Do Georgia Custody Laws Follow Me When I Relocate to Another State?

Deeper Understanding. Better Solutions.
gavel and little wooden figures of husband, wife and child up close on table in courthouse

A court can determine an order of custody in one state. Therefore, if the court in Georgia decided on custody, those laws would follow you to the new state. Once Georgia law has decided on custody, the new state cannot make or modify the existing order.

By doing this, it assures custody orders are handled in a manner that is consistent across the board. If you have questions about custody laws and relocation, the Law Offices of William R. Pike Law LLC can help.

Georgia Custody Laws

When you plan to relocate your child(ren) outside of Georgia, your attorney will advise you of the need for the other party’s consent alongside the court’s decision. In addition, your attorney will explain Georgia custody laws and other factors the court uses before granting relocation.

Some imperative factors a judge uses when considering the modification of a current child custody order include:

It would be best to have the expert legal advice of a Dallas family child custody lawyer like William R. Pike Law. William R. Pike Law knows about the Georgia custody laws moving out of state with children. Call us at 678-564-0199 today for a consultation appointment.

depressed child saying goodbye hugging daddy going away

Suppose you are a custodial parent and wish to move away with your children. In that case, it affects many relationships—particularly between your child(ren) and their non-custodial parent. The Law Offices of William R. Pike Law LLC can help with all your child relocation questions.

Child Custody Relocation Letter

When relocating with your child, a custodial parent must get the consent of the non-custodial parent and the court. The judge will weigh several issues regarding a “relocation petition” you will make for relocation, and your attorney can help.

A relocation petition is a statement between you and the non-custodial parent. It states that each party is in agreement and gives consent to your plans to relocate. In addition, a child custody relocation letter sets new guidelines for all matters related to custody.

Some of the most significant issues that your attorney needs your answer to include:

Your attorney will help you draft a child custody relocation letter that answers the above questions. If the court approves the agreement, you will be permitted to move your child to the new location.

Let’s Draft Your Child Custody Relocation Letter

When looking for the best child custody lawyer Marietta GA residents trust, contact our law firm for help. For over 30 years, William R. Pike Law has been a legal advocate for Dallas, Murrieta, and Metropolitan Atlanta areas. William R. Pike Law LLC has attorneys that genuinely care about the outcome of all child custody issues. Our professional legal team is on your side and will advocate with the court on your behalf. For legal assistance from an attorney that cares, call 678-564-0199 to schedule a consultation appointment.

silhouettes father and son holding hand in hand on meadow autumn sunset background

The legitimation process is complicated for men. Perhaps you are the biological father of a child, but you don’t have the legal standing to prove it. You may lose parental rights in GA even if you have been there for the child since the beginning. Hiring a legitimation lawyer is the best option to secure your parental rights if you weren’t married at the time of the baby’s birth.

What Is Legitimation?

According to Georgia law, when a child is born through wedlock, the biological father is not recognized. Legitimation in GA would be necessary to recognize the biological father as the legal father, as if he were married to the biological mother.

Other than getting married, legitimation is the only way for you to secure legal rights for your child. The Law Offices of William R. Pike Law LLC will guide you through the process.

Your first step is to file a petition in the county where the child’s mother and child reside. If the child resides outside the state, you can file the petition in your residence. If you are trying to adopt, you can file the petition for legitimation in the country where the adoption petition is filed.

The mother of the child must be served a copy of the petition and given a chance to voice their opinion. The court will decide whether the legitimation benefits the child.

How a Legitimation Lawer Can Help

Hiring a legitimation lawyer alleviates a lot of stress during the process. At the time of legitimation, the judge will assess your ability to be a good father. Your legitimation lawyer can speak up for you and highlight your strengths. The Law Offices of William R. Pike Law LLC will make sure that the legitimation process does not keep you from being there for your child. If you are seeking custody, the process may become lengthy and complicated. That’s why it is important to have a lawyer in your corner.

Happy Holidays
test tube with blood sample for paternity test

Many people are confused about what “proof of paternity” means, how it is achieved, and why it is important.

Is a blood test the only way to prove paternity? Why can an affidavit signed at the time of birth sometime satisfy legal requirements? Are there situations where something else entirely is needed?

Here’s what you should know about proving paternity.

Proof of Paternity

Proof of paternity refers to the legal process where an individual state accepts and solidifies a father’s genetic connection with a particular minor child. In some cases, this can be established by providing copies of papers such as birth certificates and marriage licenses.

