2022 Georgia Code
Title 9 - Civil Practice
Chapter 11 - Civil Practice Act
Article 2 - Commencement of Action and Service
§ 9-11-5. Service and Filing of Pleadings Subsequent to the Original Complaint and Other Papers

1. Service — When required.    Except as otherwise provided in this chapter, every order required by its terms to be served, every pleading subsequent to the original complaint unless the court otherwise orders because of numerous defendants, every written motion other than one which may be heard ex parte, and every written notice, appearance, demand, offer of judgment, and similar paper shall be served upon each of the parties. However, the failure of a party to file pleadings in an action shall be deemed to be a waiver by him or her of all notices, including notices of time and place of trial and entry of judgment, and all service in the action, except service of pleadings asserting new or additional claims for relief, which shall be served as provided by subsection (b) of this Code section.
2. Same — How made.    Whenever under this chapter service is required or permitted to be made upon a party represented by an attorney, the service shall be made upon the attorney unless service upon the party is ordered by the court. Service upon the attorney or upon a party shall be made by delivering a copy to the person to be served or by mailing it to the person to be served at the person’s last known address or, if no address is known, by leaving it with the clerk of the court. As used in this Code section, the term “delivery of a copy” means handing it to the person to be served or leaving it at the person to be served’s office with a person in charge thereof or, if such office is closed or the person to be served has no office, leaving it at the person to be served’s dwelling house or usual place of abode with some person of suitable age and discretion residing therein. “Delivery of a copy” also means transmitting a copy via email in portable document format (PDF) to the person to be served using all email addresses provided pursuant to subsection (f) of this Code section and showing in the subject line of the email message the words “STATUTORY ELECTRONIC SERVICE” in capital letters. Service by mail is complete upon mailing. Proof of service may be made by certificate of an attorney or of his or her employee, by written admission, by affidavit, or by other proof satisfactory to the court. Failure to make proof of service shall not affect the validity of service.
3. Same — Numerous defendants.    In any action in which there are unusually large numbers of defendants, the court, upon motion or of its own initiative, may order that service of the pleadings of the defendants and replies thereto need not be made as between the defendants, and that any cross-claim, counterclaim, or matter constituting an avoidance or affirmative defense contained therein shall be deemed to be denied or avoided by all other parties, and that the filing of any such pleading and service thereof upon the plaintiff constitutes due notice of it to the parties. A copy of every such order shall be served upon the parties in such manner and form as the court directs.
4. Filing.    All papers after the complaint required to be served upon a party shall be filed with the court within the time allowed for service.
5. “Filing with the court” defined.    The filing of pleadings and other papers with the court as required by this chapter shall be made by filing them with the clerk of the court, except that the judge may permit the papers to be filed with him, in which event he shall note thereon the filing date and forthwith transmit them to the office of the clerk.
6. Electronic service of pleadings.
   1. A person to be served may consent to being served with pleadings electronically by:
      1. Filing a notice of consent to electronic service and including the person to be served’s email address or addresses in such pleading; or
      2. Including the person to be served’s email address or addresses in or below the signature block of the complaint or answer, as applicable to the person to be served.
   2. A person who is not an attorney may rescind his or her election to be served with pleadings electronically by filing and serving a notice of such rescission.
   3. If a person to be served agrees to electronic service of pleadings, such person to be served bears the responsibility of providing notice of any change in his or her email address or addresses.
   4. When an attorney files a pleading in a case via an electronic filing service provider, such attorney shall be deemed to have consented to be served electronically with future pleadings for such case at the primary email address on record with the electronic filing service provider. An attorney may not rescind his or her election to be served with pleadings electronically in cases that were initiated using an electronic filing service provider.
   5. If electronic service of a pleading is made upon a person to be served, and such person certifies to the court under oath that he or she did not receive such pleading, it shall be presumed that such pleading was not received unless the serving party disputes the assertion of nonservice, in which case the court shall decide the issue of service of such pleading.

History. Ga. L. 1966, p. 609, § 5; Ga. L. 1967, p. 226, § 4; Ga. L. 2001, p. 854, § 1; Ga. L. 2009, p. 73, §§ 1, 2/HB 29; Ga. L. 2018, p. 550, § 1A-1/SB 407; Ga. L. 2019, p. 845, § 4-1/HB 239; Ga. L. 2020, p. 493, § 9/SB 429; Ga. L. 2022, p. 352, § 9/HB 1428.

The 2018 amendment, effective July 1, 2018, added paragraph (f)(4) and redesignated former paragraph (f)(4) as present paragraph (f)(5).

The 2019 amendment, effective May 7, 2019, substituted “who is not an attorney” for “to be served” near the beginning of paragraph (f)(2); and, in paragraph (f)(4), substituted “at the primary email address on record with the electronic filing service provider” for “unless he or she files a rescission of consent as set forth in paragraph (2) of this subsection” in the first sentence, and added the second sentence.

The 2020 amendment, effective July 29, 2020, part of an Act to revise, modernize, and correct the Code, substituted “email” for “e-mail” near the end of paragraph (f)(3).

The 2022 amendment, effective May 2, 2022, part of an Act to revise, modernize, and correct the Code, substituted “email” for “e-mail” throughout subsection (b) and subparagraphs (f)(1)(A) and (f)(1)(B).

Editor’s notes.

Ga. L. 2001, p. 854, § 3, not codified by the General Assembly, provides that the 2001 amendment shall apply to judgments or decisions entered on and after July 1, 2001.

Ga. L. 2009, p. 73, § 5/HB 29, not codified by the General Assembly, provides, in part, that the amendment to this Code section shall apply to motions to dismiss filