Under the doctrine of respondeat superior in Georgia, an employer is liable for injuries to another proximately resulting from the acts of an employee committed within the scope of his or her employment. O.C.G.A. § 51-2-2. Typically speaking, Georgia law does not consider an employee’s commute within the scope of employment for the purposes of […]
In Polo Golf & Country Club Homeowner’s Association, Inc. v. Rymer, 294 Ga. 489, 754 S.E.2d 42 (2014), the Supreme Court of Georgia affirmed the denial of the defendant association’s motion for summary judgment on plaintiffs Rymers complaint for property damage as a result of continuous flooding on the Rymers property. The Rymers are property […]
A recent opinion of the Georgia Court of Appeals contrasts two deck collapse cases under similar, but not identical, facts. In Rogers v. Woodruff, A14A0425 (August, 19 2014), the Court undertook an analysis of facts similar to those presented in Hicks v. Walker, 262 Ga. App. 216 (2003), but found that one discernible difference made […]
Georgia’s case law on apportionment of fault to a non-party continues to evolve. In Zaldivar v. Prickett, A14A0113 (Ga. Ct. App. July 16, 2014) Zaldivar and Prickett were involved in an automobile accident at an intersection, for which they each blamed the other. Prickett sued Zaldivar, but even though she was also injured, Zaldivar did […]
A recent decision by the Georgia Court of Appeals provides a valuable illustration of how strictly Georgia Courts evaluate the significance of communications leading up to a settlement. The case of Kolbus v. Fromm, A14A1132 (Ga. Ct. App., June 11, 2014) serves as a reminder to litigants and their attorneys to proceed toward settlement with […]
If there was ever any doubt in Georgia about who holds the Patient Mental Health Privilege, when it attaches, and who has a right to mental health records, the Supreme Court of Georgia just made it crystal clear. It’s the patient; not their family, representatives, and not their doctor. In a decision dated June 30, […]
The Georgia Supreme Court just issued a new ruling this week in which it held that when a Plaintiff becomes entitled to an award of attorney’s fees pursuant to Georgia’s offer of judgment statute, O.C.G.A. § 9-11-68, the court must take into account more than the contingency fee agreement plaintiff has with their attorney. Georgia […]
A recent decision by the Georgia Supreme Court sheds light on the law imposing suit limitations on lien collection actions, and suggests that the statute in question may need to be revised by the legislature. Hospital Authority of Clarke County v. Geico Insurance Co., 294 Ga. 477, 754 S.E.2d 358 (2014) concerns an action to […]
The doctrine of res ipsa loquitur requires that a plaintiff show that whatever caused the plaintiff’s injury was in the exclusive control of the defendant and but for the defendant’s negligence, the plaintiff would not have been injured. Clearly, it is one of the hardest tests in tort law to meet because generally there is […]
As a general rule, under the doctrine of respondeat superior in Georgia, an employer is liable for injuries to another proximately resulting from the acts of an employee committed within the scope of his or her employment. O.C.G.A. § 51-2-2. While there is no controlling definition of scope of employment, generally, if the employee’s wrongful […]