Under Ohio law, you generally have 28 days to respond to a divorce petition. Your spouse is obligated to serve you the paperwork if they are the one filing for divorce, but they then have to give you an appropriate amount of time to consider this paperwork and submit your response before the case can continue.
In some cases, both people have talked about the divorce in advance, and they are on the same page. You may respond almost immediately, just wanting to move forward. But there are other cases where the divorce comes as a surprise or where you simply want to take more time to consult your attorney, gather documentation and look into all of your legal options. The law gives you time to do so.
What if someone does not respond?
In a case where the spouse who is served does not respond, the divorce can still happen. The waiting period does still apply, so this can delay the overall divorce process. But it does not prevent it.
Once the deadline has been exceeded, then the court still has the ability to process the divorce with the spouse who filed. They will be able to propose their own terms when it comes to things like child custody division or marital asset division. The court can still issue the divorce decree and end the marriage, even if the other person never responds at all.
Navigating an Ohio divorce
Service and response are just two of the first steps to take when getting a divorce in Ohio. No matter which side of the equation you are on, be sure you know exactly what legal steps to take.