Eric Christopher White v. Laura Ashley White

Opinion

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,____________________ February 28, 2023

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A23D0250. ERIC CHRISTOPHER WHITE v. LAURA ASHLEY WHITE.

Eric Christopher White and Laura Ashley White were divorced pursuant to a final judgment and decree of divorce entered on December 21, 2022. On January 20, 2023, Eric filed a timely application for a discretionary appeal from the trial court’s order. We denied that application on February 15, 2023. White v. White, Case No. A23D0226. One week later, Eric filed the current application for a discretionary appeal, again seeking appellate review of the final judgment and decree of divorce. We, however, lack jurisdiction. First, because the current application was filed 63 days after entry of the divorce decree, it is untimely. Under OCGA § 5-6-35 (d), a discretionary application must be filed within 30 days of entry of the order sought to be appealed. The requirements of OCGA § 5-6-35 are jurisdictional, and this Court cannot consider an application for appeal that fails to comply with those requirements. Hair Restoration Specialists v. State of Georgia, 360 Ga. App. 901, 903 (862 SE2d 564) (2021). Furthermore, our denial of White’s first discretionary application bars further appellate review of the final judgment and divorce decree. See Ross v. State, 310 Ga. App. 326, 327 (713 SE2d 438) (2011) (“[A]ny issue that was raised and resolved in an earlier appeal is the law of the case and is binding on this Court . . . .”) (punctuation omitted); Hook v. Bergen, 286 Ga. App. 258, 261 (1) (649 SE2d 313) (2007) (“[T]he denial of an application for discretionary appeal is an adjudication on the merits of the underlying order and acts as res judicata in subsequent proceedings.”); see also Jackson v. State, 273 Ga. 320, 320 (540 SE2d 612) (2001) (a party “is not entitled to another bite at the apple by way of a second appeal”). For these reasons, this appeal is hereby DISMISSED.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________ 02/28/2023 I certify that the above is a true extract from the minutes of the Court of Appeals of Georgia. Witness my signature and the seal of said court hereto affixed the day and year last above written.

, Clerk.