§ 19-11-53.Representation of petitioner by district attorney; fees; monthly collection reports; payment to county for services; clerk’s fees
Chapter 11. Enforcement of Duty of Support · Article 2. Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act · Last amended 1992 · Last verified October 9, 2026
Full Text of § 19-11-53
Plain-English Summary
Subsection (a) makes the district attorney of each superior court the petitioner’s lawyer, if the district attorney chooses. The district attorney is authorized to represent the petitioner in any proceeding under the article; otherwise, at the district attorney’s option, the action is brought as provided in Article 1 of this chapter, the Child Support Recovery Act. The district attorney may require the petitioner to complete an application, and fees for the services are charged as part of that application under § 19-11-8(b), which calls for a reasonable application fee for each individual who applies for the department’s child support enforcement services under that subsection. The department is entitled to monthly reports, under § 19-11-21, on collections under this provision. (Article 2 doesn’t define “department”; Article 1, which § 19-11-8 and § 19-11-21 belong to, defines it as the Department of Human Services in § 19-11-3.)
Subsection (b) sets the district attorney’s compensation: $50 for each petition handled, paid to the county where the petition is handled, whether Georgia is the initiating or the responding state. In counties where the superior court clerk works on a fee basis, the district attorney pays the clerk’s legal fees for filing petitions and serving process out of that sum. But nothing is paid until an order granting or denying support has been entered. Sections 19-11-56, 19-11-58 and 19-11-59 explain how the fee is directed, approved and paid.
Subsection (c) limits the representation: the district attorney represents the petitioner only to the extent the petitioner’s interests don’t conflict with the department’s. The section was last amended in 1992. Like the rest of Article 2, it governs only proceedings pending before January 1, 1998 (§ 19-11-40.1). In Article 3, the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act, § 19-11-126 requires a support enforcement agency to provide services to a petitioner on request and says those services create no attorney-client relationship.
Frequently Asked Questions
Would the district attorney represent me in a URESA case?
The district attorney was authorized to. Subsection (a) lets the district attorney of each superior court represent the petitioner in any proceeding under the article, or, at the district attorney’s option, bring the action as provided in Article 1 of this chapter. The district attorney could require an application. This article now governs only proceedings pending before January 1, 1998 (§ 19-11-40.1).
Was there a fee for the district attorney’s help?
Yes. Fees were charged as part of the application under § 19-11-8(b), which calls for a reasonable application fee for individuals who apply for child support enforcement services. Separately, subsection (b) provides for $50 to be paid to the county for each petition handled; § 19-11-59 has the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council pay the district attorney’s fee under the article.
When was the $50 per-petition fee paid?
Only after the court ruled. Subsection (b) says that before the sum is paid, an order granting or denying support must have been entered. The fee applied to each petition handled, whether Georgia was the initiating or the responding state.
Could the district attorney represent me if my interests conflicted with the department’s?
Not fully. Subsection (c) says that when acting under subsection (a), the district attorney represents the petitioner only to the extent that the petitioner’s interests don’t conflict with the interests of the department. Article 2 doesn’t define “department,” but Article 1 defines it as the Department of Human Services (§ 19-11-3).
Who helps petitioners in new interstate support cases?
A support enforcement agency, under Article 3. Section 19-11-126 says a Georgia support enforcement agency, on request, shall provide services to a petitioner, and § 19-11-102 names the Department of Human Services as that agency. Section 19-11-126 also says those services don’t create an attorney-client relationship between the agency or its attorney and the person helped.
Amendment History
Laws 1958, p. 34, § 10; Laws 1975, p. 781, § 1; Laws 1985, p. 785, § 9; Laws 1990, p. 1832, § 1; Laws 1992, p. 1833, § 6.