The Hive Law
The average cost of divorce in Georgia is $21,000.
You’re here because you want to save money on the cost of uncontested divorce in Georgia.
You don’t want to spend tens of thousands of dollars on a break-up.
Filing for divorce in Georgia is hard enough without going into debt to pay for your divorce.
In this article, we are going over:
- Uncontested Divorce In Georgia
- Cost of Uncontested Divorce In Georgia
- Average Cost of Uncontested Divorce in Georgia
- How To File Uncontested Divorce in Georgia
- Hiring Uncontested Divorce Lawyers in Georgia
- Navigating Uncontested Divorce Without a Lawyer
- Who Pays Attorney Fees in Divorce
So, let’s dig in.
Uncontested Divorce In Georgia
Uncontested divorce in Georgia is the most common type of divorce petition.
Uncontested divorces get settled through mediation.
And Georgia’s uncontested divorces do not go to trial to get a divorce decree.
In uncontested divorces, neither spouse contests the major issues in the divorce.
The major divorce issues are:
- Splitting assets in divorce
- Parenting plans
- Child support
- Child custody
- Alimony
If you and your spouse agree on how to handle these items, you should file for an uncontested divorce in Georgia.
Cost of Uncontested Divorce In Georgia
If you’ve decided to file for an uncontested divorce in Georgia, you have some options.
You can either file for divorce with an uncontested divorce lawyer or without one.
Without An Uncontested Divorce Attorney
When you file for an uncontested divorce without an attorney, here’s what the steps look like:
- You and your spouse file the uncontested divorce papers at your local family courts.
- Schedule a court appearance after your required amount of time for Georgia.
- Get your divorce finalized by the judge.
These uncontested divorce forms include:
- the property settlement agreement
- the parenting plan
- the petition for divorce
Make sure that you understand Georgia’s divorce laws surrounding:
- alimony laws
- child support
- property settlement
You can easily mess something up on your uncontested divorce papers.
If this happens, your judge will reject your divorce petition and make you start over.
This can make your easy uncontested divorce complicated and cost more.
Georgia courts will not grant a divorce in less than 30 days after the divorce papers get served.
(It helps to understand the laws surrounding legal separation in Georgia, too.)
This is even if both spouses agree to the divorce sooner with an uncontested divorce in Georgia.
Filing for an uncontested divorce without an attorney is the cheapest route.
You’ll have to spend anywhere from $100-$500 for Georgia uncontested divorce forms.
Then you’ll have to spend about $250-$300 to file your petition for divorce.
All in, you should be able to file for an uncontested divorce without a lawyer for about $1,000-$1,500.
(Check out this divorce preparation checklist to help you get started.)
With An Uncontested Divorce Attorney
You may want an uncontested divorce attorney to guide you through the process.
This doesn’t mean you’re contesting the divorce.
It’s actually smart to hire an attorney (but we’re biased).
A divorce attorney can, at least, review the uncontested divorce paperwork for you.
This way, you are not submitting the wrong information to the Superior Courts.
When this happens, your case will get rejected by the courts.
Then, you have to re-fill out the paperwork (correctly this time) and pay to file it again.
But let’s say that you need a divorce attorney to help you with negotiations.
(Georgia is not a community property state.)
This can help you make sure that you and your spouse come to a fair agreement for both of you.
They will help you negotiate things like:
- splitting assets in divorce
- splitting debts in divorce
- child custody laws
- child support laws
- alimony in Georgia
(If you are not filing for divorce with children in Georgia, then ignore those issues.)
Once the attorney has filled out all the necessary paperwork, they will file it for you.
They will also go with you to court to present your divorce case to the judge.
This is when your divorce will get finalized.
For an uncontested divorce lawyer, you’ll need to pay a retainer fee up front.
These retainer fees range from $2,500-$5,000.
Your divorce lawyer will charge you against this retainer until the money runs out.
If it runs out, you’ll have to make another retainer payment.
If your attorney completes the divorce without using all the money in the retainer, you will get the unused money back.
Uncontested divorce lawyers will charge you anywhere from $200-$400 per hour.
This price depends on where you live and the experience level of the attorney you are using.
Average Cost of Uncontested Divorce in Georgia
When it’s all said and done, the average cost of uncontested divorce in Georgia is $4,100.
