On May 1, 2014, the circuit court granted Respondents' motions for summary judgment, holding the Marshalls' complaints were untimely because the statute of repose began to run after the first alleged misdiagnoses by Dr. Dodds and Dr. Roane. In reaching its conclusion, the court found Howell v. Zottoli, 302 Ga.App. 477, 691 S.E.2d 564 (2010), persuasive. In Howell, the Georgia Court of Appeals concluded “a later negligent act cannot serve as the new starting point of the statute of repose where the negligent act is merely the repeated failure to diagnose and treat a continuing though worsening condition.”

Id . at 138, 580 S.E.2d at 113-14 (quoting Langley , 313 S.C. at 404, 438 S.E.2d at 243 ).In finding the Marshalls' claims to be barred by the statute of repose, the circuit court relied in part upon Georgia case law holding that when there is a medical negligence claim arising from an alleged failure to diagnose and treat a condition over a course of time, the statute of repose begins to run on the date of the first negligent act. See Kaminer v. Canas , 282 Ga. 830, 653 S.E.2d 691, 697 (2007) ; Howell v. Zottoli , 302 Ga.App. 477, 691 S.E.2d 564, 567 (2010). The Georgia statute of limitations and statute of repose are found in section 9-3-71 of the Georgia Code and provide as follows: