Child Custody Laws in Georgia

Divorce in Georgia » Child Custody Laws in Georgia

After a couple decides to take divorce and stay apart from each other, the major problem that they face is that of the custody of the children. The child custody laws in Georgia are strict because otherwise most of the people do not take the responsibility of their child. It becomes difficult to decide whether the father or the mother will be given the custody and in case both of them deny of keeping their kids with them, the custody is given to the relatives or grand parents so that they can take care of the children. Many a times, when no one is present who can take care of the kids, the government makes certain arrangements for the help and support of the children. The court of law makes sure that the custody of the children is given to the natural parents because only they can perfectly care for them and provide them with all the necessities. The help is given till a certain time or until a certain event occurs. Most of the times it so happens that the child is given financial help until and unless he becomes financially independent. Getting separated from the kids is like drain of emotions for the partner who doesn't get the custody of the child.

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Child custody laws are there to help the children by providing them all the things they need in order to live a normal life just like the other kids. This is mainly done to save children from depression and other problems that might creep in when they come to know about the separation of their parents. Most of the times, the children don't even know the meaning and reason why their parents are fighting and taking a divorce.

Some of the child custody laws in Georgia are given below in detail.

Child custody laws in Georgia

In Georgia, both parents are considered equal while deciding who should be given the custody of the child. In Georgia, there are unique laws of child custody and the two unique types of custodies are:

• Legal custody:In this type of custody, the parents are given the whole and sole right to take the major decisions regarding the child. They are given the responsibility to decide the things that are good and bad for the child so that he can achieve success in life. There is also the joint child custody, in this type of custody both the parents can decide what is good and what is bad for the child. In other cases, only one parent can decide things related to the child like medical, educational and religious decisions.

• Physical custody:Physical custody is another type of custody that is prevalent in Georgia. In this type, the child is given to one of the parents and he is the whole and sole in charge of the child. He gets to spend time with the child and be with him all the while. In certain cases, both the parents can spend equal time with the child so that the child does not feel deprived of the love of one of his parents.

Also in Georgia, children above the age of 14 can decide with whom they want to live with but this decision can be overruled by the judge if he thinks that living with the choice of the child is not in the best interest of the child. The decision depends upon the kind of relationship the child shares with his parents and how close is he to them. The parent who is closer to the child is sometimes given the child custody. Even after giving the child custody to one of the parents, the information and records of the child are open to both the parents because no matter who the child lives with, he is being loved by the two.

Child custody laws in Georgia are mainly designed in a way that they do not look like a burden to either of the parents and they can easily take care of their kids by giving equal time to them.

There is a parenting plan that the judge keeps in mind while deciding about the custody of the child, some of the major rules in that plan are given below:

• How the child celebrates his birthday, vacations and other small holidays, who does he wants to live with and also the living standard of the kid is taken into consideration.
• Another thing is where will the child spend most of his time in a year.
• The judge makes sure that the child custody is given to the right person and no supervision is required for them. In case the judge thinks that the person with which the child is, is not the right person he might change his decision and take a decision that is best suited for the child.

Divorce makes it difficult for the children to live their life normally and on top of that they are given to one of the parents to stay without the love and care of the other one. It is like a tragedy that they have to go through. Parents should be good enough and friendly with the child and should meet each other so that the child can be with the other parent as well and not feel left out. Child custody laws in Georgia will help all the parents looking for any information regarding this field. The laws should be strictly followed in order to escape the consequences that might creep up in case they go the illegal way.