Custody in Fayette County

Reviewed by Stephanie Green · Managing Partner & Co-Founder · Last updated June 11, 2026

Fayette County, Ohio · Washington Court House

Custody in Ohio means allocating parental rights and responsibilities — who the child lives with and who makes major decisions. Where you file depends on the parents: married parents handle custody in the General & Domestic Relations Division; never-married parents handle it in the Probate-Juvenile Court.

Hire Gavvl for your Fayette County custody case

Flat-fee and full-representation options: we handle the filings, the Fayette County local forms, the court strategy, and the hearings — and you know the price before we start.

Start with a $25 consultation and talk through your options with an Ohio family-law attorney before you commit to anything. Get started online or see payment plans & financing.

How does custody work in Fayette County, Ohio?

Ohio uses sole custody (one residential parent and legal custodian, with parenting time for the other) or shared parenting (both parents are legal custodian and residential parent under an approved plan). Married parents resolve custody in the General & Domestic Relations Division — a new married-parent custody complaint is a $250 deposit, and the Married but Separated Custody Packet is available. Never-married parents file in the Probate-Juvenile Court (a $100 deposit). The court decides based on the child's best interest (R.C. 3109.04), using Fayette County's Standard Parenting Order when the parties don't agree.

Hire Gavvl Law for your Fayette County custody case

Custody in Fayette County splits by whether the parents were married: married parents resolve it in the General & Domestic Relations Division on a $250 new-custody deposit, while never-married parents file in the separate Probate-Juvenile Court under Judge Mary E. King on a $100 deposit. Each court has its own forms, packets, and mediation rules. Gavvl Law files in the right court the first time, builds a parenting plan aimed at the child's best interest under R.C. 3109.04, and offers a flat fee up front or full representation for contested cases.

Filed in the correct court, with the right packet. Married parents use the Complaint for Custody Checklist or the Married but Separated Custody Packet in Domestic Relations; never-married parents use the Probate-Juvenile Court's juvenile forms. We match the packet and the parenting affidavit to your court so the case is not routed back for filing in the wrong division.
Juvenile mediation and the Standard Parenting Order. The Probate-Juvenile Court runs a mediation program under Local Rule 18 that can be mandatory when the judge refers a case, and Fayette applies its Standard Parenting Order — or a Long-Distance order — when parents don't agree. We prepare you for mediation and propose a schedule the court will accept rather than defaulting into the standard grid.
Flat fee up front, GAL cost you can plan for. You approve a single flat fee before we begin, payment plans are available, and contested custody fights get full representation. If a guardian ad litem is appointed, Domestic Relations caps the cost at $100 an hour up to $1,500 per case under Local Rule 11.13, so we can budget the case honestly from the start.

Knowing that married and never-married custody live in two different Fayette courts — the 3rd-floor Domestic Relations Division and the 2nd-floor Probate-Juvenile Court at (740) 335-0640 — is exactly what keeps a case from being filed in the wrong place and losing weeks. We handle both, so whichever court fits your family, the paperwork, deposit, and hearing prep line up with that division's rules.

Flat-fee options

Flat-fee limited scope: we draft and file the custody complaint or motion; you appear at any hearing.

Establish custody: $1,250
Modify custody: $1,450

Prefer full representation? An Ohio attorney can carry the entire case on a $3,500 retainer.

Split any flat fee with Gavvl Direct — our in-house plan at 19% APR, $500 minimum — on a 60%-down schedule of 18 weekly, 8 bi-weekly, or 4 monthly payments, or full financing where work begins once 60% is paid. Affirm, Klarna, and PayPal Pay Later are also available through LawPay.

Start your custody case or see payment plans & financing.

Ohio Custody by the Numbers

Best interest The single standard that governs every Ohio custody decision Source: Ohio Revised Code § 3109.04
No set age There is no age a child can choose a parent — the judge weighs a mature child's wishes Source: Ohio Revised Code § 3109.04(B)
Change in circumstances Required, plus a best-interest finding, before the residential parent can be changed Source: Ohio Revised Code § 3109.04(E)(1)
Shared parenting Either parent may ask the court for a joint parenting plan Source: Ohio Revised Code § 3109.04(G)

Compare Types of Custody in Ohio

Custody type	Who makes major decisions	Where the child lives	Best when
Shared parenting	Both parents jointly, under a written plan	Time is split per the plan (not always 50/50)	Parents can communicate and cooperate on decisions
Sole legal & residential	One parent	Primarily with that parent	One parent is unable or unwilling to co-parent
Split custody	Each parent for the child in their care	Siblings are divided between the two homes	Rare — only when it serves each child's best interest
Legal custody to a non-parent	The relative or caregiver granted custody	With the non-parent caregiver	Neither parent can safely care for the child

Where to File: Fayette County Court of Common Pleas — General & Domestic Relations Division

110 East Court Street, 3rd Floor, Washington Court House, OH 43160
Phone: (740) 335-4750
Hours: Monday–Friday
Website: Court website
e-Filing: Online e-filing portal

Juvenile Branch (Never-Married Parents)

Fayette County Probate-Juvenile Court
110 East Court Street, 2nd Floor, Washington Court House, OH 43160
Phone: (740) 335-0640
Hours: Monday–Friday

Custody is the right path if…

You need a first custody and parenting-time order.
You and the other parent can't agree on a residential schedule or decision-making.
You were never married to the other parent and need a Probate-Juvenile order.
You want a court-ordered plan that fits your child's best interest.

