Ohio Courts of Common Pleas
The Ohio Courts of Common Pleas are trial courts in Ohio. There is a Court of Common Pleas in each of the state's 88 counties, as prescribed by Article 4, Section 4 of the Ohio Constitution.[1]
Jurisdiction
Per the Ohio Constitution: "The courts of common pleas and divisions thereof shall have such original jurisdiction over all justiciable matters and such powers of review of proceedings of administrative officers and agencies as may be provided by law."[1]
Divisions
Depending on the population of the county served, up to four divisions can exist within each county's Court of Common Pleas:
- General Division
- Domestic Relations Division
- Juvenile Division
- Probate Division
Counties
Judges
Common Pleas Courts may have more than one judge depending on the caseload of the county and district. Judges of these courts are paid an aggregate of $121,350 annually (2009 figure).[2] Statistics released in May 2011 by the Ohio Supreme Court show that case volume for all courts has dropped 16% since 2002. The Common Pleas Court has seen a drop of 4% since last year and 9.5% drop since 2006. Mark R. Weaver, a former Attorney General and local lawyer, attributes the drop in cases to the economic downturn and tort reforms that restrict the ability of citizens to file certain types of lawsuits. Finally, divorces dropped again this year continuing a ten year trend, also noteworthy as most did not involve children which has been a growing trend since 2005.[3]
External links
Footnotes
