Ohio Code 3115.307 – Duties of support enforcement agency
(A) A support enforcement agency of this state, upon request, shall provide services to a petitioner in a proceeding under this chapter.
Terms Used In Ohio Code 3115.307
- Another: when used to designate the owner of property which is the subject of an offense, includes not only natural persons but also every other owner of property. See Ohio Code 1.02
- Child-support order: means a support order for a child, including a child who has attained the age of majority under the law of the issuing state or foreign country. See Ohio Code 3115.102
- Fiduciary: A trustee, executor, or administrator.
- Foreign country: means a country, including a political subdivision of the country, other than the United States, that authorizes the issuance of support orders to which at least one of the following applies:
(1) It has been declared under the law of the United States to be a foreign reciprocating country;
(2) It has established a reciprocal arrangement for child support with this state as provided in section 3115. See Ohio Code 3115.102
- Income: includes earnings or other periodic entitlements to money from any source and any other property subject to withholding for support under the law of this state. See Ohio Code 3115.102
- Income-withholding order: means an order or other legal process directed to an obligor's employer or other payor, in accordance with Chapter 3121 of the Revised Code, to withhold support from the income of the obligor. See Ohio Code 3115.102
- Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.
- Property: means real and personal property. See Ohio Code 1.59
- Record: means information that is inscribed on a tangible medium or that is stored in an electronic or other medium and is retrievable in perceivable form. See Ohio Code 3115.102
- Registering tribunal: means a tribunal in which a support order or judgment determining parentage of a child is registered. See Ohio Code 3115.102
- State: means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands, or any territory or insular possession under the jurisdiction of the United States. See Ohio Code 3115.102
- Support enforcement agency: means a public official, governmental entity, or private agency authorized to do any of the following:
(1) Seek enforcement of support orders or laws relating to the duty of support;
(2) Seek establishment or modification of child support;
(3) Request determination of parentage of a child;
(4) Attempt to locate obligors or their assets; or
(5) Request determination of the controlling child-support order. See Ohio Code 3115.102
- Support order: means a judgment, decree, order, decision, or directive, whether temporary, final, or subject to modification, issued in a state or foreign country for the benefit of a child, a spouse, or a former spouse, which provides for monetary support, health care, arrearages, retroactive support, or reimbursement for financial assistance provided to an individual obligee in place of child support. See Ohio Code 3115.102
- Tribunal: means a court, administrative agency, or quasi-judicial entity authorized to establish, enforce, or modify support orders or to determine parentage of a child. See Ohio Code 3115.102
(B) A support enforcement agency of this state that is providing services to the petitioner shall do all of the following:
(1) Take all steps necessary to enable an appropriate tribunal of this state, another state, or a foreign country to obtain jurisdiction over the respondent;
(2) Request an appropriate tribunal to set a date, time, and place for a hearing;
(3) Make a reasonable effort to obtain all relevant information, including information as to income and property of the parties;
(4) Within two days, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, after receipt of notice in a record from an initiating, responding, or registering tribunal, send a copy of the notice to the petitioner;
(5) Within two days, exclusive of Saturdays, Sundays, and legal holidays, after receipt of communication in a record from the respondent or the respondent’s attorney, send a copy of the communication to the petitioner;
(6) Notify the petitioner if jurisdiction over the respondent cannot be obtained.
(C) A support enforcement agency of this state that requests registration of a child-support order in this state for enforcement or for modification shall make reasonable efforts to do whichever of the following is relevant:
(1) Ensure that the order to be registered is the controlling order;
(2) If two or more child-support orders exist and the identity of the controlling order has not been determined, ensure that a request for such a determination is made in a tribunal having jurisdiction to do so.
(D) A support enforcement agency of this state that requests registration and enforcement of a support order, arrears, or judgment stated in a foreign currency shall convert the amounts stated in the foreign currency into the equivalent amounts in dollars under the applicable official or market exchange rate as publicly reported.
(E) A support enforcement agency of this state shall issue or request a tribunal of this state to issue a child-support order and an income-withholding order that redirect payment of current support, arrears, and interest if requested to do so by a support enforcement agency of another state pursuant to section 3115.319 of the Revised Code.
(F) This chapter does not create or negate a relationship of attorney and client or other fiduciary relationship between a support enforcement agency or the attorney for the agency and the individual being assisted by the agency.