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Am I Eligible to Obtain an Annulment in Georgia?

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The short answer to this question is: It depends on the circumstances of your marriage. Although this may seem like an inadequate answer at first blush, as with other issues concerning Georgia family law, the resolution to such issues often hinge on the facts of each individual case.

A Georgia annulment is a determination made by the court presiding over the matter that the marriage in question is void or invalid from the date it occurred. O.C.G.A. § 19-4-1. Essentially, the consequence of an annulment is that the marriage, once annulled, is void as if it never existed. O.C.G.A. § 19-4-5. A marriage may only be annulled in Georgia under certain circumstances. A party may seek and obtain an annulment in Georgia only if he or she shows that one of the following grounds for annulment exists:

1) Intermarriage - The parties to the marriage were related to each other, such as a marriage between a father and daughter;

2) Under Age - One of the parties to the marriage is under 16 years of age;

3) Lack of Capacity - One of the parties did not have sufficient mental capacity at the time of the marriage;

4) Bigamy - One of the parties was legally married to someone else at the time of the marriage;

5) Force - Force, menace, or duress was used to obtain the marriage; and

6) Fraud - The marriage was obtained due to the fraud of a party.

See generally O.C.G.A. §19-3-3; 19-3-4; 19-3-5.

Many, after reviewing the grounds listed above may wonder: "What about failure to consummate the marriage?" Although it may be possible to obtain an annulment in other states on the ground that the parties did not consummate the marriage, this is not a ground for annulment in Georgia. Thus, in order to obtain an annulment in Georgia the party seeking to annul the marriage must do so based on one of the grounds above. If one of the above grounds does not exist, the party seeking to terminate the marriage must seek a divorce. Please note however, that even if one of the grounds listed above is present, a Georgia court will not grant an annulment if there were children born during the course of the marriage. O.C.G.A. § 19-4-1.

If you are seeking to obtain an annulment, consult with an Atlanta divorce attorney with experience handling annulments to determine if the specific facts of your case meet the requirements to obtain an annulment in Georgia.

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