OHIO Part 39

Personal Jurisdiction and Alimony

In order for a court to have authority to order alimony or spousal support, the court must have in personam jurisdiction over the defendant-spouse, just as with all other civil lawsuits.

In order to establish personal jurisdiction, the defendant must have sufficient "minimum contacts" with the state where the divorce action was filed. The idea here is fairness: a defendant-spouse shouldn't have to go through the inconvenience and expense of having to defend an alimony action in a state where he or she has no contacts or ties and does not enjoy any of the benefits or protections of the laws and the courts of that state.