In other cases, a DNA sample is needed that proves there is a genetic connection between the father and the child. Proof of paternity is meant to prove the connection between father and child for a wide range of legal, social, and financial reasons.

In rare cases, there may be no need for an actual genetic connection for a man to be declared the father. For example, the family might live in a state with what is commonly known as presumption paternity laws. In cases like this, all that is needed is a signed and notarized statement of parental connection or proof that the couple was legally married at the time the child was conceived.

Georgia Paternity Law

Due to the presumption of paternity laws, sometimes single fathers and other men get caught up in legal proceedings.

Sometimes a man is ordered to pay child support for children who were conceived outside of the marriage. They are not biologically his, but they were conceived and born while he was married, so it is assumed they are his children. This is why proof of paternity with a DNA test is so important and why so many fathers ask for them when they are told they need to pay child support. If you have questions about proof of paternity and need to prove paternity or fight a child support order you disagree with for paternity reasons, contact the Law Offices of William R. Pike Law LLC today. We will fight for your rights and help you prove or disprove paternity connections.

young divorcing couple looks in different directions

Dividing a business in a divorce is inevitable and will affect its operations. It’s important to know what to expect, so your business can recover afterward. This article will explain a few things you need to know about how divorce and business owners affect the situation.

Your Business Will Be Categorized

Legally, there is marital property and separate property. Marital property is everything you obtain during your marriage, while separate property is any asset you had before your marriage. That would include business.

But an otherwise separate asset can be considered marital if they are combined. For example, you and your spouse are the business owners that you started during your marriage.

Courts Determine Asset Division

Georgia isn’t a community property state. That means it doesn’t automatically consider assets obtained during the marriage as joint property. Equitable distribution will apply, which means a judge will decide who gets what.

If your business grew substantially during your marriage, your spouse would be entitled to the value that he or she has added. If it started after you were married, it would be divided evenly.

The court decides how your company will be divided based on its income, costs, and the market. Afterward, the court will decide which spouse keeps the business.

The spouse who doesn’t get the business will get equal value in other assets. This may be in the form of business alimony or another way of compensating the other spouse for their interest in the company.

Getting Legal Help from a Paulding County Divorce Attorney

A Paulding County divorce attorney will help you build a case, so you can get your assets divided fairly. With over 30 years of experience, Law Offices of William R. Pike Law, LLC specializes in family law. Rest assured that your case will be in good hands as you schedule a consultation at (678) 564-0199. Call us now!

woman gets money from a jacket

A legal divorce essentially splits apart the status of a married couple whose lives and assets have been combined under a recognized marriage license. To do that correctly, both spouses have to be completely forthcoming in all their information and known property so that the division can happen correctly. However, this part of the divorce isn’t always amicable.

Frequently, one of the spouses has more direct control of wealth and assets than the other, and they want to share them legally, which can trigger the illegal behavior of hiding assets during divorce.

Under the court process, both spouses present their cases, statements, and declarations. If amicable, the details and agreements are already made.

However, in many cases, the process must go through discovery, the legal exercise of requiring the examined party to provide information under court order, as well as answer questions about the case under oath. An examined party can be prosecuted criminally for perjury if caught lying or omitting information under discovery that shows hiding assets divorce intentions.

Despite the legal risk, some spouses still attempt to hide or limit the disclosure of all their assets to avoid sharing them. Common modern techniques involve using cryptocurrency assets that aren’t tracked by traditional bank systems. Old-fashioned methods include converting the value to gold coins and physically hiding them until the divorce is over, which also can’t be tracked well.

In both cases, a professional examination either needs to be applied to find hints of hidden assets, or the examined party needs to be “boxed into” legal statements that become perjury when the assets are eventually found after the fact. Then, the counsel of the victim can ask the court to take action and force a fair distribution. The Law Offices of William R. Pike Law, LLC can be your expert against hiding assets during divorce in Georgia. As a competent team of Dallas, GA, divorce attorneys, our lawyers anticipate and plan for the need to exercise exception discovery when necessary. We make sure our clients are fully represented and have the best advocate in a divorce, whether fairly or not fairly handled by the other side.

couple visiting divorce lawyer in office

Divorce is one of the saddest and most complicated legal proceedings in modern life.

With more than half of first marriages ending in divorce, rather than in the death of one spouse, it’s one that you have a 50% chance of experiencing in your lifetime.

One of the things you need to deal with is the division of your property and assets. It’s better to mutually decide what happens to your property when you split up than to have a judge make that decision for you.

