Georgia Child Custody Agreement

Introduction

Key Things to Know

1. 1

   Georgia is a ratify or explain state. O.C.G.A. Section 19-9-5(a) lets parents present the judge an agreement respecting any and all issues concerning custody, and Section 19-9-5(b) directs that the judge shall ratify the agreement and make it part of the judge's final judgment. The only escape is for the judge to make specific written factual findings, as part of the final judgment, that the agreement would not be in the child's best interests. That is a writing and specificity duty rather than an evidentiary standard, and it puts the burden of explanation on the judge rather than on the parents.

2. 2

   One reason for refusing is taken off the table by name. Section 19-9-5(b) provides that the judge shall not refuse to ratify the agreement based solely upon the parents' choice to use joint custody as part of it. Section 19-9-5(c) lets the judge supplement the agreement on issues the agreement does not address, which is a different power from rewriting terms you did settle. That makes coverage worth attention when you draft, because a subject you leave silent is one the judge may fill in.

3. 3

   Georgia lets parents arbitrate custody, and the award gets the same deference the agreement does. Under Section 19-9-1.1 parents may agree to binding arbitration on the issue of child custody and matters relative to visitation, parenting time, and a parenting plan, may select their own arbitrator, and may choose which issues go to arbitration. The arbitrator's decisions shall then be incorporated into a final decree awarding child custody unless the judge makes specific written factual findings that the award would not be in the child's best interests. Most states do not allow binding arbitration of custody at all, so this is a genuinely Georgia specific option.

4. 4

   A parenting plan is required in Georgia even when the parents agree. Section 19-9-1(a) requires one in all cases in which custody of any child is at issue between the parents, with an exception where a parent is seeking emergency relief for family violence under Section 19-13-3 or Section 19-13-4, and the plan shall be required for permanent custody and modification actions while a judge may require one for temporary hearings. Parents who agree may jointly submit a single plan, while parents who cannot agree must each file and serve a proposed plan by the judge's deadline. Section 19-9-1(a) also requires the final order in any legal action involving custody, including a modification action, to incorporate a permanent parenting plan.

5. 5

   Georgia's prescribed plan contents come in two groups, and only one bends to your agreement. The six operational items in Section 19-9-1(b)(2) that apply to every plan, covering the day by day schedule, holidays and special occasions, transportation, supervision, decision-making authority, and limitations on contact and access to information, are introduced by the words unless otherwise ordered by the court, or agreed upon by the parties, so the parents' own agreement is enough to displace them. The four recognitions in Section 19-9-1(b)(1) are introduced only by unless otherwise ordered by the court, so nothing short of a court order removes those. Treating all eleven as one undifferentiated checklist gets both halves wrong.

6. 6

   The seventeen best interest factors in Georgia are doubly open. Section 19-9-3(a)(3) introduces them with the words the judge may consider any relevant factor including, but not limited to, so the list is illustrative and consulting it is discretionary rather than mandatory. The related findings duty at Section 19-9-3(a)(8) is triggered only if a party requests it on or before the close of evidence in a contested hearing, which means it switches off when the parents agree. Separately, Section 19-9-3(a)(5) gives a child who has reached 14 the right to select the parent with whom to live, subject to the judge's determination, and Section 19-9-3(a)(6) directs the judge to consider the desires of a child aged 11 to 13.

7. 7

   Family violence in Georgia works as a hard limit on visitation rather than as a presumption against custody. Section 19-9-7 permits a judge to award visitation or parenting time to a parent who committed one or more acts involving family violence only if the judge finds that adequate provision for the safety of the child and of the parent who is a victim can be made, and it supplies conditions the judge may attach, protects the address of the child and the victim, and bars ordering an adult victim into joint counseling with the perpetrator as a condition of custody or visitation. Section 19-9-3(a)(4) adds that once the judge has found family violence, the safety and well-being of the child and of the victim parent shall be considered as primary, the perpetrator's history of causing harm shall be considered, a victim parent's absence or relocation shall not be treated as abandonment, and evidence of family violence shall not be excluded merely because there has been no previous finding of it. If this is part of your situation, it is a matter for a lawyer rather than a form.

Georgia Requirements for Child Custody Agreement

• Ratification of a Custody Agreement Under O.C.G.A. 19-9-5(a) and (b)

  Parents may present the judge an agreement respecting any and all issues concerning custody, and the judge shall ratify it and make it part of the final judgment unless the judge makes specific written factual findings, as part of that judgment, that the agreement would not be in the child's best interests.

• No Refusal Based Solely on Joint Custody Under O.C.G.A. 19-9-5(b)

  The judge shall not refuse to ratify an agreement based solely upon the parents' choice to use joint custody as part of it. The document should identify whether joint legal custody, joint physical custody, or both are intended.

• Judicial Supplementation Under O.C.G.A. 19-9-5(c)

  The judge may supplement the agreement on issues the agreement does not address. Coverage is therefore worth attention at drafting, because a subject left silent is one a judge may fill in.

• Mandatory Parenting Plan Under O.C.G.A. 19-9-1(a)

  A parenting plan is required in all cases in which custody of any child is at issue between the parents, except where a parent seeks emergency relief for family violence under 19-13-3 or 19-13-4, and the final order in any custody or modification action must incorporate a permanent parenting plan. Parents who agree may jointly submit one plan.

• Required Recognitions Under O.C.G.A. 19-9-1(b)(1)

  Four recognitions must appear in the plan: continuity and a close and continuing parent-child relationship; changing needs as the child matures with parenting aimed at minimizing future modifications; day-to-day and emergency decision-making by the parent with physical custody at the time; and both parents' access to all of the child's records and information. These are prefaced only by unless otherwise ordered by the court, so the parties cannot displace them by agreement.

• Plan Contents the Parties May Displace Under O.C.G.A. 19-9-1(b)(2)

  Seven operational items are prefaced by unless otherwise ordered by the court, or agreed upon by the parties: the day by day schedule for the year, holidays and special occasions with start and end times, transportation and exchange arrangements and cost, whether supervision is needed, allocation of decision-making with a method for resolving joint decisions, and any limitations on contact and on access to the child's information. The list is stated as including but not limited to those items.

• Consequence of Not Filing a Plan Under O.C.G.A. 19-9-1(c)

  Where the parties cannot agree and one fails to file a parenting plan, failure to comply may result in the court adopting the plan of the opposing party if the judge finds that plan to be in the child's best interests.

• Binding Arbitration of Custody Under O.C.G.A. 19-9-1.1

  Parents may agree to binding arbitration on custody and matters relative to visitation, parenting time, and a parenting plan, may select their own arbitrator, and may choose which issues are arbitrated. The arbitrator's decisions are incorporated into the final decree unless the judge makes specific written factual findings that the award would not be in the child's best interests.

• Change of Residence Notice Under O.C.G.A. 19-9-3(f)(3)

  A parent changing residence must notify the other parent, and any other person granted visitation or parenting time, at least 30 days before the anticipated change, giving the full address of the new residence, except where otherwise provided by court order. Georgia sets no distance threshold and no objection procedure.

• Family Violence Limits Under O.C.G.A. 19-9-7 and 19-9-3(a)(4)

  Visitation or parenting time may be awarded to a parent who committed one or more acts involving family violence only if the judge finds adequate provision for the safety of the child and the victim parent can be made, with safety conditions available and address confidentiality protected. Once family violence is found, the safety and well-being of the child and victim parent are considered as primary.