Service
Family matters in Georgia
We handle family law matters, including those with a foreign element: spouses of different nationalities, assets in more than one country, documents issued abroad.
This is the area where the wording of a document matters more than anywhere else, and where the cost of an inaccuracy shows up years later.
What the work covers
- Prenuptial agreement: drafting one or going through one that has been proposed, setting the matrimonial property regime and the arrangements if the spouses live apart.
- The property regime. Establishing what belongs to each spouse personally and what is joint. This comes up both in property transactions and in inheritance matters.
- Division of assets: by agreement or through the court.
- Arrangements for children: where they live, contact with a parent, maintenance.
- Matters with a foreign element: documents issued abroad, recognition of foreign decisions, and the question of which country's law applies.
- Documents: preparation, apostille or consular legalisation, translation and certification.
- Attendance at the notary, at authorities and in court.
What is not included
- Any guarantee of the outcome. In family disputes the court decides, and in matters concerning children it proceeds from their interests rather than from the parties' positions.
- Counselling or mediation as a separate service. We can propose an order in which an agreement is achievable, but working on the relationship is not our field.
- Acting in another country where the procedure has to follow its rules.
- Obtaining documents issued in person.
Why a foreign element changes everything
When the spouses hold different nationalities or assets sit in more than one country, a further question joins the usual ones: which country's law applies and where a decision will be recognised. The answer depends on nationality, residence, where the assets are and on treaties between the countries.
Everything else follows from that answer, which is why it is settled at the outset. An agreement drawn up without it can turn out to be unenforceable exactly where it is needed.
What you will need
- Marriage certificate, and the divorce certificate if there is one.
- Children's birth certificates.
- A prenuptial agreement or settlement, if one already exists.
- Documents on the assets: extracts from the register, documents of title.
- Nationality and place of residence of each spouse.
- Decisions of courts or authorities in other countries, if any.
- What has already been apostilled and translated.
How the work goes
- You describe the task, through the form on the site, by email or in a messenger.
- A lawyer goes through what you have, what still has to be obtained and where the tight spots are.
- We agree the scope and the price. You pay nothing before that point.
- We sign a contract in which the scope of the service is set out in writing.
- You hand over the documents, we check the set and tell you what is missing.
- We run the procedure and keep you informed at every step.
- You receive the result and the full set of documents.
Prices
For this area the price is agreed individually: the amount of work depends too much on the circumstances to quote a figure before looking at them. A consultation starts at $30, and at it you get an assessment of the scope and the cost for your situation.
An invoice always shows what it is made of:
our fee for the lawyer's work; state fees and charges, which the state sets and which we do not mark up; third party costs such as a notary, a translator, an apostille or extracts, paid as incurred.
Prices are exclusive of VAT. If the scope changes as the work goes on, we agree that with you in advance rather than presenting it in the invoice.
What is outside our control
- The court's decision and how long proceedings take.
- The other party's position and willingness to settle.
- How authorities in other countries handle issuing and legalising documents.
- Recognition of foreign decisions, a procedure with its own requirements.
If in our assessment the position is weak, you will hear it plainly. In family matters it is particularly important not to create expectations that cannot be met.
Describe the situation in outline and we will set out the options and what will be needed. The conversation is confidential.
Describe your caseAbout this page. It sets out the scope of our service and the general order of the procedure. It is not legal advice and not a public offer: the scope, the timing and the price for a particular matter are agreed individually and recorded in the contract. Requirements, fees and practice change, so anything here is checked against the position on the day you apply. In many procedures the final decision rests with the competent authority and its discretion, so a positive outcome cannot be guaranteed.