Georgia divorce laws
Child Support
| number of children |
Percentage range of gross income |
1 |
17 percent to 23 percent |
2 |
23 percent to 28 percent |
3 |
25 percent to 32 percent |
4 |
29 percent to 35 percent |
5 |
31 percent to 37 percent |
 Child support in Georgia is determined by
a Georgia divorce statutes and a mathematical
formula. A "one size fits all",
if you will. Courts establish the correct
amount of child support to be paid, essentially
as described in the above table. Should there
be requests to deviate from established child
support guidelines, the court can consider
the following:
-
The ages of the children
-
Educational costs
-
A child's extraordinary medical costs
-
Day-care costs
-
Shared physical custody arrangements
-
A party's support obligation to another household
-
Income that a party may have that is suppressed
-
Self-employed income
-
A party's own extraordinary expenses
-
Extreme economic circumstances
-
The history of spending in the family for children
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Cost of living factors
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Any other factor the court deems to be required by the ends of justice.
Child support will be determined on state guidelines unless the court sees reason for child support to deviate from those guidelines. Monetary child support can be assigned to one or both parties.
| Divorce Myth: Following divorce, the children involved are better off in step families than in single-parent families. Reality: The evidence suggests that step families are no improvement over single-parent families, even though typically income levels are higher and there is a father figure in the home. Step families tend to have their own set of problems, including interpersonal conflicts with new parent figures and a very high risk of family breakup. |
The Georgia Department of Human Resources, Office of Child Support Services (OCSS)
helps
children
by enforcing parental responsibility to pay financial support. All
Georgia families have access to OCSS services, which include assistance
with locating non-custodial parents, confirming paternity, establishing
and enforcing child support and medical support orders, and collecting
and distributing payments. OCSS also provides the Georgia Fatherhood
Services Network and the Access and Visitation Program,
both
devoted to increasing non-custodial parent involvement in a child’s
life. If you're looking for guidelines, or you wish
to complete
worksheets to determine child support amounts, you may access that
information here.
Residency
 Petitions for divorce (dissolution of marriage) must be filed by those persons who have established residency in Georgia. This simply means that in order to have a petition accepted, you have to be a resident of Georgia for at least six months prior to the filing. Military personnel who were Georgia residents and have been deployed elsewhere are considered Georgia residents during the time away from Georgia.
Child
Custody
 In all cases in which a divorce is granted, the party not in default will be entitled to the custody of the minor children of the marriage. In cases where a divorce is granted, a divorce is pending, or a change in custody of a minor child is sought, the court may consider all the circumstances of the parties and make a ruling that could place children of the marriage with guardians appointed by the court.
"Best interests of the child" prevails. The court will consider evidence of family violence in its rulings. Any relocation that results from domestic violence is considered self-preservation and not any form of abandonment. Family violence not fully document will be admissible. Supervised visitation can be ordered if facts warrant such a condition.
Children reaching the age of fourteen have the right to select which parent they wish to live with. These wishes will be granted unless the selected parent is found to be unfit to carry out the responsibilities of custody. Those children age 11 or greater will have a voice in which choosing which parent they wish to live with, but these wishes are not binding to child custody rulings until they reach age 14.
Temporary child custody can be awarded for up to six months in cases where the court determines it is justifiable. Visitation can be modified by a motion to the court, and cannot be considered unless two years have passed since any previous child custody ruling has occurred. Material changes in circumstances do not need to be demonstrated to petitions for a change in child custody.
