Duluth Divorce Lawyer

Duluth Divorce Lawyer

If you are considering divorce or were recently served with divorce papers, it is essential that you understand everything at stake. A knowledgeable Duluth divorce lawyer from Crystal Wright Law, LLC can help you through every step of the divorce process, ensuring that you have the necessary insight to make important decisions that can affect your life for years to come. 

Our Duluth, Georgia, divorce lawyer has nearly a decade of legal experience. Attorney Crystal Wright focuses her practice exclusively on divorce and family law matters, so you can trust that she understands the legal procedures and dynamics involved in your case. Contact us today at (404) 594-2143 for a confidential consultation. 

How Can a Duluth Divorce Lawyer Help Me?

Divorce is a challenging process that also has significant financial and legal implications. When you hire Crystal Wright Law, LLC, you can reasonably expect us to:

  • Sit down with you to discuss your particular situation and objectives
  • Explain how Georgia law applies to your case
  • Explore options for settling your case outside of court
  • Ensure that you are aware of all the factors that can affect different outcomes in your case
  • Gather records and other evidence to help establish your legal arguments and the information you need to make informed decisions.
  • Advise you of the different pros and cons of taking different actions in your case.
  • Represent you at all court hearings.

Learn more about how a Duluth family law attorney can help in your particular case when you contact us for a confidential case review.

What Are the Grounds for Divorce in Georgia?

In Georgia, you do not have to allege that either spouse is responsible for the breakdown of the marriage. Instead, you can file on the grounds that your marriage is irretrievably broken. This is known as a no-fault divorce. 

In some cases, a spouse may file on fault-based grounds, such as adultery, willful desertion, fraud, habitual intoxication, incurable mental illness, or cruel treatment. To file for an at-fault divorce, a spouse must first prove the circumstances before they can make decisions regarding the divorce. Fault may be relevant in some circumstances, such as if you are trying to establish your spouse should not receive child custody because they have made decisions that would adversely affect your children’s welfare. An experienced divorce lawyer can review your individual circumstances and explain the grounds you can use in your specific case.

However, before a Georgia court grants a divorce, at least one of the spouses must meet the residency requirement. This requires that either you or your spouse have been a resident of Georgia for at least six months before one of you files for divorce.

Additionally, Georgia requires that the court wait at least 30 days before granting a divorce based on no-fault grounds.

While divorce is an emotionally heightened process in many cases, it is a legal case at its core. It is the legal process of extricating yourself from your spouse. During the divorce proceedings, many important legal issues will be resolved, including:

Property Division 

During the divorce process, you and your spouse will be required to provide financial disclosures regarding your assets, debts, and incomes. The property you own together and your debt is divided after the court determines it is marital property and its value.

During the course of a marriage, a couple can accumulate a lot of property. They may purchase a marital home. They could buy one or more vehicles. They may be joint account owners on financial accounts. They may make significant earnings at a job. 

Generally, property that spouses accumulate during their marriage is considered marital property. It is subject to division during a divorce. Georgia uses an equitable distribution system to divide property during divorce, which means courts consider what is fair under the circumstances, no matter how the property is titled. The same rules apply to marital debt.

The property each spouse owned before the marriage, received as a separate gift, or used the proceeds from to purchase separate property is generally considered separate property. This property is generally not subject to division during the divorce. 

Spousal Support

Alimony or spousal support is a financial payment one spouse gives to the other. The purpose of spousal support is to provide one spouse with financial assistance if they cannot support themselves. It prevents newly divorced people from relying on public assistance and often considers the sacrifices a spouse made to run the household, raise children, or support their spouse’s careers that make them a lower-earning party. 

Spousal support can be temporary or permanent. It can also be paid in a lump sum or in regular payments. Spousal support is not mandatory in Georgia. To receive spousal support, a spouse must ask the court to award it, and the court must determine it is appropriate under the circumstances. Spousal support generally ends when the recipient spouse remarries or becomes financially self-sufficient. The spousal support award could end before this if the court determines this is appropriate. 

Child Custody

Child custody is one of the most important aspects of many divorces. There are different types of custody. Physical custody refers to the parent with whom the child lives most of the time. Legal custody refers to the right to make important decisions about the child, such as where they will go to school and which types of medical treatment they will receive. 

The parents can negotiate a custody plan, or the court can order what it determines to be in the child’s best interests. If the court decides, it considers factors such as the child’s age, the relationship with both parents, the parent’s financial circumstances and ability to provide care, and the child’s preferences. 

In some court cases, advocates may be appointed to act in the child’s interests. Child custody evaluators may do home evaluations and interview those familiar with the child and parents to make a recommendation to the court. 

The court can decide to grant joint custody to both parents, in which case the child may split their time between two households.

Child Support 

Both parents are financially responsible for supporting their child. Georgia lawmakers want children to benefit from both parents’ financial contributions even if they live apart. Georgia courts may order child support based on each parent’s income and ability to pay. 

What Is the Difference Between a Contested and Uncontested Divorce? 

An uncontested divorce is one in which you and your spouse agree on the abovementioned legal issues. Contested divorce is when you don’t, and you must go to court to have the judge decide what is best for your family. 

Uncontested divorce offers many benefits, including:

  • It’s more affordable.
  • It’s faster.
  • It is less contentious.
  • You are part of the decision-making process. 

At Crystal Wright Law, LLC, we focus on helping our clients achieve a collaborative divorce. Through this process, we take on cases in which the couple may not immediately agree on the terms of their divorce. We work with them, their spouse’s attorney, and other experts to reach a mutually agreeable settlement, allowing the couple to move forward with an uncontested divorce and a settlement that meets their unique needs.

What Is the Divorce Process in Georgia?

The Georgia divorce process can consist of many steps. Many of these can be avoided when the couple pursues an uncontested and collaborative divorce. The divorce process may include the following:

  • The complaint: The divorce complaint sets out the facts of the case, the request for divorce, information about residency and venue, and other critical information.
  • Service: The complaint must be served on the other spouse.
  • Answer: The spouse who is served with the divorce papers can respond to the divorce complaint, alleging their own arguments or disagreeing with the other spouse’s contentions.
  • Mediation: Georgia courts require divorcing spouses to go to mediation to try to settle their case out of court. During mediation, an objective third party tries to help the spouses find a middle ground and reach compromises so they can divorce without the hassle of a trial.
  • Discovery: Discovery is the formal process of requesting information about a pending case. You and your spouse may be asked to share information about your finances, children, and other information relevant to your divorce.
  • Settlement negotiations: You and your spouse can try to settle your case on your own or with the help of your lawyers.
  • Trial: If your case does not settle, it proceeds to trial. At trial, you and your spouse can present your legal arguments, evidence, and witnesses. The judge decides the important issues related to your case, and you are bound by their decision.

While this process might seem complex, having an attorney will simplify the process for you and ensure you have support on your side. 

Contact an Experienced Duluth Divorce Lawyer for Help 

At Crystal Wright Law, LLC, we want to help you get a divorce on your terms. We can evaluate your situation and explain how we can help during a confidential case review. Contact us today to learn more and work with our experienced Duluth divorce lawyer.