A principal issue in contested divorces concerns the division of the parties’ assets. Before a court can equitably divide property, however, it first must classify the property either as marital or non-marital.(1) The classification process unsurprisingly engenders disputes, one of which frequently...
Two Georgia statutes address a party’s right to request issuance of specific findings of fact and conclusions of law supporting court rulings in domestic actions. One generally provides that “[i]n ruling on interlocutory injunctions and in all nonjury trials in courts of record, the court shall upon...
A recent opinion of the Georgia Court of Appeals issued a cautionary tale to spouses who enter into settlement agreements in their divorce cases. This article discusses that appellate decision and the critical lesson in draftsmanship it imparts.
In Messick v. Messick, A21A0600 (Ga. Ct. App., May 1...
All property, including real estate, acquired as a direct result of the labor and investments of the parties during their marriage constitutes marital property to be equitably divided upon divorce under Georgia law.(1) In contrast, a spouse’s business interests and other property acquired/created be...
When spouses who obtained compensation for personal injuries suffered by either or both of them subsequently divorce, they often dispute whether their compensation constitutes marital property subject to equitable division or rather the separate property of the recipient spouse. This article explore...