Georgia law requires that the custodial parent notify the non-custodial parent in writing when a change of address has occurred. Should there be others granted visitation (grandparents or others), the custodial parent must also provide a written change of address. 30 day notice is the law.
| Divorce Myth: Because they are more cautious in entering marital relationships and also have a strong determination to avoid the possibility of divorce, children who grow up in a home broken by divorce tend to have as much success in their own marriages as those from intact homes. Reality: Marriages of the children of divorce actually have a much higher rate of divorce than the marriages of children from intact families. A major reason for this, according to a recent study, is that children learn about marital commitment or permanence by observing their parents. In the children of divorce, the sense of commitment to a lifelong marriage has been undermined. |
Grounds
for Divorce
The following grounds shall be sufficient to authorize the granting of a total divorce:
-
marrying blood relatives (see the statute)
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Mental incapacity at the time of the marriage
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Impotency at the time of the marriage
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Force or fraud in obtaining the marriage;
-
Pregnancy of the wife by a man other than the husband, at the time of the marriage, unknown to the husband
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Adultery in either of the parties after marriage
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Desertion by either of the parties for the term of one year
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Moral turpitude, and imprisoned for two years or longer
-
Habitual intoxication
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Cruel treatment
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Incurable mental illness.
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Habitual drug addiction
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The marriage is irretrievably broken. Under no circumstances shall the court grant a divorce on this ground until not less than 30 days from the date of service on the respondent.
The court will deny a divorce if it finds evidence that the parties have consented to any activity which would be grounds for divorce. Cohabitation following any act that would qualify as grounds for divorce would prohibit a dissolution of marriage.
Mediation
The Georgia court may, using its own discretion, order the parties to alternative dispute resolution (mediation), as provided for by state law. Simply stated, the court can decide if one or more contested issues are better served with mediation as a prelude to the court's ruling on the issue(s). Mediation can often shorten the divorce process, and reduce the wrangling that increases costs to the process.
| Divorce Myth: Divorce may cause problems for many of the children who are affected by it, but by and large these problems are not long lasting and the children recover relatively quickly. Reality: Divorce increases the risk of interpersonal problems in children. There is evidence, both from small qualitative studies and from large-scale, long-term empirical studies, that many of these problems are long lasting. In fact, they may even become worse in adulthood. |
Alimony
 Alimony can be granted from one party to the
other, and is intended to support the other party when living separately.
It can be temporary or permanent. Alimony will not be granted if it is
found that the petitioning party's actions through adultery or desertion
are the basis for the filing. Alimony can be considered when either party
dies prior to an alimony ruling, and will apply to the decedent's estate.
Georgia law mandates that neither party make material changes to their
estates pending a final determination of alimony.
The court may grant permanent alimony to either party. The following will be considered in determining the amount of alimony, if any, to be awarded:
-
The standard of living established during the marriage
-
The duration of the marriage
-
The age and the physical and emotional condition of both parties
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The financial resources of each party
-
The time necessary for either party to acquire sufficient education or training to enable him to find appropriate employment
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The contribution of each party to the marriage
-
The condition of the parties ( the separate estate, earning capacity, and fixed liabilities of the parties )
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Such other relevant factors as the court deems equitable and proper.
-
Permanent alimony will terminate upon remarriage of the party to whom the obligations are owed unless otherwise provided.
Waiting
Period
In cases of irretrievable breakdown of the marriage, the state of Georgia requires a waiting period of 30 days from the date of service upon the respondent. No waiting period exists for remarriage after a dissolution becomes final.
Grandparents
Rights
 Grandparents have the right to file an original action for visitation rights to a minor child. Such a petition will be considered if the parents of any minor children are separated, and the child is living with one of the two parents. If the family unit is intact, no grandparents visitation rights will be granted. Best interests of the child govern.
To amend previously granted visitation rights to grandparents, the parent or legal guardian must show cause, and may not petition the court more frequently than once every two years.
Dividing
Assets
Georgia is an "equitable distribution" state. The court will distribute the marital assets and liabilities of the parties in an equitable and just way, although the marital assets of the parties may not be evenly divided. All property determined to be non-marital will be removed and distributed prior to a determination of marital property. What you came into the marriage will essentially be what you leave it with, along with an equitable distribution of those assets you helped to accumulate.
Did you come into this marriage owning a house?
Concerned about the equity in that house that you brought into the marriage?
Here's how it works generally. What you brought into the marriage is usually
all yours. However, any appreciation of the house or the property value
is normally treated as a "marital asset", meaning that you will
likely forfeit a third to a half of that appreciation to your spouse in
the divorce.
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