Alimony in Georgia: Who Qualifies, the Adultery Bar, Factors and Modification

Georgia uses the word alimony for support between spouses, and either spouse can receive it. Unlike some states, Georgia has no alimony formula: whether to award alimony, how much, and for how long are decided case by case by the judge, or by a jury if one is requested. Most alimony is set by agreement in the spouses' settlement.

The alimony statutes are in Chapter 6 of Title 19 of the Official Code of Georgia, beginning with O.C.G.A. § 19-6-1.

Temporary alimony

While a divorce is pending, either spouse can ask for temporary alimony (O.C.G.A. § 19-6-3). The judge weighs the "peculiar necessities created for each party by the pending litigation" and any separate estate either spouse owns, and the award can include the expenses of litigation. The merits of the divorce aren't tried at this hearing, though the judge may ask about the cause of the separation and can refuse temporary alimony altogether. The court can revise the order at any time.

Permanent alimony

At the end of the case, the court (or jury) can award permanent alimony, either as periodic payments or as a lump sum. "Permanent" means it's part of the final decree; periodic alimony can be limited to a set number of years.

The adultery and desertion bar

Georgia keeps an unusual fault rule. O.C.G.A. § 19-6-1(b) says:

(b) A party shall not be entitled to alimony if it is established by a preponderance of the evidence that the separation between the parties was caused by that party's adultery or desertion.

Two points follow from the wording:

• It's about causation. Adultery that didn't cause the separation, for example after the spouses had already split up, doesn't automatically bar alimony.
• The standard is a preponderance of the evidence, and the court must hear evidence of why the spouses separated whatever ground the divorce is granted on.

The factors

In deciding whether to award alimony and how much, O.C.G.A. § 19-6-5(a) directs the court or jury to consider, in plain terms:

1. the standard of living established during the marriage;
2. how long the marriage lasted;
3. each spouse's age and physical and emotional condition;
4. each spouse's financial resources;
5. the time a spouse needs to get education or training to find appropriate work, where applicable;
6. each spouse's contributions to the marriage, including homemaking, child care, and supporting the other's career or education;
7. each spouse's condition, including separate estate, earning capacity and fixed liabilities; and
8. any other relevant factor the court finds equitable and proper.

When alimony ends

• Remarriage. Periodic alimony payments that aren't yet due end when the spouse receiving them remarries, unless the decree or agreement says otherwise (O.C.G.A. § 19-6-5(b)).
• Cohabitation. A paying spouse can ask the court to modify alimony if the former spouse moves in with a new partner, under Georgia's "live-in lover" rule (below).
• Agreement terms. A settlement agreement can make alimony non-modifiable, or set its own rules for when it ends. Read yours carefully.

The "live-in lover" rule

O.C.G.A. § 19-6-19(b) provides, in part (the Supreme Court of Georgia applied it in Provenzano v. Jones, 302 Ga. 139 (2017)):

(b) Subsequent to a final judgment of divorce awarding periodic payment of alimony for the support of a spouse, the voluntary cohabitation of such former spouse with a third party in a meretricious relationship shall also be grounds to modify provisions made for periodic payments of permanent alimony for the support of the former spouse.

It's a ground to modify, not an automatic end: the paying spouse has to ask the court. "Cohabitation" means living together continuously and openly, and a paying spouse who brings this claim and loses must pay the other spouse's reasonable attorney's fees.

Changing alimony

Periodic alimony in a court order can be revised upward or downward when the income and financial status of either former spouse has changed (O.C.G.A. § 19-6-19(a)). A spouse who has already petitioned can't file again for two years after the final order on that earlier petition.

Taxes

For divorce or separation agreements signed after December 31, 2018, alimony isn't deductible by the payer or taxable to the recipient for federal income tax. Georgia's income tax starts from federal adjusted gross income, so Georgia follows the same treatment. Older agreements keep the old rule unless they're modified and expressly adopt the new one.

Where these sections live

• Provenzano v. Jones, 302 Ga. 139 (2017) — cohabitation rule
• Uniform Superior Court Rule 24.2 — Financial affidavit
• Georgia courts: self-help