2020 Georgia Code
Title 19 - Domestic Relations
Chapter 5 - Divorce
§ 19-5-17. Determination of Parties' Rights; Preventing Remarriage Forbidden

When a divorce is granted, the jury or the judge, as the case may be, shall determine the rights of the parties. No person shall be placed under a disability that would prevent remarriage.

(Code 1868, § 1726; Code 1873, § 1727; Code 1882, § 1727; Civil Code 1895, § 2445; Civil Code 1910, § 2964; Code 1933, § 30-122; Ga. L. 1946, p. 90, § 12; Ga. L. 1960, p. 1024, § 1; Ga. L. 1979, p. 466, § 5.)

RESEARCH REFERENCES

ALR.

- Inhibition by decree of divorce, or statute of state or country in which it is granted, against remarriage, as affecting a marriage celebrated in another state or country, 32 A.L.R. 1116; 51 A.L.R. 325.

• 19-6-1. Alimony defined; when authorized; how determined; lien on estate of party dying prior to order; certain changes in parties' assets prohibited.
• 19-6-2. Attorney's fees; when and how granted; enforcement.
• 19-6-3. Temporary alimony; petition and hearing; factors considered; discretion of judge; revision and enforcement of order; effect of failure to comply.
• 19-6-4. When permanent alimony authorized; how enforced.
• 19-6-5. Factors in determining amount of alimony; effect of remarriage on obligations for alimony.
• 19-6-6. Liability after grant of alimony.
• 19-6-7. Interest in deceased party's estate after grant of permanent alimony.
• 19-6-8. Voluntary separation, abandonment, or driving off of spouse - Agreement for support as bar to alimony.
• 19-6-9. Voluntary separation, abandonment, or driving off of spouse - Equity may compel support.
• 19-6-10. Voluntary separation, abandonment, or driving off of spouse - Petition for alimony or child support when no divorce pending - Order and enforcement; equitable remedies; effect of filing for divorce.
• 19-6-11. Voluntary separation, abandonment, or driving off of spouse - Petition for alimony or child support when no divorce pending - Appeals.
• 19-6-12. Voluntary separation, abandonment, or driving off of spouse - Effect of subsequent cohabitation between spouses on permanent alimony.
• 19-6-13. Liability of parents for necessaries furnished to children pending voluntary provision or court order.
• 19-6-14. Child support and custody pending final divorce; liability to third persons for necessaries.
• 19-6-15. Child support guidelines for determining amount of award; continuation of duty of support; duration of support.
• 19-6-16. Enforcement of child support orders, decrees, or verdicts.
• 19-6-17. Application for child support when custody awarded to nonparent or noncustodial parent was not subject to divorce court's jurisdiction; procedure; enforcement; judgment.
• 19-6-18. Revision of judgment for permanent alimony and child support rendered prior to July 1, 1977; petition and hearing; expenses of litigation.
• 19-6-19. Revision of judgment for permanent alimony generally - Petition and hearing; cohabitation with third party as ground for revision; attorney's fees; temporary modification.
• 19-6-20. Revision of judgment for permanent alimony, generally - Issues for court to consider.
• 19-6-21. Revision of judgment for permanent alimony - Not available in case of lump sum award.
• 19-6-22. Revision of judgment for permanent alimony - Expenses of litigation.
• 19-6-23. Applicability of Code Section 19-6-18 or Code Sections 19-6-19 through 19-6-22 to judgments on or after March 9, 1955.
• 19-6-24. Applicability of Code Section 19-6-18 or Code Sections 19-6-19 through 19-6-22 to judgments prior to March 9, 1955.
• 19-6-25. Revision of judgments for permanent alimony entered prior to March 9, 1955.
• 19-6-26. Jurisdiction.
• 19-6-27. Application for permanent alimony or child support after grant of foreign divorce decree; venue; hearing; review; modification.
• 19-6-28. Enforcement of orders; contempt; service of rule nisi by mail; rule nisi form.
• 19-6-28.1. Suspension of, or denial of application or renewal of, license for noncompliance with child support order.
• 19-6-29. Inclusion of accident and sickness insurance coverage in order for child support; payroll deductions.
• 19-6-30. Collection of child support by continuing garnishment; child support subject to income deduction.
• 19-6-31. Definitions [Repealed].
• 19-6-32. Entering income deduction order or medical support notice for award of child support; when order or notice effective; hearing on order.
• 19-6-33. Notice and service of income deduction order; hearing on enforcement of order; discharge of obligor; penalties.
• 19-6-33.1. Family support registry.
• 19-6-34. Inclusion of life insurance in order of support.
• 19-6-35. Child support obligee regarded as creditor for attacking certain judgments and transactions.
• 19-6-36. (Effective January 1, 2021) Judgment or lien surviving death; procedure and rights.

• 19-6-50. Creation; responsibilities.
• 19-6-51. Members; terms; chairperson, other officers, and committees; staffing and funding.
• 19-6-52. Meetings; members' expenses.
• 19-6-53. Duties; powers; authorization to retain professional services.

- Procedure for appeals from judgments or orders granting or refusing temporary or permanent alimony or holding or declining to hold persons in contempt of such alimony judgments or orders, § 5-6-35.

