Not automatically. Georgia treats an alimony award and a custody award very differently when a divorce follows.
The Statute Covers Alimony, Not Custody
In Thompson v. Thompson, 241 Ga. App. 616 (1999), the Court of Appeals acknowledged the settled rule that “under our separate maintenance statute (OCGA 19-6-10), adjudication of the issue of permanent alimony in a separate maintenance order is superseded by an award of alimony in a divorce decree.”
Then it pointed out what the statute leaves out. “But OCGA 19-6-10 does not make specific reference to child custody orders.”
Another Statute Gets in the Way
The Court identified a second obstacle. Under Georgia’s Child Custody Intrastate Jurisdiction Act, “a permanent award of child custody to any person by court order prohibits the filing of any complaint seeking to obtain a change of custody in any county other than the county of residence of the person who has been awarded custody.”
From that the Court concluded that “where permanent child custody has been awarded to a party to a separate maintenance proceeding, the other party is not necessarily entitled to obtain a change of custody in a subsequent divorce action. The CCIJA acts as a constraint.”
How Firm Is This
Thompson was primarily an interstate jurisdiction case between Georgia and Florida, and the court decided it on those grounds. One judge concurred specially, writing that the supersession question was moot because the Florida court had never had jurisdiction over custody at all.
So the reasoning is useful and squarely on point, but it is not the last word.
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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!