Opinion
A25D0007
08-19-2024
LAWANDA DAVIE v. DANFORTH LLC.
The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:
In this dispossessory action, the Fulton County Magistrate Court entered judgment against LaWanda Davie. Davie then filed this application for discretionary review. We, however, lack jurisdiction.
Pretermitting whether Davie's application is timely, "the only avenue of appeal available from a magistrate court judgment is provided by OCGA § 15-10-41 (b) (1), which allows for a de novo appeal to the state or superior court." Tate v. Habif, 367 Ga.App. 435, 438-439 (2) (886 S.E.2d 389) (2023) (citation and punctuation omitted). Thus, this Court may address magistrate court matters only if they already have been reviewed by the state or superior court. See Westwind Corp. v. Washington Fed. S &L Assn., 195 Ga.App. 411, 411 (1) (393 S.E.2d 479) (1990).
The Georgia Constitution provides that "[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." Ga. Const. of 1983, Art. VI, Sec. I, Par. VIII. See also Bosma v. Gunter, 258 Ga. 664, 665 (373 S.E.2d 368) (1988). Accordingly, this application is hereby TRANSFERRED to the State Court of Fulton County for disposition.