Court Opinion

ID: 9854570
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-24 06:09:19.122765+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:23:09.612195
License: Public Domain

Deen, Presiding Judge,
concurring specially.
This writer concurs in about 95 percent of what is said in the majority opinion and the same percentage of what is said in the other special concurrence filed in this case. Both sides acknowledge that this court should overrule WSAV-TV v. Baxter, 119 Ga. App. 185 (166 SE2d 416) (1969), and Montgomery v. Pacific &c. Co., 131 Ga. App. 712 (206 SE2d 631) (1974). There is no disagreement there. In addition, the other special concurrence seeks to overrule Minton v. Thomson Newspapers, 175 Ga. App. 525 (333 SE2d 913) (1985). The majority opposes the overruling of the latter cited case. In my opinion, there is only about 5 percent worth of difference between the two positions; the central point focuses upon whether or not to overrule Minton.
The other special concurrence is correct in saying that Minton quotes, or picks up on, promotes, and parrots the same erroneous language used in the two cases that are to be overruled by agreement, so that the specially concurring opinion has merit. The majority view is also correct in defending Minton, to the extent that Minton did apply the correct standard under Georgia law.
Where I disagree with both views is that Minton contains no precedential value and does not need overruling, because there is nothing left to overrule. The case has, in effect, already been overruled. One judge concurred in the judgment only, rendering the case lifeless as a physical precedent only, so the debate as to overruling it is much ado about nothing. Minton contains zero precedential value, and, in the words used by eight judges on this court in Tanner v. State, 160 Ga. App. 266, 267 (287 SE2d 268) (1981), is “a toothless tiger” and “a fish that cannot swim”; or in the pithy language of Sewell v. Eubanks, 181 Ga. App. 545 (352 SE2d 802) (1987), “is a jellyfish.” There is no need to beat a dead horse further; therefore, I concur specially.