Category Archives: Legal

Court of Appeals Reverses Summary Judgment

Court of Appeals Reverses Summary Judgment

All too often the Georgia Court of Appeals becomes actively involved to deprive plaintiffs of pursuing their claims in court.  The opposite is true in this case.  The Court of Appeals reversed a motion for summary judgment granted in favor of the defendant in Stephens v. Kmart Corporation, No. A15A2211, Ga. App. March 22, 2016. Nadine […]

Punitive Damages In a Car Accident

Punitive Damages In a Car Accident

Punitive Damages In a Car Accident? Rarely do automobile collision lawsuits involve awards of punitive damages.  This case involved such an award and it was upheld by the Georgia Court of Appeals in Dagne v. Schroeder, 336 Ga. App. 36, 783 S.E.2d 426 (2016). On November 11, 2011, Plaintiff Sue Schroeder picked up her daughter at […]

Defendants Obtain Reversal of Default Judgment

Defendants Obtain Reversal of Default Judgment

Defendants Obtain Reversal of Default Judgment This case began when Met-Test, LLC, filed suit in magistrate court to collect unpaid bills from Sondi Moore-Waters, a physician,.  The magistrate court dismissed the suit, and Med-Test appealed to Fulton County Superior Court.  Med-Test moved to amend its complaint to add two defendants:  Alphonso Waters, Moore-Waters’ husband and […]

Plaintiff Loses Dog Bite Claim on Motion for Summary Judgment

Plaintiff Loses Dog Bite Claim on Motion for Summary Judgment

Plaintiff and her son were denied the chance to present their case at trial by the Georgia Court of Appeals in Swanson v. Tackling, (No. A15A2378, Ga. App. February 24, 2016). On April 26, 2012, Jessica Tackling and her seven-year-old son J.R., along with Jessica’s boyfriend Matthew Day, went to spend the weekend with Julia and […]

Plaintiffs Obtain Venue in County Where Loss Occurred

Plaintiffs Obtain Venue in County Where Loss Occurred

This recent decision of the Georgia Court of Appeals involved the question of venue for tort claims brought against the State of Georgia.  Four separate actions were consolidated for purposes of this appeal. The parents of Cayleb Drayton filed suit for negligence against the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia under the […]

Cowart v. Schevitz

Cowart v. Schevitz

Court of Appeals Finds Landlord Not at Fault in Slip & Fall Case Once again the Georgia Court of Appeals rules against an injured person.  In Cowart v. Schevitz, No. A15A2036 (Ga. App., Feb. 15, 2016), Plaintiff Ada Schevitz slipped and fell, injuring herself.  She later filed suit against the landlord of the premises, Joseph Cowart. […]