Opinion
A22A1575
06-22-2022
GWINNETT OPERATIONS, LLC et al v. MCKINNEY et al.
The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:
Michelle McKinney, individually and as administrator of the estate of Lucille Dubose, received a favorable jury verdict against Gwinnett Operations, LLC d/b/a Life Care Center of Lawrenceville, and Life Care Centers of America, Inc. (collectively, the "Appellants"). As part of that verdict, the jury awarded approximately $9 million in punitive damages against the Appellants, which the trial court reduced to $250,000 pursuant to OCGA § 51-12-5.1 (g). The Appellants appealed to our Court, and McKinney cross-appealed to the Supreme Court of Georgia. See Case No. S22X1097 (docketed June 7, 2022). McKinney intends to argue that OCGA § 51-12-5.1 (g) is unconstitutional because it violates her right to a jury trial and the separation of powers doctrine.
The Supreme Court of Georgia "has exclusive jurisdiction over all cases involving construction of the Constitution of the State of Georgia and of the United States and all cases in which the constitutionality of a law, ordinance, or constitutional provision has been called into question." Atlanta Independent School System v. Lane, 266 Ga. 657, 657 (1) (469 S.E.2d 22) (1996) (citing Ga. Const. of 1983, Art. VI, Sec. VI, Par. II (1)). Because McKinney has filed a cross-appeal to the Supreme Court, it appears that jurisdiction over this case may lie in that Court. See State v. Mondor, 306 Ga. 338, 339 n.2 (830 S.E.2d 206) (2019) (noting that if the Supreme Court has subject-matter jurisdiction over the cross-appeal, then it has jurisdiction over the direct appeal as well). As the Supreme Court has the ultimate responsibility for determining appellate jurisdiction, see Saxton v. Coastal Dialysis & Med. Clinic, 267 Ga. 177, 178 (476 S.E.2d 587) (1996), this case is hereby TRANSFERRED to the Supreme Court for disposition.