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Found 197 matching passages in 151 documents.
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · May 14, 2020
BARROW v. RAFFENSPERGER (Two Cases)
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia ruled that Secretary of State Brad Raffensperger properly canceled the 2020 election for Justice Keith Blackwell's seat, because Blackwell's accepted resignation guarantees a vacancy that will erase the term voters would have been electing someone to fill.
(b) Beskin’s case is not moot. At the hearing held by the trial court, the Secretary argued that Beskin’s claims were moot because she had qualified as a candidate in the May 19 election for Justice Bethel’s office and thus had availed herself of an adequate alternative remedy to the mandamus relief that she was requesting. In response, Beskin asserted that...
In Beskin’s case, however, we need not decide whether her qualifying for the election for Justice Bethel’s office constituted an adequate alternative remedy to her qualifying for the election for Justice Blackwell’s office, or whether having qualified for the election for Justice Bethel’s office, OCGA § 21-2-136 would preclude her from withdrawing her...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · May 19, 2026
In the Matter of Charles M. Dalziel, Jr
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia ordered a six-month suspension for attorney Charles M. Dalziel Jr. for disclosing a client's confidential information and filing a frivolous lawsuit against a law firm to try to collect his fees.
(d) Recommended Discipline The Special Master then determined that because the max- imum sanction for a Rule 3.1 violation is a public reprimand, the focus of his disciplinary recommendation was Dalziel’s violation of Rule 1.6(a), and concluded that Dalziel should be suspended for no less than six months. In reaching this conclusion, the Special Master...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · June 30, 2022
McIver v. State
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia reversed Tex McIver's felony murder conviction in the shooting death of his wife Diane, ruling the trial judge should have let jurors consider a lesser misdemeanor manslaughter charge.
A review of selected cases on involuntary manslaughter provides some guidance for determining whether there is slight evidence of the commission of a lawful act in an unlawful manner to support an instruction on OCGA § 16-5-3 (b). For example, if the uncontradicted evidence shows that the defendant was not in lawful possession of the weapon that caused the...
of recklessness in their analysis of unlawful manner involuntary manslaughter. For example, in Drake v. State, 221 Ga. 347 (144 SE2d 519) (1965), the appellant shot and killed the victim in the woods of north Georgia. The appellant told the investigating officers that he was deer hunting but shot at what he thought was a fox in the mist or fog. While the...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · April 21, 2026
Sneed v. State
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld Calvin Sneed's murder conviction for shooting Gregory Jones, rejecting claims his trial lawyer was ineffective, but sent the case back to fix sentencing errors on two firearm counts.
defense that he shot and killed Jones in self-defense. Sneed ar- gues that his trial counsel’s deficient performance in these re- spects prejudiced the outcome of Sneed’s case. These arguments are unavailing. To prevail on a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel, a defendant generally must show that coun- sel’s performance was deficient and that the...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · March 1, 2021
In the Matter of Willie George Davis, Jr
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia rejected a proposed 18-month suspension for an attorney who mishandled his sister's estate and his orphaned nephew's money, finding the punishment too weak given how long it could effectively keep him in limbo.
Among other things, the Special Master concluded that Davis did not maintain and had not provided any records of how much of his nephew’s funds he spent for the benefit of his nephew, such that the record showed only that the money was unaccounted for, not necessarily that Davis converted it and used it for his own purposes; and that, indeed, the State Bar...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · April 6, 2020
Srm Group, Inc. v. Travelers Property Casualty Company of America
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia ruled that a business sued in court can seek attorney fees for bad-faith litigation even when its counterclaim was one it was legally required to bring, not just when it was optional.
1. Background. The facts, as set forth by the Court of Appeals, are as follows: Travelers Property Casualty Company of America (“Travelers”) filed suit against SRM Group, Inc. (“SRM”), seeking to recover unpaid premiums due under a workers’ compensation insurance policy. In response, SRM asserted counterclaims against Travelers for breach of contract,...
4. With Byers set aside, and given our determination in Division 2, it is clear that SRM was entitled to seek attorney fees under OCGA § 13-6-11, as it asserted independent claims for breach 6 We also disapprove of Maree v. ROMAR Joint Venture, 329 Ga. App. 282, 297 (6) (d) n.18 (763 SE2d 899) (2014); and Murtagh v. Emory Univ., 321 Ga. App. 411, 417 (3)...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · September 20, 2022
Jones v. State
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia affirmed a man's murder conviction for a fatal 2015 shooting in Augusta, ruling that a shotgun shell found in his back yard was properly seized while officers executed a valid arrest warrant.
