Background
Angelina Maria Cortez brought a dispossessory appeal to superior court after receiving an adverse ruling in magistrate court. The superior court dismissed her appeal on January 28, 2026, because she had not paid rent into the court registry.
On February 9, 2026, Cortez filed a direct appeal to the Court of Appeals of Georgia. The court noted, without deciding, whether that appeal was timely under the seven-day deadline applicable to dispossessory actions.
The Court’s Holding
The Court of Appeals dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction. A party seeking appellate review of a superior-court decision that reviewed a lower-court decision must proceed by application for discretionary review under OCGA § 5-6-35(a)(1) and (b), rather than by direct appeal.
Cortez filed no discretionary application. Because compliance with the discretionary-appeal procedure is jurisdictional, the court could not consider the appeal.
Key Takeaways
- Review of a superior court’s decision on appeal from a lower court generally requires a discretionary application.
- Filing a direct appeal instead does not invoke the Court of Appeals’ jurisdiction.
- The court did not reach whether Cortez’s notice of appeal was timely.
Why It Matters
The order underscores that the correct appellate vehicle is jurisdictional in Georgia. Litigants challenging superior-court rulings in lower-court appeals must use the discretionary-application process, even when the underlying matter is a dispossessory proceeding.