Find Dissolution Of Marriage Records in Stewart County
Stewart County dissolution of marriage records are held by the Superior Court Clerk in Lumpkin, a small southwest Georgia county seat near the Alabama border. If you need to search for a dissolution of marriage case filed in Stewart County, request certified copies of a decree, or find out about local filing procedures, this page points you to the right office and statewide tools. Stewart County is a rural county with a small filing volume, but the same Georgia court rules and access procedures apply here as anywhere else in the state.
Stewart County Quick Facts
Superior Court Clerk of Stewart County
The Superior Court Clerk for Stewart County is at 176 Main Street, Lumpkin, GA 31815. You can call the office at (229) 838-6220. This office is the official custodian of all dissolution of marriage records in Stewart County, from the initial petition through the signed final decree. Given Stewart County's small population, the clerk's office is relatively compact, but the staff can help with case lookups, document requests, and filing questions.
Stewart County is in the Chattahoochee Judicial Circuit. This multi-county circuit covers Stewart County and several neighboring counties in the Chattahoochee River valley area of southwest Georgia. As a shared circuit, judges travel between member counties to hear cases. For dissolution of marriage hearings in Stewart County, the scheduling of contested cases depends on when the circuit judge is assigned to the Lumpkin courthouse. Uncontested cases generally need no hearing and can proceed once the waiting period is satisfied.
The Superior Court Clerks of Georgia website at gaclerks.org lists contact details for all 159 Georgia county clerks and is useful for verifying the Stewart County office address and hours before making the drive to Lumpkin.
Online Tools for Searching Stewart County Records
The GSCCCA Portal is the primary online resource for searching Superior Court civil filings in Georgia, including dissolution of marriage cases in Stewart County. The portal is maintained by the Georgia Superior Court Clerks' Cooperative Authority and lets you search by party name to find case index data such as filing dates and case numbers. This is typically the best online starting point before contacting the Lumpkin clerk's office directly.
Because Stewart County is a small rural county, document image availability on the GSCCCA portal may be limited, especially for older filings that predate digital scanning. The portal may show case index entries without full document images. In that situation, contact the clerk at (229) 838-6220 to request paper copies or ask about the county's document availability in the system.
The image below shows the Find My Clerk directory at gaclerks.org, which helps you identify and contact the correct Superior Court Clerk's office for any Georgia county, including the Stewart County clerk in Lumpkin.
The GSCCCA eCertification service provides online certified document requests for participating counties. Check the eCertification portal to see if Stewart County is currently active before submitting an online request for certified dissolution of marriage records.
Note: The re:SearchGA tool at researchga.tylerhost.net covers 25 Georgia counties for court record searches, and Stewart County is unlikely to be among those given its small size and filing volume.
Filing for Dissolution of Marriage in Stewart County
To file a dissolution of marriage in Stewart County, at least one spouse must have been a Georgia resident for six months. The petition is filed in the Superior Court of the county where the defendant lives. If your spouse is a Stewart County resident, the filing goes to the clerk at 176 Main Street in Lumpkin. If your spouse lives outside Georgia, you can file in Stewart County as the plaintiff's county of residence.
Stewart County's rural setting and small courthouse mean the filing experience is more personal than in a larger metro county. Clerks are often able to answer basic procedural questions and point you to the right forms. That said, they cannot provide legal advice, so if your case involves contested issues around property or children, working with a family law attorney is worth considering.
In an uncontested dissolution of marriage, both parties agree on everything before filing. Once all forms are submitted, the other party is served, and the 30-day waiting period expires, the court can sign the final decree without a formal hearing. Contested cases require at least one hearing before a judge in the Chattahoochee Circuit, and scheduling depends on the circuit's calendar.
Georgia's PeachCourt eFiling system accepts Superior Court dissolution of marriage submissions electronically. For Stewart County residents who live far from Lumpkin or want to avoid in-person trips, eFiling is a practical option for submitting documents to the Chattahoochee Circuit court.
Note: Columbus is a large city in neighboring Muscogee County, not in Stewart County. Residents of Columbus who need dissolution of marriage records should contact the Muscogee County Superior Court, not the Stewart County clerk in Lumpkin.
Requesting Certified Copies and Verifications
Certified copies of dissolution of marriage decrees from Stewart County are issued by the Superior Court Clerk at 176 Main Street, Lumpkin, GA 31815. Request them in person with a valid photo ID, or send a written mail request with the party names, approximate filing year, case number if known, and payment for the fee. Call (229) 838-6220 to get the current fee before mailing your request.
For dissolution of marriage records from 1952 to 1996, the Georgia DPH Vital Records office offers a statewide verification service. The image below shows the Georgia DPH Vital Records portal where a Form 3917 verification request can be submitted for $10.
The DPH service confirms that a dissolution of marriage was recorded in Georgia during the covered period. It applies to Stewart County filings the same as any other county. This verification is not a certified court copy. For a document that carries the court's official seal, only the Stewart County Superior Court Clerk can provide it regardless of the year.
Applicable Law and Additional Resources
All dissolution of marriage in Georgia, including cases in Stewart County, is governed by state law rather than county rules. The main statutes are in Georgia Title 19 Chapter 5. The 13 recognized grounds for dissolution of marriage are in O.C.G.A. Section 19-5-3. The most commonly filed basis is that the marriage is irretrievably broken, which requires no proof of fault by either party and applies in Stewart County just as it does elsewhere in Georgia.
The Georgia Courts website has procedural guides and self-help resources for those navigating the dissolution process without an attorney. For residents of Stewart County who need legal assistance, Southwest Georgia Legal Aid serves counties in this region and may be able to help income-eligible clients with dissolution of marriage matters. The Georgia Archives is another resource for historical dissolution records from Stewart County that may not be accessible through modern online systems.
Cities in Stewart County
Stewart County has no cities that meet the 25,000-population threshold for this site. Lumpkin is the county seat and the primary community in Stewart County. Note that Columbus, a qualifying city, is located in neighboring Muscogee County and is not part of Stewart County. All dissolution of marriage filings for Stewart County residents are handled through the Superior Court in Lumpkin.