There are three ways in Georgia in which spouses can detach from each other and go on to live separate lives without having any legal responsibility for the other one. That term is used loosely because as you will see each of these options involves a solution including Court Orders setting out the parties’ legal responsibilities.
A final divorce decree ends the marriage, and the parties are free to remarry. Child support, child custody, spousal support, and all other relevant decisions are made either by agreement of the parties or pursuant to a court order after litigation.
Georgia provides for a “Separate Maintenance” action. The court settles many of the issues the same way as in a divorce, but the parties remain married. There are financial and other benefits to this arrangement.
Annulment occurs when a court enters an order declaring there never was a marriage. It is as if it never happened. There are several grounds for obtaining an annulment, including fraud.
Georgia has the following legal requirements for obtaining a divorce.
Residency
At the time a party files a divorce petition, he or she must have been a resident of the state for at least six months.
Grounds for divorce
The main ground for a divorce in Georgia is that “the marriage is irretrievably broken.” This means the couple has differences so great, they will never be able to solve them and the only solution is for them to divorce. This is a “no fault” divorce.
Waiting period
The earliest a divorce will be granted is 30 days after the respondent has been served with the divorce petition.
Division of assets
Georgia is an equitable division state, not a community property state. This means that any property acquired by the couple during their marriage, including retirement plans and bank accounts, will be divided in a way the court believes is fair and just. Each party retains his or her own separate (non-marital) property.
Resolution of child custody and visitation
If the issues cannot be resolved between the parties and they are unable to come to an agreement, the court will make the decisions based on what it determines is in the best interest of the children.
Child support and spousal support
If the couple is unable to agree between themselves on these issues, the court will resolve these issues for them.
While they are not common in Georgia, annulments can be granted under specific circumstances. An annulment is used to end a marriage that, in the state's eyes, is invalid, compared to a divorce that ends what is considered to be legally a “real” marriage.
A contested divorce is where parties cannot reach an agreement on whether to get a divorce or settle on the terms and details of the dissolution. The details usually center around distribution and allocation of assets, finances, alimony, child support or custody.
A high-asset divorce involves one in which there are multiple high-value assets that must be valued separately. There are often ownership disputes of any property whether listed as martial property or one party’s separate property.
Technically, there is no such thing as a legal separation in GA. However, you can file for a separate maintenance action, defined as a judicial determination to separate spouses and provide support without a judicial termination of the marriage.
Mediation is an important process that couples take prior to moving forward with their divorce. Mediation involves meeting with a third party (Mediator) to consult on which issues can be amicably addressed throughout the divorce process.
In simple terms, marital property is a state-level legal term that denotes property acquired during the marriage. If you can both agree on everything, you will generally have a much easier divorce. But sometimes you cannot agree, and mediation may be required, or a judge may have to decide for you.
Many aspects of divorce requirements are different for military divorces even for those who are residents of Georgia. For example, issues that must be resolved include whether the non-military spouse will be eligible for military benefits, how custody is resolved when a military spouse is deployed, and other questions that only arise when one or both spouses are in the military.
A “no-fault” divorce means one spouse must simply state a belief that the marriage is over, or “irretrievably broken.” Essentially, a no-fault divorce law gives either party the freedom to sue for divorce with only the claim of “irreconcilable differences.”
One would think that same-sex divorces are legally synonymous with heterosexual divorces, and while there are consistencies in both, complications and complexities are still very prevalent. Child custody and asset distribution are prime examples of what make the two unique.
In an uncontested divorce, the couple is in general agreement on getting the divorce and on the terms. It is generally a faster and more cost-effective way to get a divorce.
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