Divorce in Georgia

KEEPING YOUR DIVORCE OUT OF COURT

Attorney Barbara E. Keon encourages mediation.  Mediation is based on the recognition that divorces should be settled as amicably as possible.  Many issues involved in divorce—such as child custody, alimony, and property division—are viewed as too personally sensitive for the type of traditional litigation that pits one party against the other.  Spouses enter mediation to compromise and have direct input on the ultimate outcome of their case.

The goals and characteristics of mediation are:

  • Aims to facilitate good faith discussion.
  • Is discreet (i.e., outside of Court) and confidential.
  • Seeks voluntary, consensual agreements.

In mediation, each spouse retains the lawyer they have hired who is knowledgeable about their case.  This demonstrates the commitment that Barbara E. Keon and other lawyers who mediate in the Metro Atlanta area have to keeping your divorce outside of court.

CONTESTED DIVORCE IN GEORGIA

Sometimes, spouses simply refuse or fail to agree on the key issues of a divorce. When this happens, the divorce is considered “contested” and goes to trial where a judge or jury will issue a ruling.  There are several issues that may prove particularly divisive for divorcing spouses:

  • Child Custody and Visitation Rights
  • Property Division
  • Debt Division
  • Child Support
  • Alimony

If your divorce goes to trial, attorney Barbara E. Keon will be fully committed to aggressively and pragmatically representing your interests.  For the few divorces that go to trial, the time for negotiation is unfortunately over.

UNCONTESTED DIVORCES

If you are lucky and you and your spouse agree on custody, support, visitation, alimony, and property and debt division (or if you have very little to decide, as in a short marriage with no children and few assets), you can file for an uncontested divorce.  Uncontested divorces mainly entail meeting eligibility requirements, filling out the paperwork, signing a settlement agreement, and then waiting 31 to 45 days for everything to become official.  For such divorces, attorney Barbara E. Keon can review the terms of your agreement to ensure that it is in your best interests.

Call (770) 350-8582 for help with the divorce process in the Metro Atlanta area.