Is There a Divorce Waiting Period in Georgia?
Yes. Georgia's Superior
Court Rules require a minimum of 31 days from the date of service (or date an Acknowledgment
of Service is filed with the court) before the court is allowed to issue a
decree of divorce. However, it is very rare for a divorce to be resolved this
quickly.
How Quick Can You Get Divorced in Georgia?
While 31 days is
the only technical limitation on how fast a divorce can occur in Georgia, most
divorces take much longer. Before a divorce can be granted, all relevant issues
in the marriage must be resolved: child custody, child support, equitable
division of property, and alimony. The parties must either come to a full
agreement concerning everything at issue or the court will need to make those
decisions for the parties through hearings and/or trials.
Settlement is
generally attempted before a hearing. For a complete settlement, the parties
must reach an agreement on all pending issues in the marriage, and the terms
will be outlined in a document called a Settlement Agreement. If the parties
cannot reach a complete settlement, they may draft a partial Settlement
Agreement, and allow the court to decide on the remaining issues.
Although settlement
is generally the better way to resolve a marriage, it is usually difficult for
the two parties to reach a complete agreement. It is common for divorcing
parties to be emotional and struggle with reaching an agreement.
The process of exchanging
offers and counteroffers is usually time-consuming. If the parties are
represented by attorneys, the attorneys will need time to carefully draft and
review the lengthy settlement documents. It is also common for the attorneys to
involve third party mediators to help facilitate negotiations.
Should the divorcing
parties reach a complete agreement, the settlement documents must be submitted
to the court for review and approval. Depending
upon the judge's schedule and volume of cases, it may take additional weeks or months
for a judge to review and approve a Settlement Agreement and issue a Final Decree
of Divorce.
Written by: Rebekah
Ann James