HB191: HB191 Family violence; substitute service when respondent is avoiding service to delay a hearing; provide

Under current Georgia law, if someone seeking a family violence or dating violence protective order cannot get the paperwork served on the other party, the case can face delay or dismissal. This bill amends two sections of Georgia's domestic relations code (O.C.G.A. §§ 19-13-3 and 19-13A-3) to spell out what a court can do when it finds a respondent is intentionally avoiding service to delay a hearing. Instead of just extending the deadline, the court could authorize substitute service: personal or certified mail delivery, leaving papers with someone over 16 at the respondent's workplace or with a known relative (backed by a sworn affidavit and a motion), or service by publication or any other method reasonably likely to notify the respondent. The court could still choose to simply delay dismissal of the petition for up to 30 additional days instead.

• Amends O.C.G.A. § 19-13-3 to give courts explicit authority to use substitute service methods when a family violence respondent is found to be avoiding service to delay a hearing.
• Amends O.C.G.A. § 19-13A-3 to apply the same substitute service options to dating violence protective order cases.
• Allows courts to leave the citation and petition with anyone over 16 at the respondent's workplace or with a known relative, if supported by a sworn affidavit and motion.
• Allows service by publication or any other method a court finds reasonably likely to give the respondent notice.
• Preserves the option for a court to instead simply delay dismissal of the petition for up to 30 additional days.

People seeking family violence or dating violence protective orders, respondents in those cases, Georgia's superior and other courts handling these petitions, and process servers or law enforcement involved in serving legal papers.

Petitioners in abuse cases can currently see their protective order requests stall or get dismissed if the other party dodges being served. This bill gives judges clearer tools to move cases forward through alternative service methods, potentially speeding up protection for people in family or dating violence situations.

• Section 1 revises subsection (e) of O.C.G.A. § 19-13-3 (family violence petitions) to let courts authorize substitute service or delay dismissal by 30 days when a respondent is avoiding service.
• Section 2 makes the identical change to subsection (d) of O.C.G.A. § 19-13A-3 (dating violence protective orders).
• Both sections list three substitute service methods: personal or certified mail delivery, leaving copies with a person over 16 at a specified location such as a workplace, or service by publication or another reasonably effective method.
• Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws, a standard provision that does not itself change substantive law.

1. 2025-02-03House Second Readers (House)
2. 2025-01-30House First Readers (House)
3. 2025-01-29House Hopper (House)

• Angela Moore (D, HD-091)Primary sponsor
• Terry Cummings (D, HD-039)
• Omari Crawford (D, HD-089)
• Samuel Park (D, HD-107)
• Anne Westbrook (D, HD-163)
• Stacey Evans (D, HD-057)

• family violence
• domestic violence protective orders
• dating violence
• court procedure
• legal service of process