The Atlanta Gleaner.

Legal News

Edited By George Washington

(Testing in progress)

George Washington Statue at Federal Hall

Stanleyv.Patterson Et Al.

CourtSupreme Court of Georgia
Docket No.S21G0405
DecidedSeptember 20, 2022
Reporter314 Ga. 582
JudgesSupreme Court of Georgia
Tags
CivilTort LawCivil ProcedureGovernment LawOfficial ImmunityReversalRemand
Case Summary

Court personnel failed to remove a bind-over order from case files sent to a solicitor-general’s office, contributing to the improper arrest and jailing of the plaintiff. The trial court directed a verdict for the court administrator and municipal-court case managers based on quasi-judicial immunity, and the Court of Appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court of Georgia reversed. It held that the alleged negligence involved a routine ministerial task, not a function normally performed by a judge, so quasi-judicial immunity did not protect the defendants. The Court remanded for further proceedings on the negligence claim. A concurrence emphasized that the decision properly limited an earlier precedent so that judicial employees would not receive broad immunity for ordinary administrative acts merely because a judge directed them.

Opinion

Loading published copy…

The Far Side