Tramaine Miller v. City Views at Rosa Burney Park Gp, LLC

Opinion

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,_________________ August 03, 2012

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A12A2331. TRAMAINE MILLER v. CITY VIEWS AT ROSE BURNEY PARK GP, LLC, et al.

On April 18, 2012, the trial court entered an order granting summary judgment to several defendants in this tort action. Plaintiff Tramaine Miller moved for an extension of time in which to file a notice of appeal. On May 15, 2012, the trial court entered an order purporting to grant Miller until June 18 – an extension of 34 days – to file a notice of appeal. On June 15, Miller filed a notice of appeal. We, however, lack jurisdiction.

A notice of appeal must be filed within 30 days of an appealable judgment.

OCGA § 5-6-38 (a). “[T]he proper and timely filing of a notice of appeal is an absolute requirement to confer jurisdiction upon the appellate court.” (Citation omitted; emphasis in original.) GMC Group v. Harsco Corp., 293 Ga. App. 707 (667 SE2d 916) (2008). A trial court may grant one extension of time for filing a notice of appeal, but “the extension shall not exceed the time otherwise allowed for the filing of the notice[] initially.” OCGA § 5-6-39 (c). An order granting an extension of more than 30 days to file a notice of appeal is “an ineffective nullity.” Parker v. State, 156 Ga. App. 299, 300 (274 SE2d 694) (1980); see also Cody v. State, 277 Ga. 553 (592 SE2d 419) (2004); Rockdale County v. Water Rights Committee, 189 Ga. App. 873 (377 SE2d 730) (1989).

In this case, the trial court’s May 15 order granting Miller an additional 34 days to file a notice of appeal was a nullity. And in the absence of a valid extension, Miller’s notice of appeal – filed 58 days after entry of the summary judgment order – was untimely. Accordingly, we are constrained to find that we lack jurisdiction over this appeal, which is hereby DISMISSED.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia 08/03/2012

Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,_________________ 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.