Domestic relations long-arm statute, § 9-10-91(5).

- Office of Child Support Recovery, Official Compilation of the Rules and Regulations of the State of Georgia, Rules of Department of Human Services, Chapter 290-7.

- For annual survey of domestic relations law, see 35 Mercer L. Rev. 127 (1983). For annual survey of law of domestic relations, see 38 Mercer L. Rev. 179 (1986). For article, "Gender and Justice in the Courts: A Report to the Supreme Court of Georgia by the Commission on Gender Bias in the Judicial System," see 8 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 539 (1992). For annual survey of domestic relations law, see 43 Mercer L. Rev. 243 (1991). For annual survey article on domestic relations, see 50 Mercer L. Rev. 217 (1998). For note appraising the Georgia domestic relations long-arm statute, see 18 Ga. L. Rev. 691 (1984). For note on 1995 amendments and enactments of sections in this chapter, see 12 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 169 (1995).

JUDICIAL DECISIONS

Term "former spouse" equates with "parent" when considering child support issues.

- For the purposes of O.C.G.A. T. 19, Ch. 6 of the Georgia Domestic Relations Code, the term "former spouse" is equated with "parent" when considering issues of child support. Monroe v. Taylor, 259 Ga. App. 600, 577 S.E.2d 810 (2003).

Change in Circumstances Justifying Modification of Child Support Order, 1 POF2d 1.

Wife's Ability to Support Herself, 2 POF2d 99.

Forensic Economics - Use of Economists in Cases of Dissolution of Marriage, 17 POF2d 345.

Abandonment of Marriage Without Cause - Defense in Alimony, Spousal Support, or Separate Maintenance Proceeding, 27 POF2d 737.

Spousal Support on Termination of Marriage, 32 POF2d 439.

Modification of Spousal Support Award, 32 POF2d 491.

Legal Malpractice in Domestic Relations, 44 POF2d 377.

Amount of Allowance for Attorney Fees in Domestic Relations Action, 45 POF2d 699.

Modification of Spousal Support on Ground of Supported Spouse's Cohabitation, 6 POF3d 765.

- Validity and enforceability of escalation clause in divorce decree relating to alimony and child support, 19 A.L.R.4th 830.

Excessiveness or adequacy of amount of money awarded as permanent alimony following divorce, 28 A.L.R.4th 786.

Order awarding temporary support or living expenses upon separation of unmarried partners pending contract action based on services relating to personal relationship, 35 A.L.R.4th 409.

Divorce and separation: treatment of stock options for purposes of dividing marital property, 46 A.L.R.4th 640.

Valuation of stock options for purposes of divorce court's property distribution, 46 A.L.R.4th 689.

Postmajority disability as reviving parental duty to support child, 48 A.L.R.4th 919.

Court's authority to reinstitute parent's support obligation after terms of prior decree have been fulfilled, 48 A.L.R.4th 952.

Necessity that divorce court value property before distributing it, 51 A.L.R.4th 11.

Divorce and separation: method of valuation of life insurance policies in connection with trial court's division of property, 54 A.L.R.4th 1203.

Divorce: excessiveness or adequacy of combined property division and spousal support awards - modern cases, 55 A.L.R.4th 14.

Right to jury trial in state court divorce proceedings, 56 A.L.R.4th 955.

Divorce: order requiring that party not compete with former marital business, 59 A.L.R.4th 1075.

Divorce property distribution: real estate or trust property in which interest vested before marriage and was realized during marriage, 60 A.L.R.4th 217.

Insanity as defense to divorce or separation suit - post-1950 cases, 67 A.L.R.4th 277.

Divorce and separation: effect of court prohibiting sale or transfer of property on party's right to change beneficiary of insurance policy, 68 A.L.R.4th 929.

What constitutes order made pursuant to state domestic relations law for purposes of qualified domestic relations order exception to antialienation provision of Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (29 USCS § 1056(d)), 79 A.L.R.4th 1081.

Parent's child support liability as affected by other parent's fraudulent misrepresentation regarding sterility or use of birth control, or refusal to abort pregnancy, 2 A.L.R.5th 337.

Authority of court, upon entering default judgment, to make orders for child custody or support which were not specifically requested in pleadings of prevailing party, 5 A.L.R.5th 863.

Spouse's right to set off debt owed by other spouse against accrued spousal or child support payments, 11 A.L.R.5th 259.

ARTICLE 1 GENERAL PROVISIONS

Editor's notes.

- Ga. L. 2005, p. 224, § 1/HB 221, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that: "The General Assembly finds and declares that it is important to assess periodically child support guidelines and determine whether existing guidelines continue to be viable and effective or whether they have failed or ceased to accomplish their original policy objectives. The General Assembly further finds that supporting Georgia's children is vitally important to the citizens of Georgia. Therefore, the General Assembly has determined that it is in the best interests of the state and its citizenry to undertake an evaluation of the child support guidelines on a continuing basis. The General Assembly declares that it is important that all of Georgia's children are provided with adequate financial support whether the children's parents are living together or not living together. The General Assembly finds that both parents have a continuing obligation with respect to providing financial and emotional stability for their child or children. It is the hope of the members of the General Assembly that all parents work together to advance the best interest of their children."