Reuben Darku v. Esther Narh-Martey

• Court: Court of Appeals of Georgia
• Decided: January 22, 2026
• Docket: A26A1077
• Status: Published

Opinion

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,____________________ January 22, 2026

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A26A1077. REUBEN DARKU v. ESTHER NARH-MARTEY.

In this child custody modification proceeding, the trial court entered a final order on October 20, 2025, modifying Reuben Darku’s visitation with his child. On November 14, 2025, Darku filed a motion for reconsideration. The trial court denied that motion. On December 9, 2025, Darku filed a notice of appeal. We lack jurisdiction. A notice of appeal must be filed within 30 days of entry of the judgment or trial court order sought to be appealed. OCGA § 5-6-38(a). The proper and timely filing of a notice of appeal is an absolute requirement to confer appellate jurisdiction on this Court. Perlman v. Perlman, 318 Ga. App. 731, 739 (4) (734 SE2d 560) (2012). While child custody rulings generally are directly appealable under OCGA § 5-6-34(a)(11), a motion for reconsideration does not extend the time to file an appellate challenge to an appealable order, and the denial of a motion for reconsideration is not appealable in its own right. See Bell v. Cohran, 244 Ga. App. 510, 510–11 (536 SE2d 187) (2000); Savage v. Newsome, 173 Ga. App. 271, 271 (326 SE2d 5) (1985). Consequently, the trial court’s order denying Darku’s motion for reconsideration is not appealable, and Darku’s December 9 notice of appeal — filed 50 days after the court’s October 20 order — is untimely as to that order. See OCGA § 5-6-38(a); Bell, 244 Ga. App. at 510–11; Savage, 173 Ga. App. at 271. Accordingly, we lack jurisdiction over this appeal, which is hereby DISMISSED.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________ 01/22/2026 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.