Aman Pande MD, MS
3251 Royal Oak Ct
Westlake, OH 44145
To the Members of the Ohio Senate Judiciary Committee,
Re: Opposition to Senate Bill 174
I urge you to oppose Senate Bill 174.
I would like to share my experience with the Cuyahoga County Domestic Relations Court to
illustrate how the current family court system already fails many fit and loving parents—
particularly fathers—and how SB174 would make this worse.
In 2013, I filed for divorce after moving to Ohio two years earlier to begin work as a physician at
the Cleveland Clinic. My ex-wife was also a physician, and we had two young daughters, ages 2
and 5. What followed was a painful lesson: the equality promised by the Constitution and
fundamental to American life does not extend to fathers in family court.
I was told early on that in Ohio, a father asking for equal parenting time was asking for a fight—
and would likely lose. Despite our being two capable, full-time working professionals, I was
advised to consider myself lucky if I received anything near shared custody. After over a year of
emotionally and financially draining litigation over what should have been a no-fault divorce, I
was forced to accept a parenting schedule in which I had only 6 nights out of every 14 with my
daughters.
Now, 12 years later, my daughters—now 14 and 17—do not view me as any less of a parent. In
fact, they often question why they are required to spend more time with their mother than
with me. They don’t know how unequal the system is for fathers without means to endure
lengthy legal battles. I’m grateful they’ve been spared the trauma of that process, but I remain
saddened by how deeply flawed and self-serving the system is—enriching itself while
deepening the emotional scars of families at their most vulnerable.
More than 90% of Ohioans believe children deserve equal or near-equal time with both parents
following a separation or divorce. And yet, less than 1% of child support orders in Ohio reflect
equal parenting time. This stark disconnect reveals a disturbing truth: family courts routinely
sideline one parent, often the father, regardless of fitness or willingness to co-parent.
Senate Bill 174 would make this worse.
• It strikes the terms “parental rights” and “shared parenting” from Ohio statutes.
• It gives judges even greater discretion to override parental agreements, injecting more
subjectivity into decisions that should be based on clear legal standards and evidence.
• It requires the court to name a “designated parent,” which will only inflame conflict,
reinforce bias, and perpetuate inequality.
• Worst of all, it allows courts to override the mutual judgment of fit parents, even when
they agree on what’s best for their child.
Aman Pande MD, MS
3251 Royal Oak Ct
Westlake, OH 44145
• SB174 is not in the best interest of Ohio’s children. If anything, Ohio needs legislation
that affirms and protects a child’s right to be raised equally by both parents after
separation—something backed by decades of research showing that children thrive
when both parents remain actively involved.
Please do not allow SB174 to move forward. Reform should aim to heal families, not deepen
the wounds.
Respectfully,
Aman Pande
October 6, 2025
3251 Royal Oak Ct
Westlake, OH 44145
• SB174 is not in the best interest of Ohio’s children. If anything, Ohio needs legislation
that affirms and protects a child’s right to be raised equally by both parents after
separation—something backed by decades of research showing that children thrive
when both parents remain actively involved.
Please do not allow SB174 to move forward. Reform should aim to heal families, not deepen
the wounds.
Respectfully,
Aman Pande
October 6, 2025