Georgia Local Government Law Blog

The Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of Public's state lawsuit against a Rockdale County seeking a declaration that the County could not hire private law firms on a contingency basis. After Public was dismissed from a federal lawsuit, it

The plaintiff sued the Mayor and Aldermen of the City of Savannah after she tripped over a buckle in a city sidewalk. As for public nuisance claims, the court explained: “A public nuisance is one which damages all persons who

A court ordered members of a county's Board of Commissioners to make repairs to a road in McIntosh County. The petitioners sought mandamus to compel the commissioners to repair the road because, they say, the commissioners had a non-discretionary duty

Residents of the City of LaGrange filed a putative class-action lawsuit contending the City charged excessive utility charges for electric, gas, water, and sewer. They argue the charges constituted illegal taxes designed to raise general revenues in excess of the

Lincoln Cnty. v. Serenity Builders & Dev., LLC, A24A0825, 2024 WL 4614554 (Ga. Ct. App. Oct. 30, 2024) Lincoln County's water availability assessment has all of the features of a tax and none of the features of a fee.  [.

Catoosa Cnty. Republican Party v. Henry, 906 S.E.2d 750 (Ga., 2024) The appellants, who are the Catoosa County Republican Party (“CCRP”) and its executive officers (collectively, “the CCRP Defendants”), tried to stop certain candidates from qualifying for the May 2024

Gateway Pines Hahira, LP v. Lowndes Cnty. Board of Tax Assessors, 372 Ga.App. 705 (Ga.App., 2024) Gateway Pines Hahira, LP (“Gateway Pines”) appeals from the superior court's order granting partial summary judgment to the Lowndes County Board of Tax Assessors

Jones v. City of Atlanta, 2024 WL 4633416 (Ga., 2024) Appellant A. Thomas Jones contends that the City of Atlanta (the “City”) imposes unlawful taxes on him and other customers of its Department of Watershed Management (“DWM”) by means of

Green Meadows Housing Partners, LP v. Macon-Bibb Cnty., 372 Ga.App. 724 (Ga.App., 2024) In an effort to reduce crime in the affordable housing community of Green Meadows Townhomes, Macon-Bibb County filed a public-nuisance action against the property's owners, Green Meadows

Georgia Association of Club Executives, Inc. v. State, 2024 WL 4633505 (Ga., 2024) Because the Assessment imposed on “adult entertainment establishments” as defined in OCGA § 15-21-201 (1) (A) satisfies intermediate scrutiny under O'Brien and is not overbroad, GACE's First Amendment claims

State v. Decatur Cnty.-Bainbridge Industrial Development Authority, 2024 WL 4633664 (Ga.App., 2024) Because the State petitioned the trial court for the bond validation, it cannot bring an appeal from the trial court's order granting that petition. . . . And

Georgia Department of Transportation v. Jackson, 2024 WL 4587698 (Ga.App., 2024) Here, Jackson contends that her ante litem notice was “mailed by certified mail or statutory overnight delivery, return receipt requested[,]” and thus complied with the Georgia Tort Claims Act.

Tussahaw Reserves, LLC v. Butts Cnty., 2024 WL 4576933 (Ga.App., 2024) Tussahaw contends that SASS Group does not require a dismissal under Paragraph V because the Board and the individual commissioners were not “named” as “defendants,” but as “respondents-in-certiorari” with a limited

Gonzalez v. Miller, 2024 WL 4536191 (Ga., 2024) Miller filed a verified complaint on June 7, 2023, seeking to compel Gonzalez to produce the previously requested public records maintained by the district attorney's office and to obtain other remedies available

South River Watershed Alliance v. DeKalb Cnty., 2024 WL 4552579, at *1 (Ga.App., 2024) In 2021, DeKalb County closed on a deal to swap land used as a public park with land owned by Blackhall Real Estate Phase II (“Blackhall”)

Lowndes Cnty. Board of Tax Assessors v. LifeSouth Community Blood Centers, Inc., 2024 WL 4456554 (Ga.App., 2024) This case concerns LifeSouth's claim that property it owns in Lowndes County is exempt from ad valorem taxation under OCGA § 48-5-41 (a)

YKH Realty, LLC v. Georgia Dep't of Transportation, No. A24A0888, 2024 WL 4440461 (Ga. Ct. App. Oct. 8, 2024) In sum, we reverse the trial court order dismissing YKH's untimely notices of appeal. We also reverse the portions of the

GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF PUBLIC SAFETY v. JUSTICE., 2024 WL 4536186 (Ga., 2024) Here's a Supreme Court opinion from today about the Ex Contractu Clause. I previously sent out the Court of Appeals' opinion. It goes into the Uniform Electronic Transactions

Georgia Department of Public Safety v. Cleapor, 2024 WL 4538995, at *2 (Ga.App., 2024) Here, on this record, we are compelled to conclude that Cleapor failed to comply with the ante litem requirements and that his complaint against DPS is

Shackelford v. Dep't of Pub. Safety, 371 Ga. App. 117, 898 S.E.2d 883 (2024) In the context of reviewing a ruling on the law enforcement exception to the sovereign immunity waiver in the GTCA, “[w]e are not authorized to substitute

Georgia Dep't of Cmty. Health v. Houston Hosps., Inc., 372 Ga. App. 218, 904 S.E.2d 70 (2024) In this case, the commissioner fully adopted 15 of the hearing officer's findings of fact, but expressly modified 25 of his findings of

DR. ANA EVERETT, et al., Plaintiffs, v. GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF TRANSPORTATION, et al., Defendants. Additional Party Names: Coady Latimer, Enrique Alonso, Jill Reule, Kelvin Wilson, Langston Johnson, Nationwide Fence & Supply Co., Paul Denard, RMD Holdings, LTD, Russell McMurray, SolutionsAe,

Hooks v. Rockdale Cnty., No. A24A1014, 2024 WL 4378799, at *1 (Ga. Ct. App. Oct. 3, 2024) This appeal arises from Lacresa Hooks's lawsuit for false arrest, false imprisonment, and related claims following her arrest and detention by Rockdale County

City of Milton v. Chang, No. A24A0802, 2024 WL 4195584 (Ga. Ct. App. Sept. 16, 2024) “Thus, stated positively, municipalities generally have a ministerial duty to keep their streets in repair, and they are liable for injuries resulting from defects