National initiative comes to Ohio
The Right Services, Right Time initiative is designed to help family courts better manage rising caseloads, high rates of self-represented litigants and protracted legal battles that can be especially hard on children. Funded by the State Justice Institute, the project provides courts with practical, evidence-based tools that can be layered onto existing systems rather than requiring sweeping structural changes.
Over the next year, the 12 participating courts across nine states will receive support in implementing new case management practices, peer learning opportunities and data coaching from NCSC experts. The goal is to streamline how cases move from intake to resolution, reduce conflict, and improve outcomes for families caught in the court system.
Evidence-based tools and parenting course
Delaware and Medina counties will pilot a package of reforms that includes three core tools: a research-based parenting course, an online court services portal and data dashboards to track cases and identify emerging problems. These tools are intended to help judges and court staff intervene earlier, tailor services to family needs and spot high-conflict situations before they spiral.
A centerpiece of the effort is the Families in Transition (FIT) parenting course, a structured, on-demand program that teaches co-parents skills such as productive communication, emotional regulation and conflict resolution. Research cited by NCSC indicates that the FIT curriculum can significantly reduce conflict between parents, which in turn can ease stress on children and shorten the time it takes to resolve cases.
In Delaware County, the FIT program is already up and running, and the court expects to order participation in all domestic relations cases where parents disagree over parental rights and responsibilities. Medina County will likewise use the new tools to bolster its own efforts to manage family disputes more efficiently and keep the focus on children’s well-being.
Tackling pressure on family courts
Family courts nationwide are grappling with heavy dockets and a high percentage of parties who go to court without lawyers, commonly estimated at 80 to 90 percent in these cases. Those realities, combined with the intensely personal nature of disputes over custody, visitation and support, often lead to delays, strained court operations and prolonged stress for children.
Project leaders say the new tools are meant to give courts a practical way to triage cases, connect families to the right services at the right moment and use data to monitor what is working. Visual dashboards will allow staff to track timelines, flag cases that appear to be stuck and support requests for funding or additional resources with concrete information.
Local leaders hope to model change
Delaware County Domestic Relations Court, which already offers a range of dispute resolution options, views the initiative as a way to deepen its family-centered approach. Court officials say equipping parents with better communication and problem-solving tools can reduce repeat visits to court and support more stable arrangements after a separation.
NCSC intends to use lessons from Delaware, Medina and the other pilot courts to build a broader infrastructure for family court innovation, making it easier for additional jurisdictions to adopt similar practices in the future. If the effort succeeds, Ohio’s two pilot courts could become models for how local systems nationwide handle some of the most emotionally charged cases on their dockets.