Opinion
A24A1054
02-29-2024
ANDRE JOHNSON v. JENNIFER LEY.
The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:
On January 25, 2023, the trial court entered an order dismissing this civil action. On April 18, 2023, plaintiff Andre Johnson filed a notice of appeal to this Court. We lack jurisdiction.
A notice of appeal must be filed within 30 days of entry of the judgment or trial court order sought to be appealed. OCGA § 5-6-38 (a). The proper and timely filing of a notice of appeal is an absolute requirement to confer jurisdiction on this Court. Rivers v. McCullers, 367 Ga.App. 565, 566 (2) (887 S.E.2d 411) (2023). Here, Johnson's notice of appeal was filed 83 days after entry of the trial court's order. Thus, this appeal is untimely and is therefore DISMISSED for lack of jurisdiction. See id.; Harned v. Piedmont Healthcare Foundation, 356 Ga.App. 870, 871-872 (849 S.E.2d 726) (2020).
In his notice of appeal, Johnson states that he did not receive timely notice of the trial court's order. To the extent the trial court may have frustrated Johnson's ability to seek appellate review by failing to notify him of its order in a timely manner, his remedy is to petition the trial court to vacate and re-enter the order under OCGA § 9-11-60 (g). See Cambron v. Canal Ins. Co., 246 Ga. 147, 148-149 (1) (269 S.E.2d 426) (1980), disapproved in part by Wright v. Young, 297 Ga. 683, 684 n.3 (777 S.E.2d 475) (2015). If the order is vacated and re-entered, Johnson would be required to file a notice of appeal within 30 days from the date of re-entry. Id.