§ 19-6-9.Voluntary separation, abandonment, or driving off of spouse — Equity may compel support
Chapter 6. Alimony and Child Support · Article 1. General Provisions · Last amended 2025 · Last verified October 9, 2026
Full Text of § 19-6-9
Plain-English Summary
This section fills the gap § 19-6-8 leaves. That section lets separated spouses settle support by written agreement. When they have made no such agreement, § 19-6-9 lets a spouse apply to the court, and the court, exercising its equitable powers, may compel the other spouse to provide support. The order can cover the applying spouse, the couple’s minor children, and any dependent adult child in the applying spouse’s custody.
The term “dependent adult child” comes from § 19-6-15.1: an unmarried person who has reached the age of majority and cannot support himself or herself because of a physical or mental incapacity that began before reaching the age of majority. Including that child here means a separated parent can seek support for an adult child of that kind without filing for divorce. The section was amended in 2024 and 2025.
The word “may” leaves the decision to the court. Section 19-6-10 supplies the procedure: a spouse living apart, with no divorce pending, files a petition, and the judge may hear it on three days’ notice. If that case goes to a jury, the jury’s verdict provides the factual basis for the equitable relief this section authorizes. Support for minor children in such a case is set under the guidelines in § 19-6-15, which apply to every legal proceeding involving a parent’s child support responsibility; § 19-6-15(q) says those guidelines do not apply to support for a dependent adult child.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can I get support from my spouse if we are separated but not divorcing in Georgia?
Yes, a court can order it. Under § 19-6-9, if the spouses have made no voluntary support agreement under § 19-6-8, the court may use its equitable powers, on a spouse’s application, to compel the other spouse to provide support. The procedure for asking when no divorce is pending is in § 19-6-10. Whether to order support, and how much, is up to the court.
Can a support order under § 19-6-9 include child support?
Yes. The court may compel a spouse to provide for the support of the other spouse and of the minor children and any dependent adult child in that spouse’s custody. Support for the minor children is set under § 19-6-15, whose guidelines apply in all legal proceedings involving a parent’s child support responsibility. Under § 19-6-15(q), those guidelines do not apply to support for a dependent adult child.
What is a dependent adult child under Georgia law?
Section 19-6-9 borrows the definition from § 19-6-15.1. A dependent adult child is an unmarried person who has reached the age of majority and is incapable of self-support because of a physical or mental incapacity that began before he or she reached the age of majority. Section 19-6-9 lets a separated spouse seek support for such a child in his or her custody.
Is the court required to order support for a separated spouse?
No. Section 19-6-9 says the court “may” compel support, exercising its equitable powers. That language leaves the decision to the court’s discretion. If the case is tried to a jury under § 19-6-10, the jury’s verdict supplies the factual basis for the equitable relief, but the remedy remains the court’s to fashion.
Does § 19-6-9 apply if we already signed a support agreement?
No. The section applies “absent the making of a voluntary contract or other agreement” under § 19-6-8. When spouses have made an adequate written provision for support, § 19-6-8 makes that agreement a bar to the supported spouse’s right to permanent alimony, so the court’s equitable power under § 19-6-9 is not the route.
Amendment History
Laws 1979, p. 466, § 17; Laws 2024, Act 479, § 1, eff. July 1, 2024; Laws 2025, Act 371, § 19, eff. July 1, 2025.
Formerly Code 1863, § 1695; Code 1868, § 1738; Code 1873, § 1746; Code 1882, § 1746; Civil Code 1895, § 2466; Civil Code 1910, § 2985; Code 1933, § 30-212.