Georgia’s six month divorce requirement is written as a residence requirement, but the courts read it as a domicile requirement.
What “Resident” Means in the Statute
OCGA 19-5-2 uses the phrase “bona fide resident.” In Conrad v. Conrad, 278 Ga. 107 (2004), the Georgia Supreme Court stated the rule flatly: as used in that statute, “resident” means “domiciliary.”
The difference matters because the two words mean different things. As the Court explained in Williams v. Williams, 226 Ga. 734 (1970), “[a] man may have two residences, but only one place of domicile. There must be a concurrence of actual residence and the intention to remain, to acquire a domicile.”
You Do Not Have to Be Physically Present for Six Months
Williams held that the statute “requires that the plaintiff in a divorce action must be domiciled in this State for the period of time fixed therein and does not require in addition that the plaintiff shall have actually resided in this State during such period.”
The husband there had bought a home in Blackshear, in Pierce County, then moved to Philadelphia for work in 1968. He returned periodically to look after his property and paid Pierce County property taxes as a resident. His wife produced his Philadelphia voter registration and a federal tax return showing a Philadelphia address. The Supreme Court held the question was one for a jury and reversed the dismissal of his case.
The Rule Cuts Both Ways
Because domicile takes both an actual residence and an intent to remain indefinitely, simply being in Georgia for six months does not satisfy the statute either. A person who lives here while intending to return home somewhere else has a Georgia residence but not a Georgia domicile.
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!