What is an Uncontested Divorce in Georgia?
Every divorce case can be considered either contested or uncontested. If a divorce is contested, it means that there are issues that have not been resolved between the parties and will need to be resolved by a judge, a jury, or a mediator. Common points of contention in divorce cases include:
- Child custody
- Parenting time
- Child support
- Spousal support
- Division of physical property
- Division of bank accounts
- Division of retirement accounts
- Division of debts
In order for a divorce to be uncontested, the divorcing spouses must have resolved all their marital issues. Although a divorce may be uncontested in Georgia, there are certain conditions you still have to meet before you can move forward in the case. The first requirement regards residency. In order to obtain a divorce in Georgia, you or your spouse must reside in the state for at least six months prior to filing.
The second requirement is that you must have grounds for divorce. The state of Georgia offers both fault grounds and no-fault grounds. Grounds for divorce in Georgia include:
- Adultery
- Desertion for one year
- Conviction of an offense involving moral turpitude that resulted in imprisonment for a term of at least two years
- Habitual intoxication
- Cruelty
- An incurable mental illness
- Drug addiction
- An irretrievably broken marriage
Only an irretrievably broken marriage is considered to be a no-fault ground for divorce. The marriage becoming irretrievably broken means that the rift between the spouses has become so significant and severe that the marriage cannot be saved. This ground is typically the easiest way to proceed with a divorce because the non-filing is much less likely to object to this ground than they would be a fault-based one.
It is important to note that the law states that the court will not grant a divorce based on an irretrievably broken marriage until it has been at least 30 days from the date that your spouse received service of the divorce papers you filed. This and many other deadlines can mean the success or failure of your uncontested divorce, which is why you should always use the expertise of a divorce attorney in Columbus, Georgia.