Accounts Department
The Accounts Department
is responsible for auditing accounts and inventories for
estates, guardianships, and trusts. Ohio Estate Tax Returns
are also filed with the Accounts Department. All account
and inventory forms are available on the Court’s web
site, and Estate Tax forms are available through a link to
the Ohio Department of Taxation.
A unique feature of the Accounts Department
is the Guardian’s
Orientation program, which was among the first programs in
the State of Ohio established to assist newly appointed guardians
to better understand the guardianship process. This program
is offered quarterly and all guardians of a ward’s
estate are required to attend. Court personnel are on hand
to guide the new guardians through some common situations
and answer specific questions. The program has helped guardians
to work with their attorneys more effectively and has received
a positive response from both the public and the attorneys
who practice with the Court.
Judge Bill Spicer and the Court
staff are here to serve the citizens of Summit County.
Civil Department
We are located on the south
side of the Courthouse atrium, as are the Judge's Chambers,
the Court Administrator, the Bailiff, and the Judicial Attorney.
There are three Deputy Clerks available to assist in filing
any Civil pleading.
Civil pleadings include Appropriations, Civil Land Sales,
Concealments of Assets, Declaratory Judgments, Determinations
of Heirship, Disinterments, Presumptions of Death, Will Constructions,
and Will Contests, along with many other less common actions.
There are no forms available for any civil action other than
Disinterments and Land Sales.
Disinterments are civil actions where a decedent's
body is moved from one location and reinterred at another
location. Forms (Civil Form 3, 3.a,
and 3.b) are available
online or at the Court. Judge Spicer recognizes the traumatic
and emotional feelings a disinterment might cause for the
applicant, and has made the process as expeditious and efficient
as possible, provided the statutory requirements are met.
Land Sales are ancillary to estate or guardianship proceedings,
but are separate civil cases. Forms (Civil
Forms 10 through 30) are also available online and at the Court.
General Office Department
Our Saturday hours have proven to be very successful over
the past year. Many couples are utilizing Saturdays to obtain
their marriage license in order to avoid work conflicts during
the work week. In addition, both attorneys and the general
public have utilized the Saturday hours for filings and obtaining
information about the Court. We are continuing to streamline the marriage license process.
Currently applicants may complete an application online and
bring the completed application to the Court for processing.
We are now working on making available the ability to complete
the application online and then electronically transmit the
application to the Court where it will be held until the
applicants arrive in person to complete the application process.
Our target date for implementation is early 2009.
Recently we updated our web site to include form packets for guardianships. While all of our forms are available on
the web, there were always questions as to which forms were
necessary to begin the process. The packets now available
include all guardianship forms necessary to begin the application
process. We are working on creating form packets for Full
Administration estate and Release of Administrations.
Available online are pamphlets which contain information
about the Court and the probate process. These pamphlets
are available in paper form should you wish to obtain copies
for your individual needs or organizations.
Human Services Department
The Human Services Department of the Summit County Probate
Court consists of four Court Investigators, the Adoption
Clerk, the Mental Illness Clerk, a secretary, and two Magistrates.
The role of the Court Investigator developed
after revisions to the Ohio Revised Code in 1990, concerning
the rights
of Wards in guardianship cases. Court Investigators are
required to give notice to a proposed ward that a guardianship
case
has been filed, who asks to be appointed guardian, and
what authority the guardian is requesting. The Court investigators
are "the eyes and ears of the Court" and also
report to the Judge on the mental, physical and lifestyle
needs of the ward, and whether a guardian appears to
be necessary. If there are less restrictive alternatives
to
appointing a guardian, such as using a power of attorney,
the Court Investigators will
recomend to the Court that a guardian may not be required.
In the
month of September, 16 families finalized adoptions,
bringing the 2008 statistics thus far
to 130 families adopting a total of 158 children.
Adoption cases include families who adopt children from a
foreign country, from Children's
Services Board or a private agency, and step-parents
who adopt the child of their spouse.
Magistrates
The Court has four full time Magistrates
and one part-time Magistrate. Judge Bill Spicer appoints
magistrates. They hear all cases pertaining to Estates, Guardianships,
Trusts, Adoptions, Civil Commitments and Name Changes. They
may also hear other cases as specifically referred by the
Judge. Magistrates are assigned cases and hear all matters
pertaining to the case until its conclusion. Should an individual
object to a Magistrates Decision, that decision may be appealed
to Judge Bill Spicer.
Records Department
The Court is happy to provide assistance
in obtaining information within any of our case records that
date back as far as 1840.
Much of our older records are held on microfilm or microfiche
and are available for viewing during any of our normal business
hours, including Saturday mornings. Our current case records
are held in hard-copy paper originals and also in electronic
format.
The Records Room is proud of its new electronic
imaging process implemented in June, 2007. All daily filings
within
the Court's public cases are now being electronically imaged.
These images are available through our public computer terminals
within our department.
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