Court Opinion

ID: 9581704
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 22:17:40.576445+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:37:11.867942
License: Public Domain

Beasley, Judge,
concurring specially.
I concur in the decision but not in the overruling of the two cases or the statement that they are erroneous. In Hughes & Peden v. Budd Contracting Co., 193 Ga. App. 656 (388 SE2d 753) (1989), the court made the point that it found “no mention of attorney fees in the agreement.” Thus it correctly decided that the award of attorney fees was not authorized. It was in error, however, in stating that OCGA § 9-9-97 “would forbid the award of attorney fees regardless of what the agreement might provide.” The trial court, which was affirmed even though this point was not agreed to, was correct in interpreting this Code section “as prohibiting the award of attorney fees except when the arbitration agreement provides otherwise,” because there is no statutory authority for such.
Walton Acoustics v. Currahee Constr. Co., 197 Ga. App. 659 (399 SE2d 265) (1990), is not erroneous either, on this point. There was no provision for attorney fees in the contract. Instead, appellant Walton cited OCGA § 13-6-11 as statutory authority for the fees awarded to it by the arbitrator. The court correctly ruled that this Code provision did not apply to arbitration proceedings which are governed by OCGA § 9-9-97. Whether the court would have agreed with the dicta in Hughes & Peden regarding the enforceability of a contract is problematic and subject to speculation. Walton Acoustics should not be overruled with respect to these issues.
I am authorized to state that Judge Cooper joins in this opinion.