---
title: HB 999. Magistrate courts; collecting sums and fees authorized by law; revise provisions
collection: bills
id: 2025-2026/hb999
cite_as: HB 999, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.)
canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb999
md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb999.md
text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb999/text
source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72279
date: 2026-05-12
status: passed
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.
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omitted: votes and history
omitted_chars: 1881
omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb999.md?full=1
bill_number: HB 999
session: 2025-2026 Regular Session
session_slug: 2025-2026
chamber: House
bill_type: bill
status_date: 2026-05-12
last_action: Effective Date 2026-07-01
sponsors:
  - Rob Leverett
  - Mary Oliver
  - Stacey Evans
  - Stan Gunter
  - Kimberly New
  - Matt Reeves
  - Bo Hatchett
text_version: Enrolled
has_text: true
legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HB999/2025
upstream_id: 2083378
summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5
topic_tags:
  - magistrate courts
  - civil claims limits
  - court fees
  - probate judge elections
  - small claims
---

# HB 999. Magistrate courts; collecting sums and fees authorized by law; revise provisions

## Text

House Bill 999 (AS PASSED HOUSE AND SENATE)
By: Representatives Leverett of the 123rd, Oliver of the 84th, Evans of the 57th, Gunter of the
8th, New of the 40th, and others
A BILL TO BE ENTITLED
AN ACT
To amend Article 5 of Chapter 10 of Title 15 the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to fees and costs of magistrate courts, so as to revise provisions related to magistrate
courts collecting sums and fees authorized by law; to amend an Act to amend Chapter 10 of
Title 15 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to magistrate courts, so as to
provide for nonpartisan election of magistrates, approved May 14, 2025 (Ga. L. 2025, p.
780), so as to correct a scrivener's error in the automatic repealer in said Act related to a
constitutional amendment for the nonpartisan election of judges of the probate court; to
provide legislative intent; to amend Code Section 15-10-2 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to general jurisdiction and authority of magistrates to act, so as to revise
the limitation on civil claims that may be considered by a magistrate court; to provide for
related matters; to provide for effective dates and applicability; to repeal conflicting laws;
and for other purposes.
BE IT ENACTED BY THE GENERAL ASSEMBLY OF GEORGIA:
SECTION 1.
Article 5 of Chapter 10 of Title 15 the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to fees
and costs of magistrate courts, is amended by revising Code Section 15-10-80, relating to
filling fees, service of process costs, writ of fieri facias fees, and costs taxed to losing party,
as follows:
"15-10-80.
(a) Upon filing any civil action, the plaintiff shall pay a filing deposit as established by
local court rule not to exceed $22.00 which shall cover all costs of the action except service
of process.
(b) Upon filing any civil action, the plaintiff shall pay the actual cost of serving each party
required to be served but not more than the amount of the fee charged by sheriffs for
serving process for each party to be served.
(c) For issuing a writ of fieri facias, the fee charged shall be $4.00 which shall be paid by
the person requesting the same. Such fee shall be charged and collected
contemporaneously with or prior to the issuance of the writ of fieri facias but not before the
entry of judgment in the action.
(d) As between the parties, costs shall be taxed against the losing party.
<ins>(e) All sums that may be collected pursuant to Code Section 15-23-7 and all other sums
required by law shall be in addition to the fees provided for in this Code section, and this
article shall not affect the collection of such other sums or fees as authorized by law."
</ins> SECTION 2.
(a) It is the intention of the General Assembly to correct a scrivener's error in the automatic
repealer in an Act to amend Chapter 10 of Title 15 of the Official Code of Georgia
Annotated, relating to magistrate courts, so as to provide for nonpartisan election of
magistrates, approved May 14, 2025 (Ga. L. 2025, p. 780), so as to revise the section
providing that the entire Act shall be automatically repealed if an amendment to the
Constitution of Georgia providing that all judges of the probate court shall be elected in
nonpartisan elections is not ratified prior to January 1, 2027, shall only apply to the section
of the bill amending Code Section 21-2-139, relating to nonpartisan elections authorized and
conduct, as effective on January 1, 2027, by making conforming changes required by the
approval of such constitutional amendment.
(b) An Act to amend Chapter 10 of Title 15 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated,
relating to magistrate courts, so as to provide for nonpartisan election of magistrates,
approved May 14, 2025 (Ga. L. 2025, p. 780), is amended by revising subsection (b) of
Section 5 as follows:
"(b) Section 4 of this Act shall become effective on January 1, 2027, following the
ratification of an amendment to the Constitution of Georgia providing that all judges of the
probate court shall be elected in nonpartisan elections; provided, however, that to the extent
this Act conflicts with law in effect at the time of ratification, this Act and such amendment
shall control, and to the extent such law is not in conflict, the law in effect at the time of
ratification shall control and shall remain in full force and effect. If such amendment is not
so ratified, then Section 4 of this Act shall stand automatically repealed."
SECTION 3.
Code Section 15-10-2 of the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, relating to general
jurisdiction and authority of magistrates to act, is amended by revising paragraph (5) as
follows:
"(5) The trial of civil claims including garnishment and attachment in which exclusive
jurisdiction is not vested in the superior court and the amount demanded or the value of
the property claimed does not exceed <del>$15,000.00</del> <ins>$25,000.00,</ins> provided that no
prejudgment attachment may be granted;"
SECTION 4.
(a) Except as provided for in subsection (b) of this section, this Act shall become effective
on July 1, 2026.
(b) Section 3 of this Act shall become effective on January 1, 2027, and shall apply to any
actions filed on or after such date.
SECTION 5.
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 999 raises the cap on civil claims magistrate courts can hear from $15,000 to $25,000, clarifies what fees magistrate courts can collect, and fixes a drafting error in a 2025 law about nonpartisan magistrate elections.

