--- title: HB 545. Terry Act; enact collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hb545 cite_as: HB 545, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb545 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb545.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb545/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70582 date: 2026-03-04 status: introduced corpus_version: bills-2026-09-13 license: Public record of the Georgia General Assembly, via LegiScan; see about.md publisher: Georgia Commons, an independent project of Georgia Civic Data. Not the State of Georgia. Not legal advice. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb544.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb546.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 365 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb545.md?full=1 bill_number: HB 545 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: bill status_date: 2025-02-20 last_action: House Postponed sponsors: - Sheila Jones text_version: Introduced has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB545/2025 upstream_id: 1978518 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - appeals procedure - court transcripts - civil litigation - court reporters - Georgia court system --- # HB 545. Terry Act; enact ## Text House Bill 545 By: Representative Jones of the 60th A BILL TO BE ENTITLED AN ACT To amend Code Section 5-6-42 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to procedure for preparation and filing of transcript of evidence and proceedings where appellant designates matter to be omitted from record on appeal and extensions of time for completion of transcript, so as to provide for transcript requests; to provide a short title; to provide for related matters; to repeal conflicting laws; and for other purposes. BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA: SECTION 1. This Act shall be known and may be cited as the "Terry Act." SECTION 2. Code Section 5-6-42 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to procedure for preparation and filing of transcript of evidence and proceedings where appellant designates matter to be omitted from record on appeal and extensions of time for completion of transcript, is amended by revising said Code section as follows: "5-6-42. If the appellant designates any matter to be omitted from the record on appeal as provided in Code Section 5-6-37, the appellee may, within 15 days of serving of the notice of appeal by appellant, file a designation of record designating that all or part of the omitted matters be included in the record on appeal. A copy of the designation shall be served on all other parties in the manner prescribed by Code Section 5-6-32. Where there is a transcript of evidence and proceedings to be included in the record on appeal, the appellant shall cause the transcript to be prepared and filed as provided by Code Section 5-6-41; by filing the notice of appeal with the clerk of the court, and shall request the transcripts from the court reporter listed on the notice of appeal. The court reporter shall file the transcripts with the clerk of the court as provided by Code Section 5-6-41; but, when the appellant has designated that the transcript not be made a part of the record on appeal and its inclusion is by reason of a designation thereof by appellee, the appellee shall cause the transcript to be prepared and filed as referred to in Code Section 5-6-41 at his the appellee's expense. The party having the responsibility of filing the transcript shall cause it to be filed within 30 days after filing of the notice of appeal or designation by appellee, as the case may be, unless the time is extended as provided in Code Section 5-6-39. In all cases, it shall be the duty of the trial judge to grant such extensions of time as may be necessary to enable the court reporter to complete his or her transcript of evidence and proceedings." SECTION 3. All laws and parts of laws in conflict with this Act are repealed. ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the bill. Quote the text, not the summary. House Bill 545, called the Terry Act, would change how appeals lawyers request court transcripts in Georgia, requiring the appellant to request transcripts directly from the court reporter named on the notice of appeal. ### Plain-language summary Under current Georgia law (O.C.G.A. § 5-6-42), when someone appeals a court case and a transcript of the proceedings needs to be part of the appeal record, the appellant is responsible for causing the transcript to be prepared and filed as described in a separate code section. This bill rewrites that process. Instead of just causing the transcript to be prepared and filed, the appellant would file the notice of appeal with the clerk of court and then request the transcripts from the specific court reporter named on that notice. The court reporter would then be responsible for filing the transcripts with the clerk. The bill also makes a small wording update, changing a reference to the court reporter completing 'his' transcript to 'his or her' transcript. The rest of the existing rules stay in place, including the 30 day filing deadline, the option for extensions, and the rule that if the appellee wants an omitted transcript included, the appellee pays for it. The bill also gives itself a short title, the Terry Act. ### What it does - Requires appellants in Georgia civil appeals to request transcripts directly from the court reporter named on the notice of appeal, rather than simply causing a transcript to be prepared and filed. - Assigns the court reporter, not the appellant, the responsibility of filing the requested transcripts with the clerk of court once the request is made. - Updates a pronoun reference in the law so it refers to the court reporter completing 'his or her' transcript instead of only 'his'. - Gives the Act a short title, the 'Terry Act,' for citation purposes. - Keeps the existing 30 day deadline for filing transcripts and the existing rule that a trial judge may grant extensions when needed. ### Who it affects Lawyers and parties involved in Georgia civil appeals, including appellants and appellees who need transcripts included in the appellate record, court reporters who prepare and file transcripts, and clerks of court who receive and process filed transcripts. ### Why it matters The bill changes a procedural step in how appeals move through Georgia courts, shifting the responsibility for filing transcripts from the appellant to the court reporter once a request is made. This could affect how quickly transcripts reach the court record and who is accountable if delays occur. ### Key provisions - Section 1 names the Act the 'Terry Act' for short title purposes. - Section 2 amends O.C.G.A. § 5-6-42 so the appellant, instead of causing the transcript to be prepared and filed under Code Section 5-6-41, must file the notice of appeal with the clerk and request the transcripts from the named court reporter, who then files them with the clerk as provided by Code Section 5-6-41. - Section 2 also updates the phrase 'his transcript' to 'his or her transcript' when describing the court reporter's duty to complete the transcript. - Section 2 leaves unchanged the existing rule that if the appellee requests inclusion of an omitted transcript, the appellee bears the cost of preparing and filing it. - Section 2 preserves the existing 30 day deadline for filing the transcript after the notice of appeal or appellee's designation, subject to extensions under Code Section 5-6-39. - Section 3 repeals any conflicting laws. ## Status - Status: Introduced (2025-02-20) - Last action: House Postponed (2026-03-04) - Sponsors: Sheila Jones - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/70582 > The history, votes, and amendments (365 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb545.md?full=1