Opinion
A24A1259
04-29-2024
JPMORGAN CHASE BANK, N. A., SUCCESSOR BY MERGER TO WASHINGTON MUTUAL, N. A. v. WILLIAM E. WHITAKER, AS ADMINISTRATOR OF THE ESTATE OF N. R. HINES, et al.
The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:
JPMorgan Chase Bank, N. A. ("the Bank"), as the successor in interest to Washington Mutual, N. A. filed suit against the estate of N. R. Hines and Hines's heirs (collectively, "the Hineses"), seeking reformation of a loan agreement and security deed. The Hineses moved for summary judgment, arguing that the statute of limitation had expired on the Bank's claim for reformation. The trial court agreed and on June 27, 2023, it entered an order granting the motion for summary judgment. On October 27, 2023, the Bank filed a notice of appeal. The Hineses have moved to dismiss the appeal, arguing that this Court lacks jurisdiction. We agree.
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 upon an appellate court." Perlman v. Perlman, 318 Ga.App. 731, 739 (4) (734 S.E.2d 560) (2012) (punctuation omitted). Here, the Bank's notice of appeal was untimely, as it was filed four months after entry of the trial court's order. Accordingly, we lack jurisdiction to consider this appeal. For that reason, the Hineses' motion to dismiss is GRANTED, and this appeal is hereby DISMISSED.
To the extent that the trial court did not provide the Bank with timely notice of its June 27, 2023 order, the Bank's remedy is to petition the trial court to vacate and re-enter the order as a means of correcting the problem. Cambron v. Canal Ins. Co., 246 Ga. 147, 148-149 (1) (269 S.E.2d 426) (1980), disapproved in part on other grounds by Wright v. Young, 297 Ga. 683, 684 n. 3 (777 S.E.2d 475) (2015).