On October 10, Chief Justice Harold D. Melton of the Georgia Supreme Court extended the statewide judicial emergency through November 9. A previous Judicial Emergency Order froze many deadlines, such as the deadline to file an answer to a lawsuit. HOWEVER, this extended judicial emergency restarts most deadlines.
- For cases that were pending before March 14: You will have the same amount of time after July 14 as you had as of March 14.
For example: If an answer to a lawsuit was due on March 23, the new deadline is July 23. - For cases filed between March 14 and July 13: The deadline begins running on July 14.
For example: If a civil suit was filed in June, and the answer would have been due in 30 days, the 30-day period begins July 14. The answer will be due on August 13. - For cases filed after July 14: Normal deadlines apply.
If your situation allows, the Court may require you to appear remotely. Some other cases may be safely conducted in-person.
The new Order also allows the Court to conduct grand juries and jury trials. There are a lot of cases backed up because of the pandemic, so jury trials probably will not happen quickly. Deadlines for indictments and jury trials are still paused.