Georgia CommonsHouse · Passed · 2025-2026 Regular Session
HB 1571: Bryan County; State Court; revise terms
Last action July 1, 2026 · Effective Date
A bill passed by the Georgia General Assembly would reset the court term schedule for the State Court of Bryan County, setting four criminal jury terms a year and monthly civil terms.
The summaries below were written by an AI model (claude-sonnet-5) from the text of the bill and are not part of it. Quote the text, not the summary. The stored text is the Enrolled version, the latest the General Assembly's website lists.
In plain language
The State Court of Bryan County, originally created in 1938 as the City Court of Pembroke and later amended in 1996, operates on a schedule of set terms during which it hears criminal and civil cases. This bill rewrites Section 11 of that original law to establish a new term schedule for the court. Under the bill, criminal trials would be held in four regular terms each year, starting on January 2 and on the first day of April, July, and October. Civil trials would be held monthly, starting the first day of each month. A jury would be summoned for the January, April, July, and October terms, and the chief judge or judges could summon a jury at other times if needed for pending cases. The change would take effect July 1, 2026.
What the bill does
- Rewrites Section 11 of the 1938 Act creating the State Court of Bryan County to set new court terms.
- Establishes four criminal trial terms per year, beginning January 2 and the first day of April, July, and October.
- Sets civil trial terms to occur monthly, beginning the first day of each month.
- Requires a jury to be summoned for the four criminal terms and allows judges discretion to summon juries at other times as needed.
- Sets the effective date of the changes as July 1, 2026.
Who it affects
This bill affects Bryan County residents and litigants with cases in the State Court of Bryan County, the judges and staff of that court, local attorneys who practice there, and jurors who may be summoned for the court's criminal terms.
Why it matters
Changing when the court holds its criminal and civil terms affects how quickly cases move through the system in Bryan County, when jurors are called to serve, and how attorneys and litigants schedule their court business locally.
Key provisions
- Section 1 revises Section 11 of the original 1938 Act to set four annual criminal terms starting January 2, April 1, July 1, and October 1.
- Section 1 also sets civil trials to occur monthly, beginning the first day of each month.
- Section 1 requires juries to be summoned for the four criminal terms, with judges given discretion to call juries at other times if needed.
- Section 2 sets the effective date as July 1, 2026.
- Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws.
From the bill
“For criminal trials, four regular terms commencing on the second day of January and on the first day of April, July, and October of each year”
“For civil trials, monthly commencing on the first day of each month.”
Discussed in meetings (5)
The House and Senate meetings that took this bill up, from their machine transcripts. Each account was written by Georgia Commons with AI and is not part of the record; the video is what was said.
House floor session, March 25, 2026 (legislative day 37, AM)
From 0:42:44 · Watch on the General Assembly's Vimeo channel · Confirmed by the 2026 House Journal, p. 3030
Summary by Georgia Commons: The clerk reported a committee recommendation to pass HB 1571 and later identified it as a Bryan County measure on the local calendar. No provisions were explained or debated. The House passed it with the local calendar, 164 to 0.
- Read aloud: House floor session, March 19, 2026 (legislative day 34), 0:22:15
- Read aloud: House floor session, March 20, 2026 (legislative day 35), 0:43:42
- Read aloud: Senate floor session, March 27, 2026 (legislative day 38), 0:24:33
- Read aloud: Senate floor session, March 31, 2026 (legislative day 39, part 1), 0:32:03
Status timeline
- Effective Date
- Act 603
- House Date Signed by Governor (House)
- House Sent to Governor (House)
- Senate Passed/Adopted (Senate)
- Senate Committee Favorably Reported (Senate)
- Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
- House Passed/Adopted (House)
Show full history (13 actions)
- House Third Readers (House)
- House Committee Favorably Reported (House)
- House Second Readers (House)
- House First Readers (House)
- House Hopper (House)
Sponsors
- Ron Stephens (R, HD-164)
- Jesse Petrea (R, HD-166)
- Lehman Franklin (R, HD-160)
Votes
- House voteMarch 25, 2026
164 yea, 0 nay (8 not voting, 4 excused)
- Senate voteMarch 31, 2026
45 yea, 0 nay (5 not voting, 4 excused)
Topics
- Bryan County
- state courts
- court terms
- local legislation
- jury duty