Before a Georgia court can transfer or dismiss your divorce for forum non conveniens, it must consider seven factors set out in the statute.
The Seven Factors
OCGA 9-10-31.1(a) directs the court to give consideration to:
- Relative ease of access to sources of proof;
- Availability and cost of compulsory process for attendance of unwilling witnesses;
- Possibility of viewing of the premises, if viewing would be appropriate to the action;
- Unnecessary expense or trouble to the defendant not necessary to the plaintiff’s own right to pursue his or her remedy;
- Administrative difficulties for the forum courts;
- Existence of local interests in deciding the case locally; and
- The traditional deference given to a plaintiff’s choice of forum.
Getting the Factors Right Matters
Listing the factors is not enough. In McInerney v. McInerney, 313 Ga. 462 (2022), the trial court walked through all seven and dismissed a Bryan County divorce in favor of Indiana. The Georgia Supreme Court still vacated the ruling because two of the factors were analyzed incorrectly.
The second factor is narrower than it looks. It is about witnesses who will not come voluntarily and what compulsory process would cost, not about witness convenience generally, which belongs to the first factor. The trial court in McInerney had considered “the availability of witnesses generally,” and that was error.
The third factor is often neutral. Where there is no property to view, “[t]he absence of a physical premises that may require viewing in the existing venue does not favor transfer or dismissal, but also does not provide a basis for retaining the case.” The trial court had counted that absence in favor of dismissal.
The Supreme Court sent the case back for the trial judge to weigh the factors again under the correct standard.
Contact Us
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!