--- title: HR 1435. Aten, Judge Phinia; distinguish service and judicial leadership; commend collection: bills id: 2025-2026/hr1435 cite_as: HR 1435, 2025-2026 Regular Session (Ga.) canonical_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr1435 md_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr1435.md text_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr1435/text source_url: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73499 date: 2026-02-20 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. up: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026.md previous: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr1434.md next: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr1436.md index: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/index.md omitted: votes and history omitted_chars: 134 omitted_url: https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr1435.md?full=1 bill_number: HR 1435 session: 2025-2026 Regular Session session_slug: 2025-2026 chamber: House bill_type: resolution status_date: 2026-02-20 last_action: House Read and Adopted sponsors: - Doreen Carter - Rhonda Taylor - Carolyn Hugley - Angela Moore text_version: Introduced has_text: true legiscan_url: https://legiscan.com/GA/bill/HR1435/2025 upstream_id: 2121406 summaries_model: claude-sonnet-5 topic_tags: - judicial honors - Rockdale County - commemorative resolution - court reform --- # HR 1435. Aten, Judge Phinia; distinguish service and judicial leadership; commend ## Text House Resolution 1435 By: Representatives Carter of the 93rd, Taylor of the 92nd, Hugley of the 141st, and Moore of the 91st A RESOLUTION Recognizing Judge Phinia Aten for her distinguish service and judicial leadership; and for other purposes. WHEREAS, Judge Phinia Aten has long been recognized by the citizens of this state for the vital role that she has played in leadership and her deep personal commitment to the welfare of the citizens of Georgia; and WHEREAS, she has diligently and conscientiously devoted innumerable hours of her time, talents, and energy toward the betterment of her community and state as evidenced dramatically by her superlative service as the Chief Judge of the Magistrate Court of Rockdale County; and WHEREAS, in 2012, she made history as the first African American woman to become a judge in the Rockdale Judicial Circuit; and WHEREAS, her judicial administration has meant increased court-to-community engagement, innovative educational opportunities, and exemplary judicial leadership demonstrated by her development and implementation of several unique court programs; and WHEREAS, she consistently demonstrates a passionate commitment to best practices in court management through the promotion of cultural and intellectual public discourse on issues of justice and liberty as well as the fostering of civic pride and connection through the beautification of public space and support of trauma-informed litigation practices; and WHEREAS, her use of evidence-based court tools such as family violence and behavioral health assessments as well as mental health stabilization protocols have helped the Rockdale Judicial Circuit experience an impressive reduction rate in recidivism; and WHEREAS, Judge Aten is a national judicial leader; she was the inaugural president of NewRock Legal Society, a minority bar association serving Rockdale, Newton, and Walton Counties, and currently serves as District Five Director for the National Association of Women Judges; and WHEREAS, she is a person of magnanimous strengths with an unimpeachable reputation for integrity, intelligence, fairness, and kindness; and WHEREAS, it is abundantly fitting and proper that the outstanding accomplishments of this remarkable and distinguished Georgian be appropriately recognized. NOW, THEREFORE, BE IT RESOLVED BY THE HOUSE OF REPRESENTATIVES that the members of this body recognize and commend Judge Phinia Aten for her efficient, effective, unselfish, and dedicated public service to the State of Georgia. BE IT FURTHER RESOLVED that the Clerk of the House of Representatives is authorized and directed to make an appropriate copy of this resolution available for distribution to Judge Phinia Aten. ## Summaries written by Georgia Commons The following was written by claude-sonnet-5 from the text above and is not part of the resolution. Quote the text, not the summary. A Georgia House resolution commends Judge Phinia Aten, Chief Judge of the Rockdale County Magistrate Court, for her judicial leadership and community service. ### Plain-language summary This is a commemorative resolution from the Georgia House of Representatives honoring Judge Phinia Aten, who serves as Chief Judge of the Magistrate Court of Rockdale County. The resolution recounts her career, including becoming the first African American woman to serve as a judge in the Rockdale Judicial Circuit in 2012, and highlights programs she developed involving court-to-community engagement, trauma-informed practices, and evidence-based tools like family violence and behavioral health assessments. The resolution also notes her leadership roles, including founding president of the NewRock Legal Society and her current position as District Five Director for the National Association of Women Judges. It formally resolves that the House recognizes and commends her service, and directs the Clerk of the House to send her an official copy of the resolution. ### What it does - Formally recognizes and commends Judge Phinia Aten for her public service to the State of Georgia. - Directs the Clerk of the House of Representatives to prepare and distribute a copy of the resolution to Judge Aten. - Creates no new law, funding, or regulatory change; it is a ceremonial statement by the House. ### Who it affects The resolution directly names and honors Judge Phinia Aten. It does not create obligations for the public, other courts, or state agencies beyond directing the House Clerk to distribute a copy of the document to her. ### Why it matters This resolution has no legal or regulatory effect on Georgians; it is a symbolic honor. Its practical significance is limited to publicly recognizing Judge Aten's career and the Rockdale Judicial Circuit's court programs in the official record of the Georgia House. ### Key provisions - The resolution's whereas clauses describe Judge Aten becoming the first African American woman judge in the Rockdale Judicial Circuit in 2012. - It cites her development of court programs including family violence and behavioral health assessments and mental health stabilization protocols. - The resolved clause formally commends her for her public service to the State of Georgia. - The final clause directs the Clerk of the House to make a copy available for distribution to Judge Aten. ## Status - Status: Passed (2026-02-20) - Last action: House Read and Adopted (2026-02-20) - Sponsors: Doreen Carter, Rhonda Taylor, Carolyn Hugley, Angela Moore - Official page: https://www.legis.ga.gov/legislation/73499 > The history, votes, and amendments (134 characters) are at https://georgiacommons.org/bills/2025-2026/hr1435.md?full=1