction request form accepted by the department of health between March 20, 2014, and March 20, 2015, may request at any time that the department remove the form from the adoption file of the adopted person to whom the form pertains if the biological parent decides to permit the biological parent's name to be included in a copy of the contents of the adopti...

...The department of health shall include on its web site information about biological parent's name redaction request forms. All of the following information shall be provided: (A) The purpose of the form; (B) The procedures to be followed and requirements to be met for the department to accept the form; (C) The date when biological parents may begin to file the form with the department; (D) The date when the ...

...The department of health shall attach a social and medical history form prescribed under section 3107.09 of the Revised Code to each contact preference form and biological parent's name redaction request form it makes available to a biological parent pursuant to section 3107.39 or 3107.391 of the Revised Code. A biological parent for whom such a form was not completed in accordance with section 3107.09 of the R...

...(A) The department of health shall establish a system by which an adopted person or lineal descendant of an adopted person may request that the department mail to the adopted person's biological parent a question that the adopted person or lineal descendant has about the biological parent's medical history if both of the following apply: (1) The adopted person or lineal descendant received a copy of the conte...

...As used in sections 3107.45 to 3107.53 of the Revised Code: (A) "Adopted person" means a person who, as a minor, was adopted and who, on or after September 18, 1996, became available or potentially available for adoption. For the purpose of this division, a person was available or potentially available for adoption on or after September 18, 1996, if, on or after that date, either of the following occurred: (...

...(A) A birth parent who did not check, pursuant to section 3107.081 or 5103.151 of the Revised Code, the "no" space provided on the component of the form prescribed pursuant to division (A)(1)(b) of section 3107.083 of the Revised Code may sign, date, and have filed with the department of health a denial of release form prescribed under section 3107.50 of the Revised Code. A birth parent who signs an authorization of ...

...(A) An adopted person age twenty-one or older, or an adoptive parent of an adopted person at least age eighteen but under age twenty-one, may submit a request to the department of health for a copy of the contents of the adopted person's adoption file. If the adopted person includes with the request the adopted person's notarized signature and copies of two items of identification, or the adoptive parent includes wit...

...(A) An adopted person age twenty-one or older may submit a request with the department of health for the department to assist the adopted person's birth parent or birth sibling in finding the adopted person's name by adoption pursuant to section 3107.49 of the Revised Code. The adopted person shall submit the request on a form prescribed by the department under section 3107.51 of the Revised Code. If the adopted pers...

...(A) A birth parent, or birth sibling age twenty-one or older, may submit a request to the department of health for assistance in finding an adopted person's name by adoption. The department shall examine the adopted person's adoption file to determine the adopted person's name by adoption and provide the birth parent or birth sibling with the adopted person's name by adoption if all of the following are the case: (1...

...(A) Not later than ninety days after the effective date of this section, the department of health shall prescribe the following forms: (1) A denial of release form to be used by a birth parent under division (A) of section 3107.46 of the Revised Code. The form shall explain that the birth parent may rescind the denial of release at any time by signing, dating, and having filed with the department of health an author...

...(A) Not later than ninety days after the effective date of this section, the department of health shall prescribe a form with which an adopted person may make a request under division (A) of section 3107.48 of the Revised Code. The form shall require all of the following information: (1) The residence address of the adopted person; (2) The adopted person's name and date of birth as it appears on the adopted person'...

...(A) The department of health's records pertaining to proceedings under sections 3107.45 to 3107.53 of the Revised Code are not public records subject to inspection or copying under section 149.43 of the Revised Code. (B) No person who is the subject of personal information contained in a record listed in division (A) of this section may inspect or copy all or part of any such record except pursuant to section 3107.4...

...Any payment of money by the person responsible for the support payments under a support order to the person entitled to receive the support payments that is not made to the office of child support, or to the child support enforcement agency administering the support order under sections 3125.27 to 3125.30 of the Revised Code, shall not be considered a payment of support under the support order and, unless the payment...

...Any person entitled to receive support payments either personally or on behalf of another person, by reason of any support order that does not direct that payments be made to the office of child support, may apply to the appropriate child support enforcement agency for the administration of the order. On receipt of the application, the agency has authority to administer the order. The agency shall notify the obligor ...

...The office of child support shall administer a fund for the deposit of support payments it receives as trustee for remittance to the persons entitled to receive the support payments. The fund shall be in the custody of the treasurer of state, but shall not be part of the state treasury.

...The office of child support shall retain, and use solely for support enforcement activities, all interest earned on moneys in any support payment account it maintains.

...On receipt of any amount forwarded from a payor or financial institution, the office of child support shall distribute the amount to the obligee within two business days of its receipt of the amount forwarded. Unless otherwise prohibited from doing so by a law of this state or the United States, the office may distribute the amount by means of electronic disbursement, and the obligee shall accept payment by means of ...

