Ante-Litem Notice

Published on: March 31, 2017

NO PRE-SUIT NOTICE REQUIRED TO SUE CITIES FOR INTENTIONAL ACTS

In West v. City of Albany, 2017 WL 875033 (Ga. March 6, 2017), the Georgia Supreme Court addressed whether an injured party was required to provide notice of intent to sue a city when the alleged wrongdoing was intentional rather than negligent. In an historic decision, the Court unanimously held that the ante litem (pre-suit) notice required for bringing suit against a municipality applies only to allegations of negligence, not to intentional acts.

Published on: October 22, 2014

GEORGIA SUPREME COURT SIDES WITH STATE ON AMOUNT OF LOSS REQUIREMENT FOR PRE-SUIT NOTICES

by Levy & Pruett

Posted by Susan J. Levy

In the early 90’s, the Georgia General Assembly recognized that because of the scope of the State government’s responsibilities, it could potentially face tremendous financial exposure if subjected to unlimited tort liability. Consequently, the General Assembly enacted the Georgia Tort Claims Act (“GTCA”) which struck a balance between the two: a limited waiver of sovereign immunity. “The stated intent of the [GTCA] is to balance strict application of the doctrine of sovereign immunity, which may produce ‘inherently unfair and inequitable results,’ against the need for limited ‘exposure of the state treasury to tort liability.'” Norris v. Ga. Dept. of Transp., 268 Ga. 192, 192 (1997).
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Published on: July 2, 2014

GEORGIA SUPREME COURT TO WEIGH IN ON AMOUNT OF LOSS REQUIREMENT FOR ANTE-LITEM NOTICES TO THE STATE

by Levy & Pruett

The State of Georgia, including all State agencies like the Department of Human Resources or Department of Transportation, is entitled to sovereign immunity except to the extent sovereign immunity has been waived by the provisions of the Georgia Tort Claims Act (“GTCA”). [See also A Practitioner’s View of the Georgia Tort Claims Act, Georgia State Bar Journal (1992)] The GTCA provides that the exclusive remedy for torts committed by a State employee is an action against the agency. Under the GTCA, the State has agreed to waive sovereign immunity for the torts of State officials and employees subject to certain exceptions and limitations. However, no tort action can be filed against the State without first providing ante-litem notice. O.C.G.A. §50-21-26(a). This is an absolute jurisdictional requirement.
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