### Plain-language summary

Magistrate courts in Georgia are small claims-style courts that handle civil disputes, evictions, and other minor matters. Currently they can only hear civil claims up to $15,000. This bill raises that limit to $25,000, meaning more disputes can be resolved in magistrate court instead of superior court, though prejudgment attachment still is not allowed.
The bill also clarifies that magistrate courts can collect certain fees required by other Georgia laws (referencing O.C.G.A. § 15-23-7) in addition to the standard filing, service, and fieri facias fees already listed in the code. Separately, it fixes a scrivener's error in a 2025 law about electing probate court judges without party affiliation, limiting an automatic repeal clause so it only affects the section on nonpartisan election procedures. Most changes take effect July 1, 2026, but the higher claim limit applies to cases filed on or after January 1, 2027.

### What it does

- Raises the maximum dollar amount magistrate courts can hear in civil claims from $15,000 to $25,000, effective for cases filed on or after January 1, 2027.
- Adds a new subsection to the magistrate court fee law clarifying that other legally required sums, including those under O.C.G.A. § 15-23-7, can be collected in addition to standard filing and service fees.
- Corrects a scrivener's error in a 2025 law so the automatic repeal clause only applies to the section on nonpartisan probate judge elections, not the whole Act.
- Sets different effective dates: most provisions start July 1, 2026, while the higher claim limit starts January 1, 2027.

### Who it affects

People filing or defending small civil claims, garnishments, and attachments in Georgia magistrate courts; magistrate court clerks and judges who collect fees and set jurisdictional limits; and officials involved in the 2027 transition to nonpartisan election of probate court judges.

### Why it matters

Raising the claim limit to $25,000 lets more disputes be resolved in the faster, less formal magistrate court system rather than superior court. The fee clarification affects how much litigants pay, and the correction ensures the 2025 nonpartisan election law does not accidentally repeal itself entirely if the constitutional amendment fails.

### Key provisions

- Section 1 rewrites O.C.G.A. § 15-10-80 to add subsection (e), allowing collection of sums under O.C.G.A. § 15-23-7 and other legally required fees on top of existing filing, service, and fieri facias fees.
- Section 2 corrects a scrivener's error in the 2025 nonpartisan magistrate election law (Ga. L. 2025, p. 780), limiting the automatic repealer to the section on nonpartisan election procedures.
- Section 3 amends O.C.G.A. § 15-10-2(5) to raise the magistrate court civil claim jurisdiction limit from $15,000 to $25,000, while keeping the ban on prejudgment attachment.
- Section 4 sets the general effective date as July 1, 2026, except the new $25,000 claim limit, which applies to actions filed on or after January 1, 2027.
- Section 5 repeals conflicting laws.

## Status

- Status: Passed (2026-05-12)
- Last action: Effective Date 2026-07-01 (2026-05-12)
- Sponsors: Rob Leverett, Mary Oliver, Stacey Evans, Stan Gunter, Kimberly New, Matt Reeves, Bo Hatchett
- Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/72279

> The history, votes, and amendments (1,881 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hb999.md?full=1