Child Custody
Celebrity Family Law Tyrese Gibson
Temporary restraining orders (“TRO”) are nothing to take lightly. There are put into place when a Judge... Read More
Celebrity Family Law Audrina Patridge
Former reality star, Audrina Patridge, and her husband of less than a year, Corey Bohan, are going through a nasty... Read More
Proposed Michigan “Shared Custody Act”
In Georgia, there is “no presumption in favor of any particular form of custody, legal or physical, nor in favor... Read More
Celebrity Family Law – Grey’s Anatomy star Jesse Williams
The divorce between Grey’s Anatomy star, Jesse Williams, and his wife, Aryn Drake-Lee, has just taken a nasty... Read More
Celebrity Family Law – Tennis Star Victoria Azarenka
Custody arrangements often require compromise and sacrifice. Negotiating and reaching a custody settlement with your... Read More
Georgia Case Law Update – Jewell v. McGinnis et al.
Every family is unique and, thus, every custody case is distinct in its own way. In some families, both parents want... Read More
Georgia Case Law Update – Odum v. Russell
For a divorce with children involved, the Marital Dissolution Agreement and/or Final Divorce Decree will include a... Read More
Celebrity Family Law – Huma Abedin and Anthony Weiner
After years of standing by her husband as he was embroiled in multiple sexting scandals, Huma Abedin has finally had... Read More
Judge grants custody to three parents
Advances is techniques to combat infertility can often result in non-traditional familial relationships. Often, the... Read More
Importance of advising schools about custody agreements
After going through a divorce, it is important to advise your child’s school about your custody arrangement,... Read More
Georgia Case Law Update – Wilson v. Wilson
The Court of Appeals of Georgia recently heard a case that reaffirms the long-standing principle that an appellate... Read More
Celebrity Family Law – Morena Baccarin
All parents going through a divorce have to work out the issues of child custody and child support. Sometimes these... Read More
Parenting Plans and Technology
As technology advances and changes, so do the issues that you and your ex may want to discuss during your divorce... Read More
Celebrity Family Law – Brad Pitt and Angelina Jolie
Unless you follow no news sources whatsoever, you have likely heard that Brangelina – otherwise known as power... Read More
Georgia Case Law Update – Floyd v. Brown
A good number of people choose to represent themselves in family law cases. With resources such as the Fulton County... Read More
Celebrity Family Law – Jodie Sweetin
In Georgia, any final decree involving child custody (including divorce and custody modifications) shall include a... Read More
Georgia Case Law Update – Kogel v. Kogel
The Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act (“UCCJEA”) dictates how custody cases are... Read More
Alternative Custody Arrangements – “Bird Nesting” Custody
In Georgia, there are two types of child custody – legal custody and physical custody. Legal custody deals... Read More
Can a Judge Determine What a Child Calls His Stepparent?
Life post divorce can be complicated for families. Parents have to adjust to living in different houses, and... Read More
Georgia Case Law Update – Medley v. Mosley
In Georgia child custody cases, there is no presumption in favor of the mother or the father, or in favor of a... Read More
Parental Abduction
A recent article in the Atlanta Journal-Constitution tells the story of a 6-year-old boy who was recently abducted... Read More
No Joint Custody Between Parents and Grandparents in Georgia
There is no doubt that Georgia law recognizes how important it is for grandparents to play an active role in the... Read More
What is FERPA?
FERPA, or the Family Educational Rights and Privacy Act, is a Federal law that protects the privacy of student... Read More
Michigan Children Jailed for Refusing Lunch with their Father
Most people are familiar with parents being punished for refusing to abide by the custody and visitation terms of a... Read More
Divorce and Back to School Time
When you go through a divorce and work out custody and visitation arrangements with your spouse, you make an... Read More
Can You Relocate After Your Divorce?
After a divorce is finalized, most people want to live their lives completely free of their ex-spouse. If you and... Read More
One set of twins – two fathers?
