Opinion
A23A0473
11-07-2022
ERIK DANIEL GOMEZ v. LINDSEY DENE ZAGARELLA.
The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:
Erik Daniel Gomez filed a petition to legitimate a child born out of wedlock. The mother, Lindsey Dene Zagarella filed a counterclaim for child support. The trial court entered an order denying the legitimation petition, but awarding child support. Gomez then filed this direct appeal. We, however, lack jurisdiction.
Under OCGA § 5-6-35 (a) (2), appeals in "domestic relations cases" must be brought by application for discretionary appeal. Here, the underlying action involved a legitimation proceeding, which is a type of domestic relations case. See Brown v. Williams, 174 Ga.App. 604, 605 (332 S.E.2d 48) (1 985). Likewise, an application for discretionary appeal is required to appeal a child support ruling. See Davis v. Welch, 205 Ga.App. 462, 463 (422 S.E.2d 323) (1992). "Compliance with the discretionary appeals procedure is jurisdictional." Booker v. Georgia Dept. of Human Res., 317 Ga.App. 426, 427 (731 S.E.2d 110) (2012) (punctuation omitted). Because Gomez failed to file an application for discretionary appeal, we lack jurisdiction over this appeal, which is hereby DISMISSED.