Nevertheless, the undisputed evidence also demonstrates that, at the time the officers went to execute the arrest warrant, they did not have a search warrant for Appellant’s residence. “The Fourth Amendment [to the United States Constitution] proscribes all unreasonable searches and seizures, and searches conducted without prior judicial approval are per se...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · November 19, 2024
In THE MATTER OF ESTON WILLIAM HOOD, JR. (Two Cases)
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia suspended attorney Eston William Hood, Jr. for two years, rejecting a recommended one-year suspension as too lenient given his admitted false statements to opposing counsel, courtroom staff, and the State Bar itself.
By virtue of his admission that he violated Rule 8.1 (a) in both SDBD Nos. 7407 and 7470, Hood has admitted that he knowingly made false statements to the Bar in his responses to two separate disciplinary matters. And, in addition, he admitted to violating Rule 8.4 (a) (4), which also involves engaging in professional conduct involving dishonesty, deceit,...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · June 30, 2022
In the Matter of Daniel Kirkland McCall
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia rejected an attorney's proposed six-month suspension for neglecting three clients, ruling that his mitigating claims, unpaid refund, and proposed reinstatement conditions did not support accepting the deal as offered.
McCall states that while he recognizes the seriousness of this matter and takes full responsibility for his actions and inactions, he believes that a six-month suspension, nunc pro tunc to May 13, 2019, is appropriate here where all of the conduct in the Bar complaints occurred during the time in which he was in the midst of a psychotic episode and was...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · August 21, 2023
Reese v. State
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld a Fulton County man's murder conviction, rejecting his claims that the trial judge should have instructed jurors on self-defense and accomplice testimony and that his trial lawyer was ineffective.
“A jury instruction on the need for accomplice corroboration should be given if there is slight evidence to support the charge.” Stripling v. State, 304 Ga. 131, 136 (816 SE2d 663) (2018) (citation and punctuation omitted). An accomplice is someone who “shared a common criminal intent to commit the crimes in question with the actual perpetrators.” Ash v....
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · February 21, 2023
WS CE RESORT OWNER, LLC v. HOLLAND
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia ruled that homeowners cannot claim an easement in a nearby golf course just because it was labeled 'golf course' on a subdivision plat and they bought lots referencing that plat.
These features share two related things in common. First, there is simply a well-settled understanding, reflected in more than a century of our decisions, that when these basic features are designated on a subdivision plat, there is ordinarily no reason to doubt that they are included as part of the unified plan for the subdivision and meant for the lot...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · June 11, 2024
Hill v. State
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld a Newton County man's malice murder conviction for strangling his girlfriend, rejecting his challenges to the evidence, the trial court's handling of mistrial motions and jury selection, and his lawyer's performance.
(b) On appeal, Hill argues that the trial court abused its discretion in denying each motion for mistrial, contending that each piece of testimony discussed above, individually and when viewed collectively, deprived him of a fair trial. “Whether to grant a motion for mistrial is within the trial court’s sound discretion, and the trial court’s exercise of...
9 Although, as noted above, trial counsel did not move to strike six of the jurors about which Hill complains in Division 4, Hill argues only that counsel provided ineffective assistance by failing to move to strike five of those jurors; he does not include one of the jurors in this ineffective-assistance claim. so patently unreasonable that no competent...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · March 4, 2025
In the Matter of Christopher Ryan Breault
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia suspended attorney Christopher Ryan Breault for six months after finding he repeatedly disclosed his clients' confidential information and refused to stop representing them after being fired.
In assessing the Special Master’s recommendation of a one- year suspension, we note that this Court has not decided many disciplinary matters concerning the improper and intentional disclosure of personal client information in violation of Rule 1.6 (a). However, as detailed by the Special Master, this violation was present in Skinner, where this Court...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · November 5, 2024
In the Matter of John Carl Huber
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia disbarred attorney John Carl Huber by accepting his voluntary surrender of license, backdated to May 12, 2021, after his felony convictions for aggravated assault, burglary, and other crimes.
