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Divorce in Stephens County, Georgia: costs, court rules and local help
Summary
Divorces in Stephens County are filed with the Stephens County Superior Court. The filing fee is $224, and sheriff service is $50 for one defendant ($274 total).
- The posted fee list is labeled current as of September 1, 2020, and says fees can change at any time, so confirm the amount with the clerk before you file.1
- The clerk's office is the first office on the left inside the front doors of the Stephens County Government building in Toccoa, open 8 a.m. to 5 p.m. on weekdays. Legal notices run in The Toccoa Record.2
- Stephens County shares the Mountain Judicial Circuit, and its divorce rules, with Banks, Habersham and Rabun counties.3
Where to file
Stephens County Clerk of Superior Court
70 North Alexander Street, Suite 202
Toccoa, GA 30577
Phone: 706-886-94964
Filing fee
$224 to file. Sheriff service: $50 for one defendant ($274 total).1
Parenting class
In cases with minor children, all parties must finish the Seminar for Divorcing Parents before the final hearing. It's offered online through the Ninth Judicial Administrative District's dispute resolution office.5
Mediation
Contested cases must go to mediation or a settlement conference hosted by a judge before a final hearing can be scheduled. Cases with domestic violence allegations are handled differently.5
Court forms
The county's divorce page links to packets for contested and uncontested divorces, with and without minor children, plus an affidavit of indigency for people who can't afford the filing fee. Go to the forms.6
Standing order
A circuit standing order applies to every domestic relations case, and the spouse who files attaches it to the complaint. While the case is open, neither spouse may sell or hide property, cut off the other's utilities, change the family's insurance, take the children out of Georgia for more than eight days or out of their school, or harass the other.5
Also good to know
The county's guidance for people representing themselves says to:
- Bring at least three copies of each document you'll use as evidence: one for you, one for your spouse and one for the judge.
- Put any request to the judge in writing, file it with the clerk and send copies to the other side. The judge can't consider private messages from one side.
- If you can't make a hearing, file a written request for a continuance well ahead of time; a written agreement from your spouse helps. In an emergency, call the clerk's office or the judge's court attendant.
Clerk staff can explain basic procedures and deadlines, but can't recommend forms or check your paperwork. You can review closed cases at the clerk's office and copy them as examples.7
Mountain Judicial Circuit rules
Stephens County shares its Superior Court judges and divorce rules with Banks, Habersham and Rabun counties. The circuit's page has the full standing order, the mediation and parenting seminar rules, and the circuit's other divorce rules.
Free and low-cost help in Stephens County
- Georgia Mountain Women's Center (Circle of Hope). A state-certified family violence program in Cornelia serving Stephens, Habersham and White counties. The number below is its crisis line; its office is 706-776-3406.
Phone: 706-776-46738 - Georgia Legal Services Program. Free civil legal help, including family law, for people with low incomes in 154 of Georgia's 159 counties. Apply online or call the intake line.
Phone: 833-457-75299
If you need an interpreter
If you or a witness needs an interpreter, including sign language, tell the court in writing before the hearing, at least 5 days ahead where you can. The court then works to provide a licensed interpreter at its own expense.10
Stephens County Superior Court website
Sources
- ^ Stephens County Clerk of Superior Court, filing fees: key points and filing fees (stephenscountyga.gov)
- ^ Georgia Superior Court Clerks' Cooperative Authority, Stephens County clerk directory entry (gsccca.org)
- ^ O.C.G.A. § 15-6-1, judicial circuits (Justia) (law.justia.com)
- ^ Stephens County, Clerk of Superior Court (stephenscountyga.gov)
- ^ Mountain Judicial Circuit, standing order in domestic relations cases, 2025 (PDF): parenting class, mediation and standing order (mountain.georgiacourts.gov, PDF)
- ^ Stephens County, divorce (stephenscountyga.gov)
- ^ Stephens County, representing yourself in court (stephenscountyga.gov)
- ^ Georgia Criminal Justice Coordinating Council, state-certified family violence agencies (PDF) (cjcc.georgia.gov)
- ^ Georgia Legal Services Program, what we do (glsp.org)
- ^ Uniform Superior Court Rule 7.3, interpreters (gasupreme.us)
Court fees and rules change. Check with the clerk before you file. If something here looks out of date, email help@divorce.city.
Nearby counties
Fees and court rules differ from county to county. Guides for neighboring counties: Habersham County.
Stephens County also borders Banks and Franklin counties. Their clerks are listed on the Georgia page.