A servicemember can have a Georgia divorce case put on hold, but the request has to contain specific things, and a letter simply saying you are in the military is not one of them.
What the Statute Requires
The stay provision is 50 USC 3932. On a proper application by the servicemember, the court must stay the case for at least 90 days. Two documents have to come with the application, and Jones v. Van Horn, 283 Ga. App. 144 (2006), sets them out.
The first is a letter from you “stating the manner in which current military duty requirements materially affect the servicemember’s ability to appear and stating a date when the servicemember will be available to appear.”
The second is a letter from your commanding officer “stating that the servicemember’s current military duty prevents appearance and that military leave is not authorized for the servicemember at the time of the letter.”
What Happens If You Leave Them Out
In Jones, a soldier six months into a one-year deployment to Korea lost custody of his daughter at a hearing and argued on appeal that the case should have been stayed. The Court of Appeals found no error, because “there is nothing in the record showing that he included the necessary information with the request.”
So the paperwork is the whole ballgame. Ask your command for the letter early, because a deployment that obviously keeps you away will not substitute for it.
If You Need Longer Than 90 Days
You can apply again for more time. If the court turns down that second request, it has to appoint a lawyer to represent you before the case goes forward.
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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!