2022 Georgia Code
Title 9 - Civil Practice
Chapter 3 - Limitations of Actions
Article 2 - Specific Periods of Limitation
§ 9-3-33. Injuries to the Person; Injuries to Reputation; Loss of Consortium; Exception

Except as otherwise provided in this article, actions for injuries to the person shall be brought within two years after the right of action accrues, except for injuries to the reputation, which shall be brought within one year after the right of action accrues, and except for actions for injuries to the person involving loss of consortium, which shall be brought within four years after the right of action accrues.

History. Laws 1767, Cobb’s 1851 Digest, p. 562.; Laws 1805, Cobb’s 1851 Digest, p. 564.; Ga. L. 1855-56, p. 233, § 5; Code 1863, § 2992; Code 1868, § 3005; Code 1873, § 3060; Code 1882, § 3060; Civil Code 1895, § 3900; Civil Code 1910, § 4497; Code 1933, § 3-1004; Ga. L. 1964, p. 763, § 1; Ga. L. 2015, p. 675, § 2-1/SB 8.

The 2015 amendment, effective July 1, 2015, substituted “Except as otherwise provided in this article, actions” for “Actions” at the beginning of this Code section.

Editor’s notes.

Ga. L. 2015, p. 675, § 1-1/SB 8, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: “This Act shall be known and may be cited as the ‘Safe Harbor/Rachel’s Law Act.’ ”

Ga. L. 2015, p. 675, § 1-2/SB 8, not codified by the General Assembly, provides: “(a) The General Assembly finds that arresting, prosecuting, and incarcerating victimized children serves to retraumatize children and increases their feelings of low self-esteem, making the process of recovery more difficult. The General Assembly acknowledges that both federal and state laws recognize that sexually exploited children are the victims of crime and should be treated as victims. The General Assembly finds that sexually exploited children deserve the protection of child welfare services, including family support, crisis intervention, counseling, and emergency housing services. The General Assembly finds that it is necessary and appropriate to adopt uniform and reasonable assessments and regulations to help address the deleterious secondary effects, including but not limited to, prostitution and sexual exploitation of children, associated with adult entertainment establishments that allow the sale, possession, or consumption of alcohol on premises and that provide to their patrons performances and interaction involving various forms of nudity. The General Assembly finds that a correlation exists between adult live entertainment establishments and the sexual exploitation of children. The General Assembly finds that adult live entertainment establishments present a point of access for children to come into contact with individuals seeking to sexually exploit children. The General Assembly further finds that individuals seeking to exploit children utilize adult live entertainment establishments as a means of locating children for the purpose of sexual exploitation. The General Assembly acknowledges that many local governments in this state and in other states found deleterious secondary effects of adult entertainment establishments are exacerbated by the sale, possession, or consumption of alcohol in such establishments.

“(b) The purpose of this Act is to protect a child from further victimization after he or she is discovered to be a sexually exploited child by ensuring that a child protective response is in place in this state. The purpose and intended effect of this Act in imposing assessments and regulations on adult entertainment establishments is not to impose a restriction on the content or reasonable access to any materials or performances protected by the First Amendment of the United States Constitution or Article I, Section I, Paragraph V of the Constitution of this state.”

Law reviews.

For article, “Actions for Wrongful Death in Georgia: Part Two,” section two, see 20 Ga. B.J. 152 (1957).

For article discussing aspects of third party practice (impleader) under the Georgia Civil Practice Act (Ch. 11 of this title), see 4 Ga. St. B.J. 355 (1968).

For survey article on insurance, see 34 Mercer L. Rev. 177 (1982).

For survey article on torts, see 34 Mercer L. Rev. 271 (1982).

For survey article on workers’ compensation, see 34 Mercer L. Rev. 335 (1982).

For article, “Latent Injuries and the Statute of Limitations: A New Rule Emerges in Georgia,” see 19 Ga. St. B.J. 12 (1982).

For survey of Eleventh Circuit cases on trial practice and procedure, see 39 Mercer L. Rev. 1307 (1988).

For annual survey of law of torts, see 56 Mercer L. Rev. 415 (2004).

For survey article on product liability law, see 59 Mercer L. Rev. 331 (2007).

For survey article on local government law, see 60 Mercer L. Rev. 263 (2008).

For annual survey on product liability, see 61 Mercer L. Rev. 267 (2009).

For article on the 2015 amendment of this Code section, see 32 Ga. St. U. L. Rev. 43 (2015).

For article on the 2019 amendment of this Code section, see 36 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 63 (2019).

For note, “Taking a Toll on the Equities: Governing the Effect of the PLRA’S Exhaustion Requirements on State Statutes of Limitations,” 47 Ga. L. Rev. 1321 (2013).

For note, “I Tolled You I Had More Time!: The Future of Tolling Looks Bright for Crime Victims, as the Georgia Court of Appeals Establishes New Meaning of O.C.G.A. § 9-3-99 ,” see 68 Mercer L. Rev. 557 (2017).

For comment on Schimmel v. Greenway, 107 Ga. App. 257 , 129 S.E.2d 542 (1963), see 14 Mercer L. Rev. 444 (1963).

For comment, “Strict Liability Actions — Which Statute of Limitations?,” see 31 Mercer L. Rev. 773 (1980).

For comment, “Accrual and Unusual? Calibrating the Statute of Limitations on Section 1983 Method-of-Execution Challenges,” see 62 Emory L.J. 407 (2012).