The latest filing adds a new front to an already bitter court fight involving the Ohio Republican, his ex-wife and their young child. The claims remain allegations, but they now intersect with Miller’s reelection campaign.
GOP Rep. Max Miller’s ex-wife says he threatened her lawyer in Ohio, alleging in a Thursday court request that Miller physically grabbed attorney Andrew Zashin after a Tuesday hearing. Emily Moreno, Miller’s ex-wife, is seeking a new restraining order tied to the alleged courthouse confrontation.
The accusation matters because it is not an isolated claim. Moreno has made broader abuse allegations against Miller during an ongoing legal dispute over custody and contact; Miller denies the abuse allegations and has accused Moreno of misconduct of her own.
A courthouse clash becomes public
The new allegation centers on what Moreno says happened after a recent court hearing. According to reporting by The Washington Post, Moreno alleged in a Thursday request that Miller grabbed one of her attorneys, Andrew Zashin, during a Tuesday hearing, prompting her to tell the congressman: Get your hands off of him.
CBS News, citing court filings, reported that Moreno asked a court to issue a restraining order that would bar Miller from contacting Zashin. The filing alleges Miller has had repeated physical and verbal altercations with Zashin after recent hearings in the couple’s custody dispute.
The court has not been reported to have made a final ruling on the latest request. That distinction matters: the filing puts the allegations before a judge, but it does not by itself establish that the alleged conduct occurred.
Still, the allegation escalates a dispute that was already politically sensitive. Miller is a Republican congressman from Ohio, and Moreno is the daughter of Sen. Bernie Moreno, also an Ohio Republican.
The dispute behind the filing
Miller and Moreno’s legal fight is rooted in the end of a short marriage and a continuing custody battle. CBS News reported that the pair married in 2022, divorced in June 2025 and share a young daughter.
According to CBS, the two already have court-ordered restraining orders against each other. The latest request is narrower in one sense because it focuses on alleged contact with Moreno’s lawyer. But it also widens the circle of people pulled into the dispute, extending the fight from the former spouses to legal counsel involved in the case.
Moreno’s affidavit, as quoted by CBS News, says that unless Miller is restrained, he “will continue to harass, threaten, and communicate with my counsel directly.” She also alleged that Miller has harassed and threatened past members of her legal teams.
For courts, alleged intimidation or unwanted contact involving lawyers can raise practical questions beyond the couple’s personal history: whether legal proceedings can continue without interference, whether attorneys can safely represent a client, and whether existing orders are sufficient.
Miller denies the allegations
Miller has denied the abuse allegations against him. CBS News reported that he has strenuously denied the claims, pointed to his continued joint custody of his daughter, and accused Moreno of defaming him and abusing their child herself.
Those competing claims are part of why this story requires caution. Moreno’s allegations are serious, but they remain allegations unless and until a court or other authority makes findings. Miller’s denials are also central to the public record, especially because the dispute is unfolding through filings, police reports and political reporting rather than a single completed proceeding.
The Washington Post reported that Moreno had previously accused Miller of domestic abuse, including throwing hot water on her. Miller denies the allegations. CBS also described police reports and court documents containing additional allegations involving Moreno and the couple’s child; those claims, too, are disputed by Miller.
The public record, as reported so far, shows a bitter and complex legal fight rather than a resolved set of facts. The latest filing adds another alleged incident for the court to evaluate.
Why the lawyer allegation matters
The alleged confrontation with Zashin is significant because it shifts attention from what Miller is accused of doing to Moreno to what he is accused of doing around the legal process itself. If a court views contact with counsel as threatening or disruptive, it could affect how future hearings, custody exchanges or communications are managed.
It also changes the political texture of the case. A domestic dispute involving a sitting member of Congress is already newsworthy. An allegation that the lawmaker physically grabbed an attorney at or around a hearing raises questions about temperament, boundaries and whether private litigation is spilling into public conduct.
Miller represents a Republican-leaning district in the Cleveland area and is running for a third term, according to CBS News. That means the court dispute is unfolding not only in legal filings but also against the calendar of a reelection campaign.
For voters, the challenge is separating what is alleged, what is documented, what is denied and what has been adjudicated. Campaign opponents may seize on filings; supporters may argue the claims are part of a contentious divorce and custody fight. The court process will determine far more than the political noise around it.
The family and political overlap
The case is unusually tangled because both sides are connected to Ohio Republican politics. Miller is an incumbent House Republican. Moreno is the daughter of Sen. Bernie Moreno, a Republican senator from the same state.
That does not make the allegations more or less true. It does make the dispute harder to contain. A custody fight that might otherwise remain largely private has become a matter of national political attention because of who the parties are.
The overlap also creates awkward dynamics for Republicans in Ohio. The allegations involve two prominent Republican families, but the legal questions belong to the court, not a party committee. Public officials may face pressure to respond, while lawyers and judges deal with the actual filings.
There is also a human reality behind the political frame: a young child is at the center of the custody dispute. That is one reason careful language matters. The most explosive claims should be attributed, not treated as settled fact.
What remains unresolved
The immediate question is whether the court grants Moreno’s new restraining-order request involving Zashin. The answer could shape how Miller is allowed to communicate with opposing counsel and how future hearings are handled.
Several larger questions remain open. It is unclear what evidence the court will credit regarding the alleged Tuesday confrontation. It is also unclear how the broader abuse allegations and counter-allegations will affect custody arrangements or future orders between Miller and Moreno.
Politically, the case is unlikely to disappear quickly. The allegations are now part of the public conversation around Miller’s campaign, and each new filing could renew scrutiny. But legal proceedings move differently from campaign cycles, and the court record may develop slowly.
The clearest takeaway for now is narrow but important: Emily Moreno has asked an Ohio court for new protection connected to her attorney, Andrew Zashin, after alleging Rep. Max Miller threatened and physically grabbed him. Miller denies the abuse allegations, and the court has more to decide.
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