COLUMBUS, Ohio – The Ohio Supreme Court today ruled that courts must explicitly determine a parent is voluntarily unemployed before calculating child support based on their potential future income. The decision came in a case involving a father who lost his job during the COVID-19 pandemic.
The Court found that the Wood County Domestic Relations Court erred by imputing potential income to David Ayers, the father, without explicitly stating he was voluntarily unemployed. This determination is crucial because it affects the amount of child support a parent is ordered to pay.
Justice Michael P. Donnelly, writing for the majority, emphasized that state law requires a clear court order establishing voluntary unemployment before potential income can be imputed for child support calculations.
The decision reverses a previous ruling by the Sixth District Court of Appeals, which had implied that the father was voluntarily unemployed based on the judge’s divorce decree.
Chief Justice Sharon L. Kennedy concurred with the judgment but added that an appellate court must be able to clearly determine from the lower court’s order that the parent’s unemployment was voluntary.
In a separate concurring opinion, Justice R. Patrick DeWine argued that while explicitly stating voluntary unemployment is a best practice, it is not strictly required by law.
The ruling has significant implications for child support calculations in Ohio, especially for parents who have experienced job loss.