Filing Fees

Domestic Relations: new married-parent custody complaint $250; post-decree motion $200. Probate-Juvenile Court: $100 deposit · the Juvenile Division offers mediation (Local Rule 18) · confirm current amounts with the court

Forms & Filing Packets

Custody for married/separated parents (Domestic Relations) — $250 new married-parent custody deposit (Domestic Relations)

File a complaint for custody (deposit $250) following the Complaint for Custody Checklist, or use the Married but Separated Custody Packet, with the parenting affidavit and the Ohio child-support worksheet.

Complaint for Custody Checklist (Fayette County) — Fayette County checklist for a complaint for custody, used in married-parent custody matters in the Domestic Relations Division (new custody deposit $250).
Married but Separated Custody Packet (Fayette County) — Fayette County packet for married-but-separated parents seeking a custody/parenting order in the Domestic Relations Division without filing for divorce.
Parenting Proceeding / UCCJEA Affidavit (Ohio SC Affidavit 3) — Required in any case with minor children. Lists where each child has lived for the last 5 years, confirming Ohio's UCCJEA jurisdiction.
Ohio Child Support Computation Worksheet (2024 Income Shares) — Run the official Ohio Child Support Calculator, print, and sign. Required any time the court sets or changes support.

Custody for never-married parents (Probate-Juvenile Court) — $100 deposit (Probate-Juvenile Court)

File the juvenile custody complaint in the Probate-Juvenile Court with a parenting affidavit and the support worksheet; a new matter is a $100 deposit.

Probate-Juvenile Court Page (Fayette County) — The combined Probate-Juvenile Court page (Judge Mary E. King, 2nd Floor, (740) 335-0640), where unmarried-parent custody, support, visitation, and parentage are filed; all new juvenile family matters are a $100 deposit.
Complaint for Allocation of Parental Rights & Responsibilities (Ohio SC Form 23) — Asks the Juvenile Branch to name a residential parent and legal custodian and set a parenting-time schedule when the parents were never married.
Parenting Proceeding Affidavit (UCCJEA · R.C. 3127.23) — Lists where each child has lived for the last 5 years and with whom, confirming Ohio's jurisdiction over custody under the UCCJEA. Required in any case involving minor children.
Ohio Child Support Computation Worksheet (2024 Income Shares) — Run the official Ohio Child Support Calculator, print, and sign. Required any time you ask the court to set or change support.

How to File Custody in Fayette County

Pick the right court. File custody in the General & Domestic Relations Division if you were married, or in the Probate-Juvenile Court if you were never married.
Prepare the packet. Complete a parenting affidavit and a proposed parenting plan (sole or shared), and the Ohio child-support worksheet; married/separated parents can use the Married but Separated Custody Packet.
File and serve. File with the right court, pay the applicable deposit (or request a waiver), and serve the other parent.
Best-interest decision. The court decides custody based on the child's best interest (R.C. 3109.04), using the Standard Parenting Order if you don't agree.

Fayette County Practice Notes

Never-married parents file in the Probate-Juvenile Court. If the parents were never married, custody, parenting time, support, and parentage are decided by the separate combined Probate-Juvenile Court under Judge Mary E. King, 110 East Court Street, 2nd Floor, (740) 335-0640 — not the Domestic Relations Division. The Juvenile deposit for a new custody, support, visitation, or paternity matter is $100, not the Domestic Relations fee schedule.
Divorce is heard by the General & Domestic Relations Division. Divorce, dissolution, legal separation, and annulment are heard by the General & Domestic Relations Division of the Fayette County Court of Common Pleas under Judge David B. Bender, 110 East Court Street, 3rd Floor, Washington Court House. The Division shares the General Division's judge, clerk, local rules, and fee schedule. File through the Clerk of Courts, (740) 335-6371; the Division can be reached at (740) 335-4750, option #6.
Court mediation runs through the Juvenile Division. The Probate-Juvenile Court runs a court mediation program (Local Rule 18) for visitation, agreed custody, and related issues, funded by the dispute-resolution fee in the filing deposit, and it is mandatory when the judge refers a case. The Domestic Relations / General Division does not offer mediation through the court — divorcing parents who want mediation arrange it privately.
Guardian ad Litem cost. In Domestic Relations cases, a GAL is $100/hour up to $1,500 per case unless the court approves more (Local Rule 11.13). In Juvenile private cases, the requesting party pays, with a $500 county cap before extraordinary fees require a motion.