In a very unusual family law case, a New Jersey woman just found out that her two-year-old twins have two different... Read More
Divorce Myth – The Mom Will Always Get The Kids
When a family law attorney meets with a prospective client for the first time, that attorney often has to spend time... Read More
Contentious Custody Battle Turns Deadly
Watching the news is often depressing, with the headlines too frequently involving senseless killings of families... Read More
Custodial Kidnapping
Periodically, there are news stories about children who are “kidnapped” by their parents. Sometimes the... Read More
Race and Child Custody
Religion, education, extracurricular activities, and medical decisions – these are all common sources of... Read More
Sex and The Single Parent
Going through a divorce can be a traumatic, life-changing event. Nonetheless, once a divorced person has worked... Read More
Contempt Actions and Modifying Visitation
If you are denied court ordered visitation with your child you should contact an attorney and consider filing a... Read More
International Custody Battle In The Headlines
In a divorce case involving children, the final divorce decree will set out in detail the custodial rights of each... Read More
My Ex-Spouse Wants to Move to Another State With Our Child. Can He Do That?
The brief answer to this question is: Although you cannot prevent your ex-spouse from relocating, you may be able to... Read More
What is Parental Alienation?
Generally speaking, parental alienation involves one parent taking actions or making statements to his or her... Read More
Providing camps and schools with custody agreements
In reading through my daughter’s camp handbook, one clause stuck out to me as a family law attorney –... Read More
Georgia Divorce Appeals: Which Child Custody Order Should I Follow?
Your Georgia divorce case is now finalized, and the presiding court has entered a Final Judgment and Decree of... Read More
Single Dads and Child Custody in Georgia
There are undoubtedly several single dads who will be pondering a question that is oft held by single dads... Read More
What Issues Should be Addressed in a Settlement Agreement Including Child Custody?
For divorcing parents, often the most important issue to work out is who will have custody of the children, and how... Read More
The Four Parts of Georgia Divorce: Child Custody
Continuing from our previous post entitled “The Four Parts of Georgia Divorce,” child custody in Georgia is... Read More
What is Supervised Visitation and When May it be Ordered?
Supervised visitation is not a concept that is unique to Georgia. There are several states that recognize the... Read More
I Fear My Ex is Abusing Our Children During Visitation, What Can I Do?
It’s always a parent’s worst nightmare to learn that his or her child is being hurt, neglected or abused... Read More
I Have to Travel to Visit My Children. Can I Seek a Child Support Reduction?
Very often upon divorce, one or both former spouses may relocate to another neighborhood, city or even another... Read More
Do I Still Have to Pay Child Support if my Spouse and I Split Custody?
This is a typical question asked quite regularly by parents who are deciding how to share custody of their children... Read More
How Can a Guardian ad Litem Help My Case?
In Georgia, Guardians Ad Litem (GALs) are generally attorneys who are appointed by the judge presiding over a... Read More
A Parent’s Visitation Rights May not be Limited Because of a Girlfriend/Boyfriend
Has your ex-spouse recently began dating? Or, does he or she have a new girlfriend or boyfriend that you don’t... Read More
Celebrity Divorce Chronicles: Taye Diggs vs. Idina Menzel
After ten years of apparent marital bliss, actor Taye Diggs and actress Idine Menzel announced their impending... Read More
What is Split Custody?
Many parents going through divorce or a child custody battle in Georgia are likely intimately familiar with the... Read More
I’m a Step Parent, Can I Win Custody of My Step Child?
The short answer to this question is: maybe, depending on your relationship with your step child. If you have... Read More
Do I Have to Attend a Parenting Seminar?
In Georgia, several counties have chosen to implement parenting seminars, which are programs “designed to educate... Read More
How Do You Really Feel About Your New Spouse’s Role as Step Parent?
“You won’t understand until you have your own kids.” “You’re not the parent here.” “You’ll never... Read More
Coping with Divorce at Christmas
The holiday season, especially Christmas is often an especially difficult for divorced parents. In many parenting... Read More
My Ex-Wife is Moving, Can She Take Our Child?
