Georgia has both. Twelve of the thirteen grounds in OCGA 19-5-3 require you to prove something about your spouse or the marriage. The thirteenth does not.
The Fault Grounds
Adultery, desertion, habitual intoxication, cruel treatment, habitual drug addiction, and conviction of a crime of moral turpitude all require proof of conduct. So do the grounds concerning problems that existed at the time of the marriage, such as impotency or fraud in obtaining the marriage.
Pleading one of these means alleging and proving facts. It also opens the door to defenses that do not exist in a no-fault case.
The No-Fault Ground
The thirteenth ground is simply that “[t]he marriage is irretrievably broken.” Nothing has to be proven about who did what.
Why the Choice Matters
OCGA 19-5-4 is the clearest illustration. It bars a divorce where “[t]he adultery, desertion, cruel treatment, or intoxication complained of was occasioned by the collusion of the parties,” where the complaining party consented to it, where “[b]oth parties are guilty of like conduct,” or where “[t]here has been a voluntary condonation and cohabitation subsequent to the acts complained of, with notice thereof.”
Every one of those defenses is aimed at fault grounds. A spouse who pleads adultery invites an argument that the other spouse forgave it, consented to it, or did the same thing. A spouse who pleads that the marriage is irretrievably broken does not.
That is why most Georgia divorces proceed on the no-fault ground even when there is plenty of fault to go around.
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This post is a quick overview of the law and is not intended as legal advice. Please feel free to contact our office for a consultation if you have questions about this or any other legal aspects regarding your case!