Ohio Eviction Law 2025: Minors Can't Be Named as Defendants When a Parent or Guardian Is Also Named

The prohibition applies when a minor is listed as a defendant on the same complaint where a parent or adult guardian is also listed as a defendant.

[Cite: Ohio Revised Code 1923.05(B)]

That's a narrower rule than a blanket ban on ever referencing a minor in eviction paperwork; it specifically targets the practice of naming the child as a separate defendant alongside the parent who's already named.

The legislative history behind this provision describes the prior practice of naming children directly in eviction filings as creating a record that could follow that child for years, even though the parent or guardian named on the same complaint was the party actually responsible for the tenancy.

[Cite: Ohio Revised Code 1923.05(B)]

A landlord's standard eviction-filing practice that automatically lists every household occupant, including minor children, as a defendant needs to be revised to exclude minors from that defendant list when a parent or guardian is already named.

A court must dismiss, without prejudice, any eviction action filed in violation of this provision.

[Cite: Ohio Revised Code 1923.05(C)]

Dismissal without prejudice means the underlying eviction case against the actual responsible parties isn't permanently barred; a landlord can refile a corrected complaint that doesn't improperly name the minor, but the original improperly filed version doesn't proceed as filed.

Beyond dismissal, the filing party has to pay the minor tenant's reasonable attorney fees.

[Cite: Ohio Revised Code 1923.05(C)]

That fee-shifting provision means a landlord's filing error here isn't just a procedural delay; it creates an actual financial cost, which gives this rule meaningful teeth beyond the dismissal itself.

This provision is part of Ohio Revised Code Chapter 1923, which governs forcible entry and detainer actions, the formal legal process for evictions in Ohio.

[Cite: Ohio Revised Code Chapter 1923]

A landlord's eviction complaint already has to meet other procedural requirements under this chapter, such as describing the premises and the nature of the unlawful detention; the minor-defendant restriction is an additional requirement layered onto that existing filing framework, not a standalone process.

Senate Bill 237's primary focus was the Uniform Public Expression Protection Act, addressing lawsuits related to protected speech, along with clarifying small claims court jurisdiction; the minor-defendant eviction provision was an added amendment within that broader bill.

[Cite: Senate Bill 237, 135th General Assembly]

A landlord searching for Ohio eviction-law updates by bill subject matter alone might miss this provision, since it's housed within legislation whose primary subject matter is unrelated to landlord-tenant law.

Since this rule specifically depends on whether a minor is listed as a co-defendant alongside their parent or guardian, a landlord preparing an eviction filing needs to review the actual tenancy's household composition before drafting the complaint's defendant list.

[Cite: Ohio Revised Code 1923.05(B)]

A landlord who doesn't track which occupants are minors, and simply names every adult-sounding or lease-referenced name as a defendant, risks improperly including a minor without realizing it, particularly in households where an older teenager might not be obviously a minor from a cursory record.

Since dismissal here is without prejudice, a landlord whose complaint gets dismissed under this provision can correct the defendant list and refile against the actual legally responsible parties.

[Cite: Ohio Revised Code 1923.05(C)]

That means this provision functions as a procedural correction mechanism rather than a permanent bar to eviction; a landlord facing dismissal under this rule should treat it as a filing-correction step, not a reason the underlying eviction can't proceed at all.

This rule restricts who can be named as a defendant on the complaint; it doesn't change which adult parties, such as the lease-signing parent or guardian, remain legally responsible for the tenancy and subject to the eviction action itself.

[Cite: Ohio Revised Code 1923.05(B)]

A landlord pursuing an eviction against a household that includes minor children still proceeds against the responsible adult parent or guardian; removing the minor from the defendant list doesn't weaken the underlying case against the actual tenant.

A landlord or property management company using standardized eviction-filing software or templates should confirm that process doesn't automatically populate every household occupant, including minors, as a defendant.

[Cite: Ohio Revised Code 1923.05(B)]

A system that pulls occupant names from a lease or application file without distinguishing minors from adult co-tenants could generate a complaint that violates this rule without anyone at the filing stage specifically intending to name a child as a defendant.

The practical starting point is reviewing eviction-filing procedures and any software or template used to generate complaints, specifically checking whether minor household occupants could end up listed as defendants alongside a parent or guardian.

For any pending eviction filing involving a household with minor children, confirming the defendant list only includes legally responsible adults before filing avoids the dismissal-and-attorney-fees consequence this provision attaches to a violation.