If you have recently divorce in Georgia, it is highly likely that you were dissatisfied with at least one of the order or rulings issued by the court at the conclusion of your divorce. If this is the case, you may have considered appealing the court's rulings. Although seeking an appeal is appropriate under the right circumstance, the truth is, the odds for success on appeal are very slim.
First, not all court order can be appealed. For example, if you entered into a settlement agreement with your ex-spouse and the presiding court adopted that agreement into the final order of divorce, that divorce decree is not appealable.
Second, even if you are seeking to appeal an order that is subject to appeal, successfully overturning trial court's decision is extremely difficult, because divorce courts have wide judicial discretion when making decisions. Practically speaking, divorce courts have lots of leeway when it comes to making legal determinations. Therefore, in order to prevail on appeal, you must either show the trial court abused this discretion, or that the court failed to follow the law or applied the law incorrectly.
Finally, the role of an appellate court is very different from that or a trial court and it is very limited. During the appellate process, you will not be able to present your entire case to the appellate court. Instead, because the trial court is in the best position to judge the credibility of witnesses and the persuasiveness of evidence presented at trial, an appellate court will give deference to a trial court's determinations, and instead focus of the legal issue preserved by each party and presented on appeal.
Thus, even if you sincerely believe the trial judge's decision in your divorce case was incorrect, seeking an appeal may not be the most prudent route unless your attorney can show that the court abused its discretion or failed to follow the applicable law. In order to determine if seeking an appeal is the best course of action in your case, seek the advice of an Atlanta divorce attorney with experience handling appeals and other post-divorce matters. Call our Alpharetta office at 678-879-9000 for free consultation on whether you need to appeal.