Standing Orders and Rules for Individual Counties

One of the initial principal benefits of a divorce filing is that a standing order immediately goes into effect. The standing order will vary a little county to county but, essentially, it provides a lock down on asset transfers and prevents spouses from removing children from the jurisdiction of the court.

Irrespective of the standing order, upon a divorce filing, title 19 also provides statutory protection to the parties.O.C.G.A. section 19-5-7 provides: "After a petition for divorce has been filed, no transfer of proeprty by either party, except a bona fide transfer in payment of pre-exiting debs, shall pass title so as to avoid the vesting thereof according to the final verdict of the jury in the case...." O.C.G.A. section 19-6-1(e) provides: "Pending final determination by the court of the right of either party to alimony, neither party shall make any substantial change in the assets of the parties' estate except in the course of ordinary business affairs and except for bona fide transfers for value."

Also, there may be particular rules unique to individual counties. DeKalb County, for example, requires the parties to complete their DRFA or “Domestic Relations Financial Affidavit” and their child support worksheets before filing. Fulton County, for example, has a special family law court, pre-set periodic status conferences, special mandatory discovery, and unique judicial officers (lawyers, not judges) who have quasi judicial powers unless an objection is filed. Your Atlanta divorce attorney needs to have experience in the county where you are filing. Sandy Springs Family Law Lawyer Russell Hippe has successfully tried domestic cases in all major Atlanta metropolitan counties, Fulton, Cobb, Gwinnett, and DeKalb. He has extensive experience in Fulton County.