Buckhead Divorce Lawyer
If you are going through a divorce, you may be overwhelmed by the associated legal issues and potential consequences. While divorce is seldom easy, a Buckhead divorce lawyer may be able to help relieve some of your concerns.
There are many issues to consider when contemplating divorce. You may be wondering what will happen to your children, how your property will be divided, or if you should file for a fault or no-fault divorce. A qualified family attorney will help you understand the issues involved in a divorce and guide you through the process from start to finish.
What Goes into Filing a No-Fault Divorce in Buckhead?
Georgia allows no-fault divorces. In order to obtain a no-fault divorce in our area, one spouse must simply assert that the parties no longer get along and do not wish to be married anymore. A no-fault divorce does not require any wrongdoing by either party. A no-fault divorce is often less contentious and less time-consuming than a fault divorce since wrongdoing by one spouse does not have to be proven.
Fault-Based Divorces
Acts of wrongdoing by one or both spouses can be factored into a divorce filing. Georgia family law provides several fault-based grounds for divorce. These include adultery, prison confinement, abandonment, and infliction of emotional or physical pain. A spouse’s wrongdoing can inform decisions related to certain aspects of the divorce process, such as dividing marital property, spousal maintenance, and child custody.
When you assert a fault-based ground for divorce you must prove the spouse’s misconduct with persuasive evidence. Fault- based divorces typically take longer, are much more expensive, and are often more contentious than no-fault divorces. A member of our Buckhead legal team can discuss whether a fault-based divorce filing is a good strategy in your specific circumstances.
How is Property Divided During a Local Divorce?
Dividing the marital property is often the most time-consuming aspect of a divorce. The marital property is anything either spouse or the couple acquired during their marriage. Separate property is anything either spouse owned before the marriage, plus gifts and inheritances directed solely to one spouse.
Georgia is an equitable distribution state. This means that a judge will decide what is equitable when dividing marital property during a Buckhead divorce. The property is not necessarily divided equally between the parties but instead is divided in a manner that is determined to be fair.
Even when one spouse provides most or all of the couple’s earnings, that spouse will not necessarily receive the bulk of the marital property. A judge will consider several factors in deciding what is fair, including:
- The earning ability of each spouse
- The value of each spouse’s separate property
- The amount each spouse contributed to the acquisition of marital property
- The future financial needs of each party
- The age and health of each spouse
- Premarital and postnuptial agreements
Spousal misconduct can also have an impact on property division.
Child Custody and Visitation
Child custody and visitation is often one of the most difficult issues to handle for someone going through a divorce. It can be difficult to imagine dividing time with your children, but a divorce attorney in Buckhead could help you understand the factors that a judge may look at when making decisions about child custody.
Child custody as an element of the divorce process incorporates both legal and physical custody. Legal custody refers to the right to make important decisions for the child, such as those related to religious upbringing, medical care, and education. Physical custody refers to who the child will live with on a day-to-day basis. A parent who does not have physical custody will usually be granted visitation, or parenting time, with the child.
Family court judges must make the best interests of the children their primary consideration when deciding custody issues. Our Buckhead divorce attorneys are familiar with the factors that judges evaluate when making their best interests determinations. Our legal professionals can help you demonstrate how your custody goals serve your children’s best interests.
Child Support
Child support is financial support that is ordered to be paid by a non-custodial parent to a custodial parent for the care of their child. The amount of child support a parent receives is determined by the income of both parents as well as the needs of the child. Parents are obligated to support their children financially, regardless of whether they have custody rights or parenting time.
The child support guidelines appear in the Official Code of Georgia 19-6-15. Parents must complete a worksheet that will give them a presumptive child support amount. However, there are adjustments and deviations that can affect the final child support payment. It is always wise to work with a Buckhead divorce attorney to confirm your calculations.
Family court judges try to ensure that children do not suffer a marked change in lifestyle because of a divorce. In high income families, the paying spouse may pay much more than the guideline amount.
Spousal Support
Many people going through a divorce are concerned about how they will support themselves or their children afterward. Fortunately, there are avenues available through which spouses may seek and receive financial support from their ex-partner under certain circumstances.
Many spouses seek temporary support while the divorce is pending, before they have access to their equitable share of the marital property. If one spouse earns significantly more money than the other or will be unable to provide for themselves after a divorce, they may be entitled to post-divorce spousal support. Spousal support may be awarded regardless of whether a marriage that ends in divorce produces children.
Post-divorce spousal support usually ends when the receiving spouse becomes self supporting. When the parties have been married a long time or if the receiving spouse’s health or age prevents them from supporting themselves, Fulton County family court judges sometimes grant long-term spousal support. A divorce lawyer in Buckhead may be able to advise potential clients on whether or not child or spousal support might be available in their case.
Negotiated Divorce Settlements Keeps Control in Your Hands
There are significant advantages to negotiating a divorce settlement with your spouse. Even if you do not communicate well, a negotiated settlement is more cost-effective and private and keeps the final decisions in your hands.
Some couples resolve all the outstanding issues before filing for divorce. These couples can file for an uncontested divorce in which they submit their signed divorce agreements to the court with their divorce petition. A couple submitting their settlement agreement with their divorce petition must cite the no-fault ground for divorce.
Most couples file for divorce before they have reached agreement. They could use a mediator or work through their Buckhead divorce attorneys to decide on child custody arrangements, agree on appropriate child support, and divide their property. They submit their agreements to the court for review, and if all is an order, the judge will issue a divorce decree.
Litigated Divorce Requires Skillful Representation
Some couples begin the divorce process so far apart that they cannot find common ground. Fulton County requires periodic status conferences to help couples reach agreement, but some divorces end up going to trial.
If you believe your divorce will be high conflict and likely to end up at trial, it is critical to work with a skilled divorce litigator. Divorce litigation requires specialized skills. Our experienced divorce litigation team in Buckhead will work aggressively to ensure you meet your goals.
Let a Buckhead Divorce Attorney Help
Divorce involves many complex issues, any or all of which can have a significant impact on your post-divorce future. When dealing with such important legal issues, it is often wise to have experienced legal assistance on your side. Contact a Buckhead divorce lawyer today to learn more about the issues you may face during your divorce, as well as how an attorney may help you pursue a positive outcome.
