MARIE SMITH v. LANIER MANAGEMENT, LLC

• Court: Court of Appeals of Georgia
• Decided: July 26, 2023
• Docket: A23A1694
• Status: Published

Opinion

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,____________________ July 26, 2023

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A23A1694. MARIE SMITH et al. v. LANIER MANAGEMENT, LLC.

The magistrate court issued a dispossessory judgment in favor of Lanier Management, LLC, and against Marie Smith and all other occupants of a particular address (“Defendants”). Defendants appealed to superior court. The superior court entered judgment in favor of Lanier Management, and Defendants filed this direct appeal. We, however, lack jurisdiction. Appeals from superior court decisions reviewing lower court decisions by certiorari or de novo proceedings must be initiated by filing an application for discretionary appeal. OCGA § 5-6-35 (a) (1),1 (b); Bullock v. Sand, 260 Ga. App. 874, 875 (581 SE2d 333) (2003). “Compliance with the discretionary appeals procedure is jurisdictional.” Hair Restoration Specialists v. State of Ga., 360 Ga. App. 901, 903 (862 SE2d 564) (2021) (punctuation omitted). Thus, Defendants’ failure to follow the

1 Although the language in this code section has been modified, effective July 1, 2023, the language cited here is the version that applies to this case as all the relevant actions happened before July 1, 2023. See Ga. L. 2023, p. 728, § 5 (providing, in part, that the amendment to OCGA § 5-6-35 (a) (1) applies to petitions for review filed in superior or state court on or after July 1, 2023). proper procedure deprives us of jurisdiction over this appeal, which is hereby DISMISSED.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________ 07/26/2023 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.