Your divorce is finally over. Although you wife was awarded primary physical custody, you were awarded significant... Read More
Celebrity Divorce Chronicles: Orlando Bloom v. Miranda Kerr
Many media outlets have recently reported that the three year marriage of actor Orlando Bloom and Victoria Secret... Read More
Grandparent Visitation Rights
Are you concerned that once your son’s or daughter’s divorce is finalized, you will no longer be able to see or... Read More
Can I Win Custody of My Grandchild?
The short answer to the above posed question is: Yes, under the correct circumstances. In Georgia, there is a legal... Read More
Child Custody in Georgia
Fighting for custody is one of the most challenging areas of family law. There are a wide variety of factors that... Read More
Celebrity Divorce Chronicles: George Zimmerman v. Shellie Zimmerman
She wants her troubled marriage to end “with a whimper, not a bang.” These are the sentiments of Shellie... Read More
I Have Been Served. What Happens If I Don't Respond?
Learn More About The Divorce Process In Depth: The Consequences for Failure to Respond to the Complaint How... Read More
Paternity vs. Legitimation in Georgia
In Georgia, there are two domestic relations actions that specifically relate to the father child relationship,... Read More
Back to School Technology Tips for Divorced Parents
Ah, back to school time. This is a time that is often loved by many parents and loathed by several students. But,... Read More
Case Law Update: Phillips v. Phillips, 316 Ga. App. 829 (2012)
In Georgia, it is possible that a parent’s parental power can be lost to a grandparent, great-grandparent, aunt,... Read More
Andrea Sneiderman conviction and sentencing – What happens to the kids?
Andrea Sneiderman was recently convicted of several felony charges related to her husband’s “Dunwoody day... Read More
Legal Guardianship in Georgia: How Does Georgia Law Apply to the Paris Jackson Case?
Recently, several news and popular media outlets have been reporting on the apparent suicide attempt made by Paris... Read More
High Profile Child Custody Battles: Steve Nash v. Alejandra Amarilla
In this installment of our series, High Profile Custody Battles, we take a look at what has been described as the... Read More
High Profile Child Custody Battles: Kelly Rutherford v. Daniel Giersch
As any parent who has experienced a child custody battle can attest, custody battles are often the most expensive... Read More
In Georgia, at what age can a minor decide which parent to live with, without having to go back to court?
Until a child is of the age of majority (18 years), he/she cannot choose with whom to live, absent a court order.... Read More
As a noncustodial parent in Georgia, do I have a right to see the notes from my child’s counseling sessions?
In Georgia, whether a noncustodial parent has a right to see notes from their child’s counseling sessions... Read More
What rights does a man have if he was married to the mother of the child and his name is on the child’s birth certificate, but later finds out the child is not his?
If a child is born to a Husband and Wife during the marriage, the child’s legal parents are the Husband and... Read More
Reproductive Assistance and Child Custody in Georgia
In early February, Reuters published an interesting article concerning the rights of biological and legal parents... Read More
Joint Physical Custody in Georgia
A Georgia father recently asked me if I thought he could get joint physical custody of his children. The father... Read More
High Profile Child Custody Battles in Georgia: Usher Raymond v. Tameka Foster
In this first, of what I hope to be the last installment in the series “High Profile Child Custody Battles,”... Read More
Using a Parenting Coordinator in a Georgia Divorce
Although you and your spouse are ending your marriage, if you have children together then you will always have a... Read More
Can smoking make you lose custody of your children?
