Where a Georgia divorce rests on conduct that went on and got worse, staying in the marriage while it happened is not condonation.
Why the Rule Exists
Morris v. Morris, 202 Ga. 431 (1947), explains it. A husband alleged that his wife’s conduct throughout the marriage was persistently quarrelsome and nagging and “grew worse from day to day and year to year until they separated when it became unbearable.” She argued he had condoned all of it by staying.
The Georgia Supreme Court held the petition “does not show condonation,” because “[t]he continuity of such conduct is what makes it cruel treatment within the meaning of our law.”
That reasoning is the whole rule. With this kind of cruelty, the repetition is the wrong. There is nothing finished to forgive while it is still going on, so remaining in the house forgives nothing.
Examples in Georgia Cases
For example, in Seagraves v. Seagraves, 193 Ga. 280 (1942), a husband testified that his wife tore his shirt off and kicked him after he refused to pay for a fur coat, and repeated the assaults on several mornings in the hope that he would strike her and give her an excuse to leave. He stayed until she left him. The Georgia Supreme Court held his testimony “does show that he had endured them until the time the plaintiff left him; but this does not in law amount to condonation.”
Similarly, in Day v. Day, 210 Ga. 454 (1954), a wife sued on continual cruel treatment. Evidence that her husband’s conduct grew steadily worse until it was unbearable, and that the separation happened because of it, “did not show condonation as a matter of law.”
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!