The civic record
Read. Follow. Verify.Ohio Bill Enacts Mandatory Custody Mediation and Orientation for Disputing Parents
Last action · May 20, 2026: Referred to JudiciarySponsors: Darnell Brewer and 2 others
Track this bill to get notified when it advances a stage. One tap to stop, anytime.
What This Bill Would Do
Ohio House Bill 895 requires courts to order parents in child custody or divorce disputes to participate in mediation and complete an orientation session, replacing discretionary rules with mandatory requirements. The legislation establishes mediator training standards, fee waiver options for indigent parties, and procedures for unmarried parents.
Parents undergoing divorce, legal separation, or custody disputes in Ohio will be required to attend mediation and educational orientation sessions unless specifically exempted by the court, potentially impacting court timelines, legal costs, and the resolution process for child custody arrangements.
- Ohio Revised Code sections 3109.052 and 3109.055 govern court-ordered mediation and conciliation procedures in domestic relations and parental rights cases. context
Who It Would Affect
Groups the bill's text would affect if enacted, as described in the record. Being affected is not a position for or against it.
Parents in Ohio custody proceedings
Parents involved in divorce, dissolution, legal separation, annulment, or parental rights proceedings are mandated to attend mediation and orientation sessions and may be ordered to pay mediation costs.
Ohio courts and magistrates
Judges and magistrates are required to order mediation or conciliation in applicable custody disputes, evaluate appropriateness based on domestic violence history, and consider mediation reports.
Key Facts
You don't have to trust us. Each fact below is taken straight from the official document - click any one to see the exact passage, highlighted in the original.
Frequently Asked Questions
Are parents required to pay for the court-ordered mediation?
What topics must be covered in the court-approved orientation session?
Can mediation be ordered if there is a history of domestic violence?
What else do you want to know?
News Coverage
Follow the record
Votes, people, money & the original sourceWhere This Stands
Currently in committee. The next step in the legislative lifecycle is Floor Vote.
Procedural history
2 actions- May 20, 2026HouseCommitteeReferred to Judiciary
- May 12, 2026HouseIntroducedIntroduced
Version history
Only one version on file - nothing to compare yet. As later stages (committee substitute, engrossed, enrolled) are captured, the redline appears here.
View official text →Lobbying Activity
No state lobbying filings in our records match this bill. Federal lobbying reports (LDA) cover Congress, so they are not listed on state bills.
Full breakdown
Who this bill affects and the strongest case for and against it, written only from the bill’s own text.
Sponsors
Discoveries
Patterns POLISCOPE noticed across the record. These are observations to investigate, not conclusions.
Transition from Discretionary to Mandatory Mediation
The bill shifts court authority from permitting mediation at its discretion to mandating mediation and orientation sessions in custody and divorce proceedings.
Sources
www.legislature.ohio.gov
Analysis Score
0–100- Significance75How much this matters to a regular citizen
- Controversy40Intensity of disagreement among stakeholders
- Entertainment5Compellingness for a non-policy-wonk reader
- Buzz25Current news / social attention level
Publisher tools