Separation of property becomes all the more important once you know a divorce is coming. Make sure you know what’s yours and be ready to make a stand for it. It’s your future.

What Is Non Marital Property?

In a divorce, certain types of property are separate property and not subject to division. These include property that a spouse owned before getting married, inherited property or gifts to one spouse only and part of some personal injury awards. Some states separate income once the couple is formally and permanently separated, prior to the finalization of a divorce.

What About My House and My Business?

Assets in divorce are divided by principles of equitability. In short, fairness. Many people often ask what will happen to their home or their business in the divorce.

In some cases, equitable distribution of property will result in the property being divided equally. In many cases, however, especially with high-value assets that can’t be evenly split, like a house or a business, the division won’t be equal.

financial problem, debt and eviction, hard long relocation day

How Can I Keep My Property Separate in Divorce?

An agreement to keep property separate can help with important questions of post-marriage property dispersal. Contact the Law Offices of William R. Pike Law LLC. We are Dallas GA divorce attorneys, and we’re here to help you solve all the trickiest problems of marriage dissolution with sensitivity and grace.

Going through a divorce can be difficult in many ways. Not only can a divorce be emotionally draining, but there are challenges to consider, such as the division of property. The Law Offices of William R. Pike Law LLC can help you come to a property settlement that’s fair and equitable.

man and woman are signing divorce agreement

Marital Property

In Georgia, assets and debts that are collected throughout a marriage are considered to be marital property. It might include income, real estate, investments, as well as other types of assets.

If both spouses can’t agree on how to divide marital property, the courts will determine how the property should be divided. Georgia courts can’t transfer a title from one party to another, but they can award a portion of the property’s value to one spouse. The courts also consider factors like the length of the marriage and contributions that each party made to the household.

puzzle house is divided into two equal parts by a lawyer in a divorce process

Separate Property

Inherited property and property acquired before the marriage is generally considered to be separate property.

During a marriage, couples may share separate assets. For example, many couples combine finances and share a bank account. In these scenarios, separate property may be reclassified as marital property. Property that’s used for the benefit of the household, like a vehicle, can also become marital property.

How Can Paulding County Divorce Lawyers Can Help

If you and your ex-partner can’t agree on how the property should be divided, the best thing you can do is contact an experienced attorney. A lawyer can make sure that all marital property is accounted for and divided fairly during a divorce. Your attorney will be able to handle negotiations and protect your interests throughout this process. The Law Offices of William R. Pike Law LLC have been representing clients in Dallas, GA, and surrounding areas for more than 30 years. If you’re going through a divorce, don’t hesitate to reach out to us at (678) 564-019.

little pupil walking with his father

Child Support Enforcement in GA

When parents get divorced in Georgia, they are both still responsible for the financial welfare of their children. During the divorce, an established child support agreement will be determined. The noncustodial parent will be responsible for paying the custodial parent child support to help pay for school, food, shelter, sports, activities, and more. However, sometimes the parent responsible for paying child support fails to meet their obligations. When this occurs, it is possible to go to the courts for help with child support enforcement. 

What are the obligations?

Both parents are obligated to support their children financially and emotionally. Therefore, the ordered child support becomes the obligation of the noncustodial parent to pay to the custodial parent to ensure the child is taken care of financially. 

What happens when child support payments are not made?

If the parent ordered to pay child support violates or disobeys any child support orders, the judge can punish that parent. If you are the parent who should be receiving child support from the other parent and are not getting the payments, it is best to file a motion for enforcement with the courts. The non-paying parent could be contemptuous and face fines and jail time. 

Your Paulding County child support attorney can help you file the court’s motion for missed child support payments. 

Can modifications be made?

If there is a significant change in one parent’s income, it is possible to petition the courts to modify the original child support order. A child support attorney in Paulding County GA can help determine if a modification in child support is needed. 

How a child support attorney can help

A child support enforcement attorney in Paulding County can help with child support enforcement. If the other parent has not fulfilled their obligations, your attorney can file all necessary paperwork with the courts and appear with you.  Call the Law Offices of William R. Pike Law LLC to schedule a consultation with one of our attorneys.

Badge
Badge
Badge
Badge
Badge
Badge
Badge
Badge

request a consultation

All fields are required. Please fill out the form and we will get back to you within 24 hours.

Dallas Office

110 Evans Mill Drive, Suite 402
Dallas, GA 30157
get directions