How to Negotiate a Divorce Settlement Offer in Georgia

Going through the process of getting a divorce can be painful and difficult. If you and your future ex-spouse are unable to a quick agreement on issues of property distribution, alimony and custody, the process of negotiating a divorce settlement can make getting a divorce even harder. Successfully negotiating a divorce settlement in Georgia will require you to assess your goals for the distribution of marital property, understand your capabilities to provide for children to the marriage and prepare diligently by conducting research and gathering documentation.

Instructions

1. Assess your abilities to provide care to any marital child. To negotiate a divorce settlement in Georgia successfully, you must understand the law pertaining to child custody. Under Georgia law, a divorce settlement involving children entails matters of legal and physical custody. Legal custody refers to the right to make significant decisions as to education, health and religious upbringing of a child, while physical custody refers to the right to have a marital child live with the parent. Both legal and physical custody can be assigned to either parent (sole custody) or both parents (joint custody), and a parent who is not awarded physical custody will typically receive visitation rights. Negotiating a divorce settlement in Georgia when marital children are involved requires understanding these options and honestly assessing what level of parenting you are capable of providing.

2. Take inventory of marital property subject to property distribution. Under Georgia law, almost all property acquired during the marriage is "marital property" and is subject to an equitable distribution. Marital property includes property titled only in the name of one spouse, as well as an increase in value of property acquired before the marriage caused by active involvement by either spouse.

3. Gather any necessary documentation. Necessary documentation may include the health and education records of marital children, bank records, investment account records, vehicle titles and property titles. If you do not have access to these records and your ex-spouse will not willingly provide them, you may need to subpoena these records.

4. Formulate priorities for negotiation. While Georgia law classifies all property acquired during the marriage as marital property, Georgia is not a community property state. Georgia has no predetermined rules for distributing marital property. Having an idea of the value of all marital property, and what pieces of marital property you would want, is an important step in negotiating a divorce settlement successfully.

5. Calmly negotiate with your ex-spouse and their counsel. While a Georgia divorce settlement negotiation does not take place in a courtroom before a judge, acting with hostility toward your ex-spouse or their counsel is a certain way to have the negotiations end in failure. Calmly setting forth your priorities toward child care and property distribution and not reacting with hostility to your ex-spouse's priorities makes it more likely for you to achieve your goals in the negotiation.

Tips & Warnings

• If your future ex-spouse has retained the services of an attorney, hiring an attorney to assist you with negotiating a divorce settlement may be prudent.

References

• Justia: 2006 Georgia Code -- 19-9-6
• Justia: 2006 Georgia Code -- 19-9-1
• Harvard Negotiation Law Review: Collaborative Divorce: A Model for Effective Problem-Solving and Prevention