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In changing battles of the sexes, family court required to be equal, retiring judge says
By Ed Runyan
WARREN
Judge Pamela Rintala knows a bit about changes in gender roles in our society – those that helped her become the first female Trumbull County judge in 1994 and changes in the way the law treats the sexes.
As judge of Trumbull County Family Court the past 24 years, she has presided over divorce cases, juvenile criminal cases as well as child-custody cases and protection orders.
And just as there was an adjustment period when she took over as the first female county judge, it’s taken some time for men and women to adjust to changes in the way the law views equitable distribution of assets among a man and woman going through divorce.
The judge is retiring at the end of this year.
Judge Rintala says she believes she had earned the respect of other attorneys through her 13 years in the field when she was elected, but some things still needed time to develop, such as acceptable ways for male attorneys to talk to her.
She says she thinks she was accepted as “one of the guys” as a lawyer, but that comfort level caused some male attorneys to make sexually oriented remarks to her in the early days she probably would not find acceptable today.
She also believes her time on the bench has changed some people’s minds about how well a woman would do as a domestic-court judge.
As for how Ohio law has changed regarding the sexes, she says one big issue is how pensions are viewed.
Before the 1990s, a person – more often the man – kept his or her pension in a divorce case. But that changed in the 1990s and was divided as a marital asset.
“I don’t know if any time in the 1980s a judge gave a man spousal support, but now it happens,” she said.
For example, if the man retired young, and the wife has a good job and continues to work, she can be ordered to pay support to her ex-husband, the judge says.
“They can’t believe they are going to have to pay spousal support,” she said of women in such a circumstance.
For example, a man’s pension might be $50,000 a year. His wife also might be making $50,000 a year. She gets half his pension, so his income after the divorce might be $25,000 and hers might be $75,000. Then she has to pay him support.
“It’s the women who get more upset over dividing up the financial assets that they’ve worked hard to get. The men are used to it,” the judge said. “They’ve had that happen from the beginning of divorce court. It’s only recently that women have started making more money and having more assets.”
Judge Rintala says Trumbull County Family Court may take a bit longer than other courts to finalize divorce cases, but she’s been told that’s good because of the emotions generated by split-ups.
“Not only just the money, but one of them leaves the other one for another woman, another man, and so there’s that hurt. And what do you mean, she left me for another guy, but she still gets half my pension? How’s that fair? And it doesn’t seem fair, but it’s the law,” she said.
She said giving people a few more months to calm down can help. “They come in closer to the end of the [divorce] trial saying, “Yeah, I get it now. I’m not so mad.”
Judge Rintala said she’s seen quite a few divorce cases involving a spouse who met someone on the internet and no longer wanted to be married.
The jilted spouse is probably going to be angry about the break-up and maybe paying half of his or her pension in the divorce. And if the new relationship doesn’t work out, the spouse who met someone new might be entitled to spousal support, she notes.
The judge, of Howland, a Warren Western Reserve High School graduate, earned her bachelor’s degree from Kent State University in social work and became a detention counselor at the Trumbull County Juvenile Justice Center in the same Main Avenue building as family court. She later became a juvenile probation officer.
Judge Rintala plans to serve as visiting judge after her retirement.
Sam Bluedorn defeated Sarah Kavoor in November’s general election to replace Judge Rintala. The other family court judge is Sandra Stabile Harwood.