We also can simply advise you on how to achieve the best outcome for your children without engaging in a custody battle because it is usually the fight for custody that can be most harmful to the children.

Types of Child Custody in Georgia

There are two types of custody: legal custody and physical custody. Legal custody is the term used to determine how decisions will be made for your children in the areas of health, education, religion, and extra-curricular activities if the parents are unable to agree. Physical custody is the term used to describe how the children will spend time with each parent. The court requires a detailed parenting plan that sets forth exactly how the children will spend time with each parent and how major decisions for the children will be made. 

Read more: Types of Child Custody.

Guardian ad litem (GAL) Georgia Statute

If you and your spouse are unable to agree upon a parenting plan, we may suggest that a Guardian ad litem (“GAL”) be appointed by the Court to conduct an investigation and make a recommendation about custody. Our divorce attorneys also serve as GALs, and they can bring their child custody experience to that role as well.

Custody Evaluation in Georgia

Another option Georgia child custody laws provide is to request that a custody evaluation be performed. A custody evaluation is typically conducted by a licensed psychologist, who will evaluate you and your family through interviews, psychological testing, observations, and a review of documents. The evaluator will prepare a report of his or her findings and make a child custody recommendation, which, like the GAL recommendation, is not binding on the court.

Occasionally, our attorneys will recommend both a GAL and a custody evaluation in appropriate cases. Custody evaluations are often appropriate when a parent has concerns about the other parent’s mental health. Our child custody attorneys in Atlanta will provide you with more detailed information about GALs and custody evaluations if your situation calls for either one of those processes.

Fees for Georgia Child Custody Cases

Child custody battles can be very expensive, as you will more than likely be expected to pay half of the fees charged by the GAL and the custody evaluator. The toll on the children can also be high, as studies indicate that children fair worse post-divorce if their parents engage in a high-conflict divorce. We will guide you every step of the way to try to minimize the impact the divorce has on your children, as we share your goal of wanting to obtain a result that has as its foundation the best interest of your children.

Georgia Custody Modifications

Once it has been determined, both legal and physical custody can be modified. Legal custody determines who will make major decisions for the children. For a modification of custody to occur, there must be a material change in condition that substantially affects the welfare and best interests of the child. The non-custodial parent’s parenting time may be modified if it is determined to be in the best interest of the child, irrespective of whether there has been a material change in condition. Whenever the court considers issues that impact children, the overriding concern is the children’s best interests.

The process of modifying custody in Atlanta must involve filing a Petition for Modification of Custody. Simply agreeing with the other parent that you are going to change the parenting schedule is not legally binding or enforceable. It is important to keep in mind that a change in custody can, and often is, accompanied by a change in the amount of child support paid. Child custody and child support are closely tied; under most circumstances, the parent who has the majority of parenting time receives child support from the other parent.