Frequently Asked Questions

Does Ohio use 'joint custody' or 'primary custody' in Fayette County?: No. Ohio uses sole custody (one parent is residential parent and legal custodian) or shared parenting (both parents are legal custodian and residential parent under an approved plan). Fayette County's courts use the Standard Parenting Order or, for distant parents, the Long-Distance order.
Who hears custody if the parents were never married in Fayette County?: The Juvenile Division of the Fayette County Probate-Juvenile Court (Judge Mary E. King), at 110 East Court Street, 2nd Floor, (740) 335-0640 — not the Domestic Relations Division. The Juvenile Division handles unmarried-parent custody, support, visitation, parentage, and non-parent custody. New juvenile family matters are a $100 deposit.
How much does it cost to start a custody or paternity case in Fayette County?: In the Probate-Juvenile Court, all new custody, child-support, visitation, and paternity matters are a $100 deposit. A fee waiver is available with an Affidavit of Poverty. Confirm current amounts with the Probate-Juvenile Court at (740) 335-0640.
Which court handles family-law cases in Fayette County?: Divorce, dissolution, legal separation, and annulment are heard by the General & Domestic Relations Division of the Court of Common Pleas under Judge David B. Bender (110 East Court Street, 3rd Floor, Washington Court House). If the parents were never married, custody, support, visitation, and parentage are decided by the separate combined Probate-Juvenile Court under Judge Mary E. King (2nd Floor, (740) 335-0640). Domestic Relations cases are filed through the Clerk of Courts, (740) 335-6371.

Free Local Resources in Fayette County

Fayette County Clerk of Courts (Domestic Relations). Current filing fees, deposit amounts, and case filing for divorce ($400), dissolution ($350), legal separation, annulment, and post-decree motions ($200). Clerk of Courts, 3rd Floor, 110 East Court Street, Washington Court House; (740) 335-6371; https://courts.fayette-co-oh.com/. Attorneys must e-file via Henschen (https://www.fayette-co-oh.com/341/eFiling-Henschen); pro se filers are exempt.
Fayette County Probate-Juvenile Court. Judge Mary E. King, 2nd Floor, (740) 335-0640. Handles never-married-parent custody, parenting time, support, and parentage, plus non-parent custody, and runs a mediation program (Local Rule 18). All new juvenile family matters are a $100 deposit. There is no e-filing. Self-help: https://www.fayette-co-oh.com/269/Juvenile-Court.
Fayette County Child Support Enforcement Agency (CSEA). Arranges genetic testing, opens IV-D cases, sets support under Ohio's guidelines, collects by income withholding, and reviews existing orders. Contact (740) 335-0745.
Prosecutor's Victim Witness Division. Fayette County directs people seeking a civil protection order to the Prosecutor's Victim Witness Division for help determining eligibility and preparing the petition. There is no filing fee for the person seeking protection.
Triple P (Positive Parenting Program) Online. Fayette County promotes Triple P Online as a free parent/caregiver resource: https://octf.ohio.gov/what-we-do/statewide-initiatives/triple-p-online. A parenting class is not a standard DR requirement, but the court may order one case by case.
Ohio Child Support Calculator. Run the official Ohio 2024 Income Shares child-support worksheet at https://ohiochildsupportcalculator.ohio.gov/ before any case that sets or changes support.

Related to your custody case

Paternity & Custody — Establish parentage and build a parenting plan that protects your children.
Child Support — Calculate, establish, or modify support under Ohio's guidelines.
Post-Decree Modification — Update custody, support, or parenting orders after your case ends.

Related guides

In-depth, attorney-written guides on custody and related Ohio family law topics.

Ohio Child Custody Laws: What Every Parent Should Know — Ohio custody law turns on one principle: the best interest of the child. This guide explains sole custody, shared parenting, the statutory factors, and how courts decide.
Shared Parenting in Ohio: How Joint Custody Really Works — Shared parenting is Ohio's version of joint custody — both parents stay legal custodians and share major decisions. Here's what a plan must cover and how courts decide.
Fathers' Rights in Ohio: Custody, Paternity, and Parenting Time — Ohio law does not favor mothers over fathers — but unmarried fathers must establish paternity before they have any rights. Here's how fathers protect their relationship with their children.
Emergency Custody in Ohio: When and How to Get an Ex Parte Order — When a child faces immediate danger, Ohio courts can grant emergency custody on short notice through an ex parte order. Here's what qualifies and what happens next.