§ 19-11-56.Payment of costs and fees by state; issuance of execution to reimburse state
Chapter 11. Enforcement of Duty of Support · Article 2. Uniform Reciprocal Enforcement of Support Act · Last amended 1958 · Last verified October 9, 2026
Full Text of § 19-11-56
Plain-English Summary
This section keeps court costs from blocking a reciprocal support case. Whether Georgia is the initiating or the responding state, the court may, in its discretion, direct that any part or all of the fees and costs incurred in Georgia be paid by the state. The section names filing fees, service of process, seizure of property and stenographic services as examples, without limiting the list, and the costs can be those of the petitioner, the respondent or both. The court also “shall direct” that the district attorney’s fee be paid by the state.
The state can get its money back. When the state has paid those costs, the court may order a fi. fa. — a writ of execution — issued against the respondent to reimburse the state. And when the action is brought by or through the state or one of its agencies, there is no filing fee at all. The district attorney’s fee itself is set at $50 per petition in § 19-11-53, approved by the state information agency under § 19-11-58, and paid by the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council under § 19-11-59.
Article 2 has been closed to new cases since January 1, 1998 (§ 19-11-40.1). Article 3, the Uniform Interstate Family Support Act, handles costs differently in § 19-11-132: the petitioner may not be required to pay a filing fee or other costs; if the obligee prevails, the responding tribunal may assess fees, costs and expenses against the obligor; and the tribunal may not assess them against the obligee or a support enforcement agency except as other law provides.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did I have to pay court costs to file a URESA case in Georgia?
Not necessarily. The court could, in its discretion, direct that any part or all of the fees and costs incurred in Georgia — including filing, service of process, seizure of property and stenographic services — be paid by the state. And when the action was brought by or through the state or a state agency, there was no filing fee.
Could the state pay the respondent’s costs too?
Yes. The section covers fees and costs “of both petitioner and respondent, or either,” including filing, service of process, seizure of property and stenographic services. Whether the state pays any of them is up to the court’s discretion, and the court may later order a fi. fa. against the respondent to reimburse the state.
Could the state get its costs back from the respondent?
Yes. When the state had paid the costs, the court could order a fi. fa., a writ of execution, issued against the respondent to reimburse the state for its expenditures. The section makes this discretionary: the court “may” order it.
Who paid the district attorney’s fee in a URESA case?
The state. This section says the court shall direct that the district attorney’s fee be paid by the state. Under § 19-11-59, the Prosecuting Attorneys’ Council pays it from funds appropriated for district attorneys, once the state information agency approves the payment order.
How are costs handled in new interstate support cases?
Under § 19-11-132 in Article 3. The petitioner may not be required to pay a filing fee or other costs. If the obligee prevails, the responding tribunal may assess filing fees, reasonable attorney’s fees, costs and certain expenses against the obligor, but not against the obligee or a support enforcement agency except as other law provides.
Amendment History
Laws 1958, p. 34, § 13.