If your spouse’s attorney serves you with Interrogatories, Requests for Production of Documents, and Requests for Admissions, the length of time to answer discovery is the same. According to O.C.G.A §§§ 9-11-33(a)(2), 9-11-34(b)(2), and 9-11-36(a)(2) respectively, you have thirty days from the date on the Certificate of Service to respond to your spouse’s discovery requests. If,however, you receive the discovery requests at the same time when you are served with the Complaint for Divorce, you have forty-five days to respond to the discovery requests. (Please note that there is an exception for this general rule in Fulton County (Atlanta, Alpharetta) related to initial discovery disclosures that must be made in thirty days).
Even though you may respond to the discovery requests, your answers to the Interrogatories or Requests for Production of Documents are generally not filed with the court. According to Uniform Superior Court Rule 5.2, the Certificate of Service is the only document that your attorney must file with the court. The Certificate of Service is a document that your attorney will prepare and sign, which lists the style of your case, the name and address of the opposing party or attorney (if he or she is represented by an attorney), the method of delivery (i.e. mail, fax, or e-mail),and the date on which it was sent to the court for filing. A copy of the Certificate of Service is sent to the opposing party along with the original discovery responses.