Because Atlanta is located in Fulton County, Georgia, most divorces and family law cases in Atlanta go through this court system. What very few people know, however, is that divorces in Atlanta are handled very differently than any other part of Georgia. Because this system is so different from all others in Georgia, our divorce lawyers have created the Atlanta Divorce Lawyers Guide to Divorce and Family Law Cases in Fulton County, Georgia to better help people understand these differences and guide them through the Fulton County system. This blog will be the first in a series of blogs that will form our new guide.
In Fulton County, there is a specially designated Family Division that is comprised of three judges who are dedicated to hear only family law cases. These cases include: divorce, child custody, child support, visitation, modifications, domestic violence, alimony, legitimation, paternity, adoptions,step parent adoptions and contempt. While to outsiders to our current divorce and family law system this may not appear to be that large of a deal, it is important to remember that in every other county in Georgia any Superior Court judge can hear any type of divorce or family law matter, but they also must handle cases involving criminal matters (from DUIs to murder trials), personal injury cases (from auto accidents to class action lawsuits), business law cases (from non-compete litigation to contract disputes), and the list goes on and on.
The Family Division began as a Family Law pilot project in 1998. The goal of the Family Law Division is to provide for a case management approach to resolving cases. It provide the parties an opportunity to reach solutions that best fit their situation while under the supervision of the Courts. The Court does this by providing many opportunities to discuss issues and reach settlement.The county manages the cases as follows: