For couples who wish to legally end their marriage, divorce may not be the only option. Although it may not be available to everyone depending on their state of residence and the circumstances of their marriage, marriage annulment can be a very helpful alternative for some couples. Our family law experts wanted to provide a basic guide to marriage annulment in Georgia to help our readers thoroughly understand all of their available options.

Unlike a divorce that serves as a legal ending of a marriage, an annulment is a court order that declares that a marriage never existed. Typically, in order for an annulment to be granted, a judge must determine that the marriage itself was void or invalid at the time it was entered. Here in Georgia, the courts often disfavor annulments, meaning that a considerable amount of strong proof will be required in order to successfully have a marriage annulled. Additionally, if you and your spouse already have children, or are currently pregnant, the courts in Georgia will not allow for an annulment under state law.

To have a marriage annulled in Georgia, there must be legal grounds for annulment. These include:

• One or both spouses is considered to have been unfit to be wed due to mental incompetence, disability, or being underage at the time of the marriage ceremony.
• It is determined that one spouse is still legally married to another living person at the time of the marriage.
• It is determined that the spouses are related by blood (or part of an adopted family), as this would be a case of incestuous marriage.

If any of the above grounds exist, the marriage is considered void and can possibly be the subject of an annulment. In order to begin the annulment process, one spouse must petition for (or request) an annulment. If an underage person is married without parental consent, a parent has the right to file the annulment petition on their behalf. Similar to divorce, filing for an annulment requires adhering to rules for pleading (creating the correct documents), service, and procedure. If the spouse who receives the petition to have their marriage annulled opposes the request, there may be a trial by jury.

Much like divorce, it can be incredibly helpful to have a dependable family law attorney on your side during the annulment process. For more information, contact Oxendine Law at (770) 497-8688 today to schedule a meeting in-person, over the phone, or by video conference. Don’t forget to follow along with us on Facebook and Instagram for additional family law tips, news, videos, and more.