...A child support enforcement agency shall administer all support orders on a monthly basis.

...A court or child support enforcement agency that issues or modifies a support order with support payments to be made other than on a monthly basis shall calculate a monthly amount due under the order, for purposes of its monthly administration, in the following manner: (A) If the support order is to be paid weekly, multiply the weekly amount of support due under the order by fifty-two and divide the resulting annual...

...If the payments under a support order are to be made other than on a monthly basis, the required monthly administration of the order by a child support enforcement agency shall not affect the frequency or the amount of the support payments to be made under the order.

...With respect to support orders that require payment of support to commence on a day other than the first day of a month, the child support enforcement agency, for purposes of monthly administration, shall compute a pro rata amount due under the order for the first month of the period of payment, in the following manner: (A) Determine an annual amount under section 3121.52 of the Revised Code; (B) Divide the annual ...

...The office of child support shall collect the administrative charge imposed on the obligor under the support order pursuant to section 3119.27 of the Revised Code.

...The office of child support is not required to apply an administrative charge included with a payment for current support payment toward any arrearages under the support order.

...If an obligor fails to make the payment required by division (B) of section 3119.28 of the Revised Code, the office of child support shall maintain a separate arrearage account of that amount for the obligor. The office shall not deduct the unpaid amount from any support payment due the obligee under the support order.

...A fine imposed pursuant to division (B) of section 3121.99 of the Revised Code shall be paid to the office of child support in the department of job and family services or, pursuant to section 3125.29 of the Revised Code, to the child support enforcement agency. The amount of the fine that does not exceed the amount of arrearage under the child support order shall be disbursed in accordance with the child support ord...

...On receipt of administrative charges under section 3121.56 of the Revised Code, the office of child support shall determine the charge amounts collected from obligors under support orders being administered by the child support enforcement agency in each county and distribute monthly to each agency an amount equal to the charges attributable to the agency.

...No administrative charge amounts collected shall be used by the office of child support or a child support enforcement agency for any purpose other than the provision of funds for support enforcement activities.

...The office of child support may enter into contracts with public entities or private vendors for the collection of amounts due under support orders or for the performance of other administrative duties of the office. The office may contract with a public or private entity for the collection of arrearages owed under any child support order for which a court or a child support enforcement agency has found the obligor i...

...In order to comply with its collection and disbursement responsibilities, the office of child support may require the director of each child support enforcement agency to authorize the office to use that director's facsimile signature if the office determines the signature's use is necessary. An agency director shall not be subject to civil or criminal liability for any damage or injury to persons or property that re...

...The director of job and family services, pursuant to Chapter 119. of the Revised Code, shall adopt rules that do all of the following: (A) Govern collection and disbursement of child support amounts in compliance with Title IV-D of the "Social Security Act," 88 Stat. 2351 (1975), 42 U.S.C. 651 et seq., as amended, and any regulations adopted under the act; (B) Govern the method of sending administrative charge amou...

...The office of child support in the department of job and family services shall enter into account information access agreements with financial institutions doing business in this state and with financial institutions doing business in other states. The office may join an alliance of states for the purpose of participating in the financial data matching program, as defined in section 666(A)(17) of Title 42 of the Unit...

...A financial institution that responds to a request or provides information to the office of child support pursuant to an account information access agreement shall deduct a fee of five dollars for each withdrawal the financial institution makes from an obligor's account on receipt of a withdrawal directive under section 3123.37 of the Revised Code.

...Information obtained from a financial institution pursuant to an account information access agreement is not a public record for the purposes of section 149.43 of the Revised Code. No person or government entity that obtains information concerning an account holder from a financial institution pursuant to an agreement shall disclose the information for purposes other than the establishment, modification, or enforceme...

...Financial institutions or their officers, directors, and employees shall not be subject to criminal or civil liability for disclosing or releasing information concerning an account holder to the office of child support pursuant to an account information access agreement, or for any other action taken in good faith to comply with an account information access agreement, regardless of whether the action was specificall...

...The director of job and family services shall adopt rules pursuant to Chapter 119. of the Revised Code that govern the provisions of an agreement required pursuant to section 3121.74 of the Revised Code and the procedure for entering into an agreement.

...The office of child support in the department of job and family services shall establish and maintain a case registry of all support orders being administered or otherwise handled by a child support enforcement agency.

...The case registry shall include all of the following information: (A) The name, social security number, driver's license number, other identification number, residence telephone number, and date of birth of each obligor and obligee under a support order; (B) Payment information including the periodic support amount due, arrearages, penalties for late payment, fees, amounts collected, and amounts distributed under a...