I recently read an interesting article about how a parent’s smoking may affect child custody. Smokers losing... Read More
Custody awarded to father in Georgia divorce case despite evidence of alleged family violence
The Supreme Court of Georgia recently affirmed a divorce action where the husband was awarded primary physical... Read More
In Georgia, trial court cannot rely on evidence from temporary hearing in making final judgment
The Supreme Court of Georgia recently reversed a trial court’s decision in a custody modification case because... Read More
Primary custody awarded to one parent in Georgia even where both are deemed fit parents
In Georgia, even in divorce cases with two fit parents, one parent will be awarded primary physical custody. In a... Read More
Parenting plans in Georgia
With the holiday season upon us, many divorced parents in Georgia will look to their parenting plan for guidance... Read More
Divorce decree cannot be modified in contempt case in Georgia
The Georgia Court of Appeals recently heard a case addressing an alleged modification of a divorce decree in a... Read More
In Georgia, am I entitled to financial support after a divorce if I had an affair?
In Georgia, a spouse who has an affair risks the affair playing a large role in the outcome of the divorce case,... Read More
Recent Georgia divorce case phases out supervised visitation through three month transition period
The Supreme Court of Georgia recently heard a case dealing with supervised visitation that was to be phased out... Read More
Georgia Court of Appeals rules on Fulton County child custody case
The Court of Appeals of Georgia recently heard an interesting, though extremely sad, child custody case out of... Read More
Divorce and Special Holiday Visitation
When divorcing parents are trying to reach an agreement on holiday visitation, the holidays most often discussed... Read More
Parenting websites can help parents sharing custody of children in Georgia
Our Atlanta divorce attorneys have recently learned of some interactive websites that may be helpful for parents... Read More
Order for supervised visitation upheld by Georgia Court of Appeals
The Georgia Court of Appeals recently upheld an order for supervised visitation, despite the father’s... Read More
Forsyth and Cherokee County Parenting Seminar Information: August – September 2011
Under Georgia law, both parties in a divorce are required to attend a parenting seminar in Georgia if the parties... Read More
Georgia Child Custody – Day to Day Decisions
If your divorce is final in Georgia, your divorce decree will state who has legal and physical custody of the... Read More
Overnight guest restriction during visitation in Georgia divorce decree
The Supreme Court of Georgia recently reversed a trial court’s decision regarding a restriction on overnight... Read More
Petition for Contempt, and Petitions for Modification of Custody, Child Support, and Visitation dismissed by Georgia trial court
In addition to addressing the final decision making issue in Avren v. Garten, the Supreme Court of Georgia also... Read More
Appeal of Georgia custody determination
The Supreme Court of Georgia often hears appeals of custody determinations, though the standard to overturn a... Read More
Summer visitation and Georgia divorce
With school getting out and summer upon us, it seems appropriate to discuss summer visitation. Whether you are... Read More
Forsyth and Cherokee County REVISED Parenting Seminar Information: April – June 2011
The 9th Judicial District (Forsyth and Cherokee counties) recently revised its April – June 2011 parenting... Read More
Parenting plan required in Georgia custody cases – Part 1
Any case in Georgia involving child custody must have a formal parenting plan incorporated into the final decree.... Read More
Parenting Time Deviation denied with in Georgia joint custody case
The Supreme Court of Georgia recently made an interesting, if not surprising, ruling, denying a parenting time... Read More
An Atlanta Divorce Attorney’s Thoughts on Celebrity Divorce – Halle Berry and Gabriel Aubry
Today in An Atlanta Divorce Attorney’s Thoughts on Celebrity Divorce, I’m going to discuss the brewing custody... Read More
Georgia child support deviations – Extraordinary Expenses
The court can deviate from the presumptive child support amount calculated by the child support worksheets for... Read More
Georgia child support deviations – Permanency Plan or Foster Care Plan
Georgia courts can deviate from the presumptive child support amount calculated by the child support worksheets... Read More
Georgia child support deviations – Mortgage
Georgia courts can deviate from the presumptive child support amount calculated by the child support worksheets... Read More
An Atlanta Divorce Attorney’s Thoughts on Celebrity Divorce – Tiger Woods and Elin Nordegren
This week in An Atlanta Divorce Attorney’s Thoughts on Celebrity Divorce, I’m going to discuss the... Read More
DeKalb County Parenting Seminar Information
Under Georgia law, both parties in a divorce are required to attend a parenting seminar if the parties have... Read More
Gwinnett County Parenting Seminar Information
Under Georgia law, both parties in a divorce are required to attend a parenting seminar if the parties have... Read More
Can the paternity of a child born during a marriage be challenged?
