SB617: SB617 Dispossessory Proceedings; public access to court records of dispossessory proceedings under certain conditions; prohibit

Under current Georgia law, records from dispossessory proceedings (the formal court process landlords use to evict tenants) generally stay open to public view, even if the tenant was never actually evicted. This can create a lasting record that shows up in tenant screening even when the eviction filing did not result in the tenant losing their home. This bill amends Georgia's dispossessory statute (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50) to require courts to make those records unavailable to the public in three situations: when the tenant wins the case, when the tenant meets all the terms of a settlement agreement, or once three years have passed since the case was resolved. The bill also repeals any conflicting laws. It does not set a specific effective date in the text provided.

• Adds a new subsection to Georgia's dispossessory proceedings law (O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50) requiring courts to seal eviction case records under certain conditions.
• Requires records to be made unavailable to the public when the tenant wins the eviction case.
• Requires records to be sealed once a tenant has fully met the terms of a settlement agreement with the landlord.
• Requires records to be sealed automatically three years after a dispossessory case is resolved, regardless of outcome.
• Repeals any existing Georgia laws that conflict with this new rule.

Tenants who have faced eviction filings in Georgia, landlords and property managers who file dispossessory actions, court clerks who maintain these records, and companies that run tenant background checks using court filings.

Eviction filings can follow tenants for years on background checks even when they won the case or resolved it through a settlement. By requiring courts to seal these records under specific conditions, the bill would limit how long or under what circumstances such filings remain publicly visible to landlords and screening companies.

• Section 1 adds subsection (e) to O.C.G.A. § 44-7-50, the code section covering demands for possession and notices to vacate or pay in eviction cases.
• The new subsection requires a court to order dispossessory records unavailable to the public if the tenant prevailed in the proceeding.
• It also requires sealing if the tenant met all conditions of a settlement agreement with the landlord.
• It further requires sealing once three years have passed since the dispossessory action was resolved, regardless of who won.
• Section 2 repeals all laws and parts of laws that conflict with the new requirement.

1. 2026-03-04Senate Read and Referred (Senate)
2. 2026-03-03Senate Hopper (Senate)

• Sonya Halpern (D, SD-039)Primary sponsor
• Harold Jones (D, SD-022)
• Kim Jackson (D, SD-041)
• Elena Parent (D, SD-044)
• RaShaun Kemp (D, SD-038)

• evictions
• tenant rights
• court records
• housing
• landlord tenant law