Opinion ID: 654282
Heading Depth: 2
Heading Rank: 1

Heading: Summary Judgment for Elbert County

Text: 10 The state of Georgia is immune to suit for any cause of action unless sovereign immunity is expressly waived by constitutional provision or statute. This sovereign immunity extends to counties, as subdivisions of the state. 19 Under the Georgia Constitution a county waives its sovereign immunity to the extent of liability insurance coverage. 20 Thus, when the plain terms of the county's insurance policy provide that there is no coverage for a particular claim, the policy does not create a waiver of sovereign immunity as to that claim. 21 In this case, the Georgia courts conclusively decided that Elbert County's liability insurance policy does not provide coverage for plaintiffs' claims against the county. Accordingly, Elbert County did not by purchase of this policy waive its sovereign immunity as to plaintiffs' claims. 11 Notwithstanding the county's sovereign immunity, plaintiffs argue that they may recover from the county under a nuisance theory. The Georgia Constitution provides that private property shall not be taken or damaged for public purposes without just and adequate compensation being first paid. 22 Relying on this constitutional provision, the Georgia courts have held that, when a county causes a nuisance to exist that amounts to a taking of property of one of its citizens for public purposes, the county is liable. 23 The county's liability is limited, however, to those damages recoverable in a condemnation action, that is, the decrease in the market value of the affected property. 24 The Georgia courts have specifically held that a county's liability for maintenance of a nuisance does not extend to personal injury damages: The general rule is that this principle is not applicable to actions for personal injury damages and that the principle, based upon the eminent domain powers of the sovereign, does not contemplate the 'taking' of a human being. 25 Accordingly, plaintiffs in this case cannot recover from Elbert County under a nuisance theory for the wrongful death of John David Kitchen. The district court did not err in granting summary judgment in favor of Elbert County.