Mikaylah Dixon v. Solstice Atl, LLC D/B/A Solstice Apartments

• Court: Court of Appeals of Georgia
• Decided: March 23, 2026
• Docket: A26D0406
• Status: Published

Opinion

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,____________________ March 23, 2026

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A26D0406. MIKAYLAH DIXON et al v. SOLSTICE ATL, LLC d/b/a SOLSTICE APARTMENTS.

Solstice ATL, LLC d/b/a Solstice Apartments filed a dispossessory action against Mikaylah Dixon and Wynton Feagen in magistrate court. On February 23, 2026, the magistrate court granted Solstice a writ of possession and Dixon and Feagen filed this application for discretionary appeal on March 11, 2026. We lack jurisdiction. Ordinarily, the only avenue of appeal available from a magistrate court judgment is provided by OCGA § 15-10-41(b), which provides for appellate review in the state or superior court. See Tate v. Habif, 367 Ga. App. 435, 438–39(2) (886 SE2d 389) (2023). Thus, this Court has jurisdiction to address a magistrate court order only if the order has been reviewed by a state or superior court. See Harris v. Reserve at Hollywood LLC, 376 Ga. App. 553, 553 (920 SE2d 163) (2025). Where an application for discretionary appeal represents an attempt to appeal a magistrate order, this Court will occasionally transfer that application to the magistrate court with direction to send the appeal to state or superior court. See Ga. Const. of 1983, Art. VI, Sec. I, Par. VIII (“[a]ny court shall transfer to the appropriate court in the state any civil case in which it determines that jurisdiction or venue lies elsewhere”); OCGA § 5-3-4(a) (granting superior and state courts appellate jurisdiction over final judgments of lower judicatories). Like this Court, however, the state and superior courts have appellate jurisdiction only where an appeal is filed within the time prescribed by statute. See OCGA § 5-3-7. See also Radio Sandy Springs v. Allen Road Joint Venture, 311 Ga. App. 334, 336 (715 SE2d 752) (2011) (“The proper and timely filing of a notice of appeal is an absolute requirement to confer jurisdiction upon the appellate court.”) (citation and punctuation omitted). While an appeal from magistrate court generally may be filed within 30 days of entry of the order sought to be appealed, see OCGA § 5-3-7, appeals in dispossessory actions must be filed within seven days of the date the judgment was entered. See OCGA § 44-7-56 (b)(1); Stubbs v. Local Homes, LLC, 375 Ga. App. 513, 516 (915 SE2d91) (2025); Radio Sandy Springs, 311 Ga. App. at 335–36. Here, Dixon and Feagen’s application was filed 16 days following entry of the magistrate court’s order. Given that fact, Dixon and Feagen have lost their right of appeal. Accordingly, we decline to transfer this case back to the magistrate court with direction to send the appeal to state or superior court, and this application is hereby DISMISSED.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________ 03/23/2026 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.