Paternity testing during a divorce case is not extremely common, but this issue does arise. The Georgia Court of... Read More
Evidence in appeal of custody award
When presenting your divorce, custody modification, child support modification, or other family law case to the... Read More
Settlement Agreement Enforced Over Party’s Objection
Recently, the Georgia Court of Appeals affirmed the enforcement of a divorce settlement agreement over the... Read More
Custody and the child’s choice
A judge can sometimes consider the child’s choice in making a custody decision. In any contested custody... Read More
Decision Making with Joint Legal Custody
There are two kids of custody: physical custody and legal custody. Legal custody has to do with decision making... Read More
Holiday Visitation Ideas
Holidays are special times for most families and one of the most difficult things for divorcing parents to come to... Read More
Fulton County jurisdiction ruling vacated in custody case
A decision of a Fulton County judge regarding jurisdiction in a custody modification case was recently overturned... Read More
Contested Custody in Atlanta, Georgia – Guardian ad Litem (Part 2)
In part two of our series on how to interact with a Guardian in an Atlanta contested custody case, we will discuss... Read More
Child Custody – Georgia Case Law Update
On March 23, 2009, the Supreme Court of Georgia affirmed the trial court’s denial of the wife’s motion for new... Read More
Child Custody: Joint Custody vs Sole Custody in Georgia
Simply put, joint custody means that both parents share equal input and/or spend equal amount of time with the... Read More
Parental Rights, Deprivation – Georgia Case Law Update
On March 13, 2009, the Georgia Court of Appeals affirmed the juvenile court’s termination of a father’s... Read More
Deprivation – Georgia Case Law Update
On February 23, 2009, the Georgia Court of Appeals affirmed the Dekalb county juvenile court’s deprivation... Read More
Child Custody – Georgia Case Law Update
On January 30, 2009, the Court of Appeals vacated the trial court’s award of custody to the child’s maternal... Read More
Adultery’s effect on a divorce case in Georgia
Adultery on the part of one spouse can affect many aspects of a divorce in Georgia, including alimony, equitable... Read More
Georgia Deprivation Finding Upheld – Georgia Case Law Update
On November 17, 2008, the Georgia Court of Appeals affirmed a Juvenile Court’s finding of deprivation under... Read More
Georgia Case Law Update – Visitation, Child Support, Marital Property
In Rumley-Miawama v. Miawama (S08F1541), the Supreme Court of Georgia heard a Wife’s appeal from the judgment in... Read More
Atlanta Divorce Lawyers Guide to Divorce and Family Law Cases in Fulton County, Georgia: Guardian Ad Litem
Our final blog entry in our Atlanta Divorce Lawyers Guide to Divorce and Family Law Cases in Fulton County,... Read More
Attorneys Fees in a Georgia Divorce under O.C.G.A. § 19-6-2
According to O.C.G.A. § 19-6-2, you can be awarded attorney’s fees in a divorce, but the award of attorney’s... Read More
Atlanta Parenting Seminar Information
Under Georgia law, both parties in a divorce are required to attend a parenting seminar in Georgia if the parties... Read More
Georgia Child Custody
Many people assume that the mother automatically receives custody of the minor children in a divorce whether she... Read More
Georgia Child Custody
Many people assume that the mother automatically receives custody of the minor children in a divorce whether she... Read More
DeKalb County (Avondale Estates, Chamblee, Decatur, Doraville, Lithonia, and Stone Mountain) Parenting Seminar Information
DeKalb County (Avondale Estates, Chamblee, Decatur, Doraville, Lithonia, and Stone Mountain) offers its Seminar... Read More
Self-executing child support provision in Georgia divorce settlement agreement
The Supreme Court of Georgia recently heard an interesting case regarding self-executing child support provisions... Read More
Usher Raymond’s ex-wife seeking to obtain full custody in Georgia
According to TMZ.com**, Usher Raymond’s ex-wife has filed actions for modification of child support and... Read More
