A covenant marriage is a type of marriage that is only available in Arizona, Arkansas, and Louisiana. In a covenant marriage the spouses promise that (1) they will participate in marriage counseling before filing for divorce; (2) agree to a longer waiting period before the divorce can be finalized; and (3) must allege fault grounds for the divorce (cannot seek a divorce on no-fault grounds such as irreconcilable differences).

Laws vary among states that recognize covenant marriages, but in a covenant marriage a spouse seeking a divorce generally must allege fault grounds such as:

• Adultery by the other spouse;

• Commission of a felony by the other spouse and sentence of imprisonment at hard labor or death;

• Abandonment by the other spouse for one year;

• Physical or sexual abuse of the spouse or of a child of either spouse; or

• The spouses have lived separate and apart for two years; or the spouses are judicially or legally separated and have lived separate and apart since the legal separation for (a) one year and six months if there is a minor child or children of the marriage; (b) one year if the separation was granted for abuse of a child of either spouse; or (c) one year in all other cases.

In Ohio, covenant marriages are not recognized as a distinct form of marriage. Ohio law does not provide for the option of entering into a covenant marriage, which includes the stipulations of mandatory pre-divorce counseling, extended waiting periods for divorce, and the requirement to allege fault grounds for divorce. Instead, Ohio allows for both fault-based and no-fault divorces. In a no-fault divorce, parties may cite 'incompatibility' as a reason for the dissolution of marriage if not denied by either party, or they may state that they have lived separate and apart without cohabitation for at least one year. For fault-based divorces, Ohio law does recognize grounds similar to those in covenant marriage states, such as adultery, gross neglect of duty, extreme cruelty, habitual drunkenness, imprisonment of the other spouse, and willful absence of the other spouse for one year. However, these are part of the general divorce statutes and not specific to a covenant marriage framework, which does not exist in Ohio.