Practice Areas

Atlanta Child Custody Lawyers

If you are worried about your time with your children, we can help. Atlanta Holistic Family Law represents mothers and fathers in child custody cases across metro Atlanta, including Marietta and Cobb County. We work to settle custody without escalating the conflict, because a settled case is easier on your children and costs your family less. When the other parent will not negotiate, or your child’s safety is at stake, our child custody attorneys go to court and advocate firmly for the parenting plan your children need.

Jeanette Soltys has practiced family law in Georgia for twenty years, and early in her career she represented the Georgia Division of Family and Children Services in child welfare and adoption cases. She is a Certified Amicable Divorce Professional and has been selected to Super Lawyers every year since 2020. The firm was named Best Divorce Lawyer in East Cobb County in 2023 and 2024, and you can read our client reviews.

Start with a free call. Call 770-214-4767 or schedule your free call online. We listen to what is happening, answer your questions about how the process works, and help you decide on a next step. Most meetings are virtual, and our Marietta office is available by appointment.

Urgent Custody Situations

If your child is in immediate danger, call 911. Contact us as soon as possible if any of these is happening:

The other parent is keeping the children from you.
You have been served with custody or divorce papers.
You are worried about your child’s safety in the other home.
The other parent plans to move with the children.
A court date is coming up and you do not have an attorney.

The judge can enter a temporary order that sets custody and parenting time while the case is pending. Talk to us before you respond to papers or sign a temporary agreement, so the schedule you agree to is one that works for your children long term.

Custody Cases We Handle

Custody in a divorce. We settle legal and physical custody, the parenting time schedule, holidays, and how decisions about school and health care get made.
Custody between unmarried parents. In Georgia, a father who was not married to the mother has no legal custody or visitation rights until his child is legitimated. We handle legitimation and the custody case that follows.
Child custody modification. We ask the court to change a custody order after a move, a new job, a change in a child’s needs, or a change in a parent’s involvement.
Parenting plans. Every Georgia custody case needs one. We draft the plan, including the schedule, holidays, and who makes decisions for the children.
Child support. Child support is usually decided alongside custody, and we handle both.

The Best Interests of Your Child

Under Georgia law, judges decide child custody on the best interests of the child, and the law does not favor mothers or fathers. Judges look at each parent’s relationship with the child, who has handled day-to-day care, the stability of each home, and each parent’s willingness to support the child’s relationship with the other parent. Our 21-point best interest of the child checklist covers each factor in detail.

We consider your children’s emotional needs and your family’s finances alongside the legal questions, and we work toward a parenting plan both parents can actually follow.

Resolving Custody Outside of Court

The custody order you settle on sets your children’s schedule until they turn 18 or the order is changed. A contested custody case puts your family’s private life in the public record, can take a year or more, and often leaves two parents who struggle to co-parent afterward.

We start with the out-of-court options and tell you whether they fit your situation:

Mediation. A neutral mediator helps the two of you reach a custody agreement and a parenting schedule, and does not decide the outcome. Mediation works for parents who were never married as well as for divorcing parents, and courts often send custody disputes to mediation before a hearing.
Amicable divorce. This is the path we usually recommend. Your own attorney helps you negotiate an agreement, and if your case does turn contested, that same attorney can stay with you. Jeanette is a member of the Amicable Divorce Network.

If the two of you cannot reach an agreement, we prepare the case for a hearing, work with any custody evaluator or guardian ad litem the court appoints, and present the case to the judge.

Book a free call, and we will talk through which path might fit your family.

Parenting Plans for Your Children’s Ages and Schedules

The parenting plan is the custody arrangement that sets the schedule and the rules your family follows after the case closes. We match the schedule to your children’s ages and activities, whether that is a 50/50 schedule such as 2-2-5-5 or week on, week off, or a schedule with one primary home. The plan also sets the holidays, who makes decisions about school, health care, extracurricular activities, and religion, and how the two of you resolve disagreements without going back to court.

An overly detailed parenting plan can create new arguments, so we add detail where the two of you are likely to disagree and keep the rest of the plan flexible. We draft the plan and negotiate it with the other parent or their attorney.

For Mothers and for Fathers

We represent mothers and fathers. A parent who has been involved in the children’s lives can ask for meaningful parenting time, including 50/50 custody where it fits the children. If the other parent is asking for more time than they will actually use, we help you propose a schedule built on each parent’s availability and your children’s needs.

Child Custody Questions

What is the difference between legal and physical custody in Georgia? Legal custody refers to the right to make major decisions for your child, such as school, health care, and religion. Physical custody refers to where your child lives and how parenting time is divided. Georgia parents usually share joint legal custody, even when one parent has the child most of the time.

Can I get 50/50 custody in Georgia? Yes, when it serves the children. Judges look at each parent’s involvement, the distance between homes, work schedules, and how well the two of you communicate. Many parents agree on a 50/50 parenting schedule in mediation without a judge deciding it.

At what age can my child choose where to live? At 14, a child in Georgia can choose which parent to live with primarily. The judge will honor that choice unless the judge finds it is not in the child’s best interest. Between 11 and 14, the judge considers the child’s wishes but decides.

Can a custody order be changed? Yes. Either parent can ask the court to modify custody when there has been a material change in circumstances affecting the child, such as a move, a change in a parent’s availability, or a child’s changing needs. Parents can also agree on a new plan and have the court approve it.

I’m an unmarried father. Do I have custody rights? Not until your child is legitimated. Once the child is legitimated, a father can ask the court for custody or parenting time, and the judge decides based on the child’s best interests. The legitimation and the custody request can usually be filed in the same case.

How much does a custody case cost? It depends mostly on how much of it is contested. A case settled through mediation or an agreed parenting plan costs a fraction of a contested trial. On your free call, we can walk you through how our fees work.