Divorce and Taxes
This blog entry regarding tax issues related to a divorce is intended to alert you to issues to think about and... Read More
Custody of Unborn Children in Georgia
Can you file for divorce while you or your spouse is pregnant with a child of the marriage? Of course you can –... Read More
Evidence at temporary hearing vs. final hearing in divorce case in Georgia
In Georgia, there is a difference between the evidence that can be presented in a temporary hearing versus a final... Read More
Forsyth & Cherokee Counties (Cumming, Ball Ground, Canton, and Woodstock) Parenting Seminar Information
Forsyth County (Cumming) and Cherokee County (Ball Ground, Canton, and Woodstock) are part of the 9th judicial... Read More
Waiver of alimony or child support modification must be clear and express
The Supreme Court of Georgia recently reversed a trial court’s ruling that a Husband had waived his right to... Read More
High Profile Child Custody Battles: Bill Verst vs. Lindsay Jackson
In this second installment of our series, “High Profile Child Custody Battles,” we discuss the case of Bill... Read More
Fulton County (Alpharetta, Atlanta, Johns Creek, Milton, Roswell) Parenting Seminar Information
Fulton County (Alpharetta, Atlanta, Johns Creek, Milton, Roswell) offers its Family in Transition seminar in order... Read More
Atlanta Divorce Lawyer’s Guide to Forsyth and Cherokee County Parenting Seminar
Under Georgia law, both parties in a divorce are required to attend a parenting seminar if the parties have... Read More
Celebrity Custody Battles: Kelly Rutherford
Actress Kelly Rutherford recently lost primary physical custody of her children to her ex-husband, Daniel Giersch,... Read More
How should we tell our children about the divorce?
As Atlanta divorce attorneys, we are often asked about the right way to tell children that you and your spouse are... Read More
Custody cannot be modified as part of contempt action in Georgia
The Georgia Court of Appeals recently re-emphasized long standing Georgia case law that prohibits custody from... Read More
Georgia custody modification upheld where mother planned to move out of state with the child
A Georgia mother recently lost primary physical custody of her child when the court found that her planned move to... Read More
Timing of appeal is determinative in Georgia custody case
If you are considering appealing a Georgia custody order, it is important to consider the timing of your appeal.... Read More
Transcript Extremely Important for Appeal of Georgia Family Law Cases
The Court of Appeals of Georgia recently heard a case which emphasizes the importance of having a transcript for... Read More
What is a Georgia custody evaluation?
In Georgia, when parents can’t agree on who should take care of the child after the divorce, a Judge will order,... Read More
Standard Visitation
If you are going through a divorce and you and your spouse have children together, an inevitable question will be:... Read More
Parenting plan required in Georgia custody cases – Part 2
Any case in Georgia involving child custody must have a formal parenting plan incorporated into the final decree.... Read More
Can my final divorce decree be modified in Georgia?
In Georgia, whether your divorce is resolved through a Settlement Agreement or with a final trial, the terms of... Read More
Georgia child support deviations – Travel Expenses
The court can deviate from the presumptive child support amount calculated by the child support worksheets for... Read More
Jurisdiction over custody modification when parents live in different states
One of the most confusing aspects of child custody cases can be where the case should be filed when the parents... Read More
Georgia Child Custody Rights: Legal Custody vs. Physical Custody
When going through a divorce in Georgia with minor children involved, there are two categories of custody that you... Read More
Assisted reproductive technologies and family law in Georgia
In Georgia, as well as around the world, conceiving a child with the use of assisted reproductive technologies can... Read More