1 Rule 8.4 (a) (2) provides that it shall be a violation of the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct for a lawyer to be convicted of a felony. a petition for a writ of certiorari, which we denied. See Case No. S23C1147 (denied February 6, 2024). The trial court then entered an amended sentencing order merging the two counts. Huber remained incarcerated...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · February 3, 2026
Graham v. State
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia upheld a Lowndes County man's felony murder conviction, rejecting claims that his trial lawyer was ineffective for not seeking certain jury instructions on self-defense and character evidence.
The jury must determine the credibility of the witnesses. In deciding this, you may consider all of the facts and circumstances of the case, including the witness’s manner of testifying, their means and opportunity of knowing the facts about which they testify, the nature of the facts about which they testify, the probability or improbability of their...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · October 24, 2023
STATE OF GEORGIA v. SISTERSONG WOMEN OF COLOR REPRODUCTIVE JUSTICE COLLECTIVE
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia ruled that Georgia's six-week abortion ban cannot be struck down as having been unconstitutional when passed just because it conflicted with Roe v. Wade, which the U.S. Supreme Court later overruled in Dobbs.
ELLINGTON, Justice, dissenting. 1. The trial court correctly granted in part the plaintiffs’ motion for judgment on the pleadings on the basis that Section 4 and Section 11 of the Living Infants Fairness and Equality Act, Ga. L. 2019, p. 711, Act No. 234 (HB 481) (“the 2019 Act”) were void on the date enacted and can never be enforced, despite the...
affirmative duty to declare Georgia laws that violate the United States Constitution or our state Constitution void. See Aycock v. Martin, 37 Ga. 124, 127 (1867) (Because the Georgia Constitution provides that “legislative acts in violation of the Constitution are void, and the judiciary shall so declare them[,]” if the act at issue “is in violation of the...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · October 14, 2026
In the Matter of Robert David Arkin
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia imposed a three-year suspension on Atlanta-area attorney Robert David Arkin for mishandling five clients' cases and trust funds, rejecting his request for a shorter six-month suspension.
(d) ABA Standards Looking to the American Bar Association’s Standards for Imposing Lawyer Sanctions for guidance in determining the appropriate level of discipline, see In the Matter of Breault, 318 Ga. 127, 136 (2024), the Special Master found that Arkin had a duty to his clients to consult and communicate with them and to perform the work for which he was...
Next, with regard to the third condition, we clarify that Arkin must obtain a certificate of fitness to practice law from a licensed psychologist or psychiatrist as a condition precedent to his reinstatement. See, e.g., In the Matter of Moore, 300 Ga. 407, 409 (2016) (conditioning reinstatement “upon [lawyer] providing a detailed, written evaluation by a...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · March 15, 2022
MAYNARD v. SNAPCHAT, INC
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia ruled that Snapchat's maker can be sued for negligently designing its Speed Filter, rejecting the idea that a manufacturer never owes a safety duty when a third party misuses a product intentionally or unlawfully.
5. Snap and its amici curiae argue that, to the extent that our decisional law does not recognize an exception to a manufacturer’s design duty in every case of intentional, tortious product misuse, Georgia law would be an outlier among American jurisdictions, imposing a significantly greater scope of liability on manufacturers for design defects. We...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · March 4, 2025
Dillard v. State
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia affirmed the murder and armed robbery convictions of a man who fatally shot a 15-year-old during a staged marijuana deal, rejecting his arguments that the evidence at trial was too weak.
Appellant contends that Idris was his accomplice in a drug transaction, pointing to evidence that Gerena and Idris agreed to sell Appellant marijuana and that Idris accompanied Gerena to the convenience store to complete the sale. But even if Idris (the seller) could be considered to be an accomplice to Appellant (the buyer) in a drug crime — which we doubt...
Supreme Court opinion · Supreme Court of Georgia · October 15, 2024
Espinosa v. State
Summary by Georgia Commons (AI-written): The Supreme Court of Georgia affirmed the denial of a man's request to withdraw his guilty plea for stabbing his girlfriend's 15-year-old son to death, rejecting his claim that his lawyer should have advised him of an insanity defense.
At the hearing, plea counsel testified that he had practiced in Georgia since 2007. He had worked both as a public defender and in private practice as a criminal defense attorney and had handled thousands of felony cases. Counsel explained the way he typically handled a murder case, i.e., meeting with the client, requesting discovery, taking discovery to...
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