This $4,100 includes attorney fees, court fees, and filing fees.
How To File Uncontested Divorce in Georgia
When it comes to how to file for uncontested divorce in Georgia, you have two options.
- Hiring Uncontested Divorce Lawyers
- Uncontested Divorce Without a Lawyer
Hiring Uncontested Divorce Lawyers in Georgia
You can protect yourself during an uncontested divorce by hiring a divorce lawyer.
You want to make sure that the lawyer you hire specializes in an uncontested divorce.
Attorneys who practice in a handful of fields won’t serve you best.
Think of them as a jack of all trades, but a master of none.
You’ll see lawyers who work in many fields like:
- Criminal Defense
- Real Estate Law
- Personal Injury
- Medical Malpractice
- Elder Law
- Divorce
- Family Law
- Immigration Law
- Business Formations
You get the point.
These lawyers spread themselves too thin. Find one that specializes in family law.
After you find a good family law attorney, it’s time to get the ball rolling.
You’ll meet with them for your free divorce consultation.
They will walk you through the Georgia divorce process and answer questions you have.
Then, they will have you fill out the divorce paperwork.
Once you return the uncontested divorce forms to them, they will review all the paperwork.
After reviewing your divorce papers, they file for the uncontested divorce.
Once the divorce forms get filed, the divorce lawyer will arrange for your spouse to get served.
They will hire the sheriff’s department or a servicing company to serve your spouse.
Filing for divorce and having your spouse served divorce papers is part of the divorce process.
This is true whether you have an uncontested vs contested divorce.
It’s also true whether you hire a divorce lawyer or not.
It’s even true if you and your spouse fill out the divorce paperwork together.
One of you will have to file the paperwork and the other will have to get served the divorce papers.
Navigating Uncontested Divorce Without a Lawyer
Remember the average cost of an uncontested divorce in Georgia?
- With a lawyer – $4,100
- Without a lawyer – $1,000
You can save thousands of dollars by filing for an uncontested divorce in Georgia on your own.
The first thing that you want to do is fill out the uncontested divorce forms.
You can do this with your spouse.
You will want to make decisions on how to handle things like:
- Child support
- Child custody
- Splitting of assets
- Splitting of debts
- Alimony
Once you have figure out how to handle all your major divorce issues and the grounds for divorce in Georgia, you can file for divorce.
(Check out the Georgia child support calculator if you need help.)
One of you will file the divorce papers.
The other spouse will get served divorce papers.
That’s just how the divorce laws in Georgia work, even if you have an uncontested divorce.
After you file the divorce papers and serve them, you will schedule a date to show up in the divorce court.
You’ll hear a lot of people tell you that, in Georgia, you have to wait 30 days.
This is not true.
In Georgia, there is no waiting period before you can finalize the divorce.
It’s a matter of how quickly you can get in front of the judge.
This is what usually takes 30-60 days.
Even though your divorce is uncontested, the judge wants to make sure that things look fair.
They will confirm that both of you are okay with the outcomes of the major decisions.
After that, they will finalize your divorce.
You will get the documents proving your divorce is final in the mail.
Who Pays Attorney Fees in Divorce
When it comes to who pays attorney fees in Georgia, each person handles their own attorney fees.
One spouse can ask the other to pay for their attorney fees.
This usually happens in the negotiations for a contested divorce in Georgia.
When you ask the other person to pay for your attorney fees, it’s up to the judge to make the decisions.
You and your spouse should make this decision together when filing an uncontested divorce.
A judge will make one spouse pay for the other’s attorney fees when there is a financial gap.
Think of getting a divorce as a stay at home parent while the other spouse is working.
The judge knows that the stay at home parent is going to need help financially to get off the ground.
They will make the spouse who has a much larger earning power pay for the other’s attorney fees.
Paying for the other spouse’s attorney fees is also considered temporary alimony.
The judge will also determine how much attorney fees should get paid by the other spouse.
They will make this decision based on:
- the finances of each spouse
- the legal needs of the spouse
- the reasonable amount of costs associated with these needs
But remember that it’s up to the judge to determine what fees are reasonable.
They also have the ability to deny you the request and make you pay for your own divorce attorney fees.
Over to You
If you’d like help filing for an uncontested divorce, just fill out the form below.
We will set up a free divorce consultation to help you get started.