Court Opinion

ID: 9582233
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-21 22:24:03.351103+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T13:37:34.114742
License: Public Domain

Hall, Presiding Judge,
concurring specially. In my opinion, the Civil Practice Act (including Code Ann. § 81A-112 )is applicable to the State Court of DeKalb County. Code Ann. §81A-112( a) provides that a defendant shall serve his answer within thirty days, "unless otherwise provided by statute.” The latter phrase refers to general and not special laws. Our court has two conflicting decisions on this. See Electro-Kinetics Corp. v. Wilson, 122 Ga. App. 171 (176 SE2d 604) and Hines v. Vargo, 120 Ga. App. 614 (171 SE2d 905). The general intent of the CPA was to "provide a modern, unified system of rules governing civil *757actions in the Georgia Trial Courts.” Rees, "The Georgia Civil Practice Act of 1966: Preliminary Observations,” 2 Georgia State Bar Journal 419. The Civil Practice Act is applicable to "all courts of record.” Code Ann. § 81A-101. In any event the 1970 General Assembly has the final word on this. See also Ga. L. 1970, pp. 679, 681, "Practice and Procedure, etc. in certain Courts below the Superior Court level,” which provides: "The rules of practice and procedure that are applicable to the superior courts of this State shall be the rules which govern practice and procedure of the courts which come under the provisions of this Act.”