Do you want to potentially lose custody of your child?
Or do you want to get as much custody of your child as possible?
Hiring the right child custody lawyer in Georgia can mean the difference between:
Hiring the best child custody lawyers in Georgia means you get the time with your kids that you deserve.
And that your child deserves.
It also means that you get to make decisions on what’s best for them so they can live their happiest life.
Here’s what we are covering about hiring an attorney for child custody.
Custody can be devastating. It’s heartbreaking when parents lose custody of their children . Spouses end up having to pay agonizing amounts of financial support .
If you want to protect your rights, not wrongfully lose custody, and not get raked over the coals financially , fill out the form below. Free consultations are first come first serve . We always run out of slots. Make sure you get yours locked in now .
When you are filing for divorce with children in Georgia, it can get messy fast.
Hiring the right lawyer for child custody is going to save you time, money, and heartache.
We’re talking about the heartache of potentially losing custody.
If parents can agree on a fair parenting plan for an uncontested divorce in Georgia, then things are good.
You won’t need to hire a top-notch lawyer who knows the ins and outs of family law for child custody.
This can save you thousands as the cost per hour for the best child custody lawyers in Georgia is a little pricier.
Let’s talk about the types of child custody in Georgia to know what we’re up against.
Georgia only recognizes two types of child custody.
They are physical child custody and legal child custody.
A parent with full child custody in Georgia means that the child lives with them full time.
But that’s not always in the best interest of the child.
The judges like to see the kids spend roughly equal time with both parents.
For this reason, judges usually grant joint custody.
Joint custody means that the child splits time living with both parents.
Parents with full legal child custody in Georgia get to make all major decisions for the child.
Some of the major decisions based around legal custody include:
Georgia’s child custody laws favor what’s in the best interest of the child.
For legal custody, they believe that both parents should be making major decisions.
Sometimes parents with joint custody cannot come to an agreement on major decisions.
The family courts will appoint one parent the primary custody parent.
This parent has the final say when the parents can’t agree.
The parent who spends more time with the child usually is the custodial parent.
Let’s talk more about what Georgia’s child custody laws mean by the best interest of the child in Georgia.
Georgia’s child custody laws instruct the judge on how to make custody decisions. They must make child custody decisions based on the best interests of the child. The judge has to take into account each parent’s:
When you’re facing a divorce with child custody, there are 5 thing you need to consider to prepare.
For child custody in Georgia, there are only two types of child custody.
In general, the judge will appoint joint custody.
They do this because they feel that it is in the child’s best interests to spend equal time with both parents.
They also believe that both parents have made major decisions for the child together up until this point.
Their goal is to allow both parents to continue working together in the child’s life.
But sometimes it’s not in the child’s best interest for the parents to have joint custody.
Physical child custody refers to where the child lives.
It also refers to which parent cares for the child on a daily basis.
For joint physical child custody, the parents share roughly equal parenting time.
Legal child custody refers to the parent’s right to make major decisions for the child. These decisions are:
Joint physical custody and joint legal custody are the most common outcome.
The circumstances have to be extreme for the courts to award one parent sole custody of the child.
Joint physical custody means that the child lives with both parents.
While it may not mean 50/50, the courts will make the joint physical custody roughly equal.
This usually comes in the form of a 4/3 split.
This means that the child will stay with one parent 4 nights and with the other parent for 3 nights.
The most common joint physical custody is:
Joint legal custody means that the parents will both make major decisions together.
Sometimes the judge can tell that the parents will have disagreements.
In this case, the judge will allow the custodial parent to have the final say when there is a disagreement.
A custodial parent is a parent who the child primarily lives with.
In the joint physical custody agreement above, Parent #1 is the custodial parent.
For a contested divorce with children, you’ll want to hire a divorce and child support lawyer.
It’s important to know what the majority of the experience your lawyer has when you have a divorce.
(And how knowledgeable about custody and child support laws in Georgia.)
Some only do uncontested divorces in Georgia where the parents agree on everything.
Some don’t do ANY divorces with child custody.
(They understand divorce laws in Georgia, but not so much the custody laws.)
You want to make sure that the family lawyers you hire are skilled at child custody divorces.
The best child custody lawyers in Georgia frequently handle divorce cases with child custody battles.
This way, you have the best chances of not losing custody of your child.
Sometimes people fight for child custody when they are not going through a divorce.
A good custody and child support lawyer is going to be an attorney who deals with a lot of divorces.
This is because child custody and divorces normally go hand in hand.
But you need to understand how NOT being married affects your child custody.
And more importantly, your attorney should understand the family law for child custody for unmarried couples.
Child custody attorneys will have to prove that the father is the biological father of the child.
This is because of how the child custody laws in Georgia treat fathers.
A family child custody lawyer will know how to build a case that complies with Georgia’s child custody laws.
In Georgia, paternity does not give the father visitation or custody rights.
Meaning that being the dad doesn’t automatically allow you to have custody.
The first thing that you have to do is prove that you are the father of the child with a paternity test.
Once you have proven paternity, you aren’t in the clear.
And if you want to prove paternity, make sure you having custody is in the best interest of the child.
When you prove paternity, you automatically have to pay child support.
But you may not get child custody.
You would prove you are the father just to pay child support and not have any custody rights.
To get child custody, you have to file for Legitimation.
Only the biological father can file for legitimation.
In Georgia, legitimation must be filed in the county the mother lives in and include claims for:
When you file for legitimation, the mother has an opportunity to dispute it.
She can claim, but has to prove, that you are not the father or that you have lost the opportunity to develop a relationship with the child.
Ultimately, it’s up to the courts to decide if these allegations are true.
If they believe it is in the best interest of the child, they will issue an order declaring the father/child relationship legitimate.
Meaning that you have rights to child custody.
It’s important that you hire an experienced lawyer for child custody.
This way, you have the best chances of proving you are the father, legitimizing it, and getting custody of your child.
A large chunk of the costs for child custody battles comes from child custody attorney fees.
The cost of divorce in Georgia is significantly increased when fighting for custody.
But let’s say you and your spouse agree on the terms of the divorce and custody.
If that’s the case, the cost of uncontested divorce in Georgia is relatively cheap.
But there are other things that add to the cost of child custody.
The main difference in child custody costs is if you have a contested or uncontested case.
Contested child custody cases are going to be much more expensive than uncontested.
Child custody is usually what makes contested divorces in Georgia so expensive.
An uncontested child custody case is where you and your ex agree on how to split custody.
But one parent may be determined to have sole custody (or another unfair outcome).
If they won’t budge on this, you’re going to have to fork out some money for a custody battle.
Your custody battle will result in:
Some child custody cases need child psychologists or witnesses.
Even if the dispute is amicable, the judge may still ask that the parents go through a child custody evaluation.
Child custody evaluations check you, your child, and the other parent.
After the evaluation, the psychologist will make a recommendation to the court about child custody.
These recommendations are based on making sure the needs of the children get met.
Child custody lawyer fees range anywhere from $85 to $400.
Child custody lawyers in Atlanta and other larger cities will charge $275-$350.
How much a lawyer for child custody costs depends on:
Attorneys for child custody charge clients in one of two ways:
Retainer fees for custody attorneys is very common.
Child custody lawyer retainer fees benefit the lawyer and the client.
The client won’t owe ALL the money upfront like they would in a flat fee scenario.
So, if the child custody case is going to cost $15,000, they won’t make you pay it all upfront.
Most likely, they will allow you to pay 50% of the $15,000 ($7,500) upfront.
Family lawyers cannot spend your retainer money until they have worked the hours.
Once they have worked on your case, then they can pull money from your retainer.
They simply place your money into a special bank account and will bill it each week as they make progress on your case.
Once they have charged your retainer fee the $7,500 (in this example), they will make you pay the remaining $7,500 as another retainer fee.
If the custody attorney ends up completing your case with any money left, you can get a refund.
If the child custody case is simple and straight forward, you’ll be able to hire a child custody lawyer cheap.
Flat fees range from $3,000 to $20,000.
The cost variations depend on how complex the child custody case is.
But if you go the flat fee route, the child custody lawyer gets to keep any extra money left over.
This is why it benefits clients to go the retainer fee route.
Note that the flat fee may SEEM like the best way to hire a cheap attorney for child custody.
But if your case ends up being more complex then they will charge you more down the road.
For example, let’s say that they charge $300 per hour and the flat fee was $9,000.
That means that you are buying 30 hours of services from the child custody lawyer.
If they end up working 30 hours on your case, but the battle isn’t over, they will charge you more to continue.
You could have a child custody attorney give you a low ball flat fee to hook you, but upcharge you later.
Your best route to hire a child custody lawyer cheap is to find an all-inclusive price.
The price will be more of a sticker shock up front, trust me.
But working with the best child custody lawyers means you’re working with honest and transparent ones.
This means that they are willing to give you an itemized list of costs you will incur.
This list should also have estimations for how long it should take them to perform the work.
If they can’t provide you with this, then they may not understand the costs of a child custody case.
This also mitigates any risks that you will be severely up charged later on.
Usually, each parent in a child custody case is responsible for paying their attorney fees.
A judge might make an exception if one parent makes substantially more money than the other, or if one party cannot afford legal representation.
The cost of a child custody trial can range anywhere from $3,000 to $40,000+.
The huge range is due to the many factors that go into your overall court case and requirements for custody.
It’s also dependent on whether you have an uncontested case or contested.
Contested child custody cases will be much more expensive than uncontested ones.
A typical child custody lawyer cost can range from $3,000 to $20,000.
Some child custody lawyers fees are charged on a retainer basis.
A retainer is a fee paid in advance to the lawyer for handling your case.
The lawyer draws from this retainer to pay his or her expenses as the case proceeds.
Neither one is more advantageous financially over the other.
Setting up a child custody lawyer free consultation is the first step to your custody case.
But it’s also important to note that not all lawyers give free consultations.
When you reach out to a child custody lawyer in Georgia, ask them if they provide free consultations.
If they say “No,” then shy away from them.
You are about to fight for custody of your child.
You want to make sure that the family child custody lawyer you’re hiring is the right fit.
The free consultation with a child custody lawyer is your chance to make sure that they are.
When you are in your consultation:
For the cost of your child custody case, ask them for an estimation.
But remember that they may not know (and that’s okay).
Even if they don’t know, ask them for:
They should be willing to print this information out for you so that it’s easy for you to digest.
If they get aggravated that you’re requesting this, this might be a red flag.
Your child custody lawyer should be providing you with transparency and information.
You’re paying them thousands of dollars. It’s the least they can do.
The lawyer fees that you get charged may vary.
Meaning, you may have legal assistant fees and attorney fees.
Established attorneys will have assistants work on your case as much as possible.
This frees the lawyers up to do $300 per hour tasks for you.
Tasks like negotiations and contract review.
You don’t want your child custody lawyer charging you $300 per hour for:
During the free consultation, your attorney should give you time to voice concerns.
Child custody battles are a big deal and you will have concerns and questions.
If your child custody lawyer brushes off your questions, this could be another red flag.
Their experience may tell them that you shouldn’t get concerned.
But they should take the time to explain to you why you don’t need to worry.
If they don’t, it’s a potential red flag.
You want a child custody attorney that’s on your side and empathetic, not one who dismisses you.
What in tarnation does that even mean?
You want to know how aggressively they will fight your child custody battle.
While a super aggressive attorney SEEMS great, it’s not.
But let me explain.
The child custody laws in Georgia are such that they want the outcome to be fair.
When the judge is fighting to do what’s in the best interest of the child, they are fighting to be fair.
They don’t want one parent to undeservingly lose or gain custody.
If your attorney for child custody relentlessly negotiates and fights, it won’t end well.
The judge will get tired of fighting with your attorney.
Judges like ‘easy to work with’ attorneys who create solutions, not problems.
This means the judge is going to ‘lean’ in favor of the other parent.
This also is going to cost you THOUSANDS more in child custody lawyer fees.
If the custody lawyer can drag out the custody battle for months, they can charge the clients more money.
The best child custody lawyers are able to work WITH other attorneys to come up with a solution.
If you have a custody lawyer who has relationships with other firms, they can help talk sense into your ex.
This can make things go smoother, cheaper, and faster.
Better yet, you get the best outcome for the children.
