Background
OneMain Financial Term Funding I, LLC obtained a default judgment against pro se defendant Bryan T. Williams. Williams first moved to set aside that judgment under OCGA § 9-11-60(d)(1). After the trial court denied that motion, Williams filed a direct appeal.
The Court of Appeals dismissed the first appeal because the denial of a motion to set aside under OCGA § 9-11-60(d) must be challenged through an application for discretionary review. On the day the remittitur issued in that appeal, Williams filed a second motion to set aside under OCGA § 9-11-60(d)(3), followed by a motion to compel arbitration and stay proceedings. The trial court denied both motions, and Williams again appealed directly.
The Court’s Holding
The Court of Appeals dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction. A party seeking review of the denial of a motion to set aside a judgment under OCGA § 9-11-60(d) must follow Georgia’s discretionary-review procedure, and Williams did not do so.
Williams’s accompanying motion to compel arbitration and stay proceedings did not permit a direct appeal. The court reasoned that he could not seek to compel arbitration until the default judgment against him had first been set aside. Because the court had dismissed Williams’s prior appeal on the same jurisdictional ground, it found this appeal frivolous and cautioned that future frivolous filings could result in sanctions.
Key Takeaways
- Denials of motions to set aside judgments under OCGA § 9-11-60(d) require an application for discretionary review.
- Failure to use the required discretionary-review procedure deprives the Court of Appeals of jurisdiction.
- A post-judgment arbitration motion does not avoid that jurisdictional requirement where the judgment must first be set aside.
Why It Matters
The decision reinforces that Georgia’s discretionary-appeal rules are jurisdictional, including for litigants proceeding without counsel. Adding a motion to compel arbitration does not create a direct-appeal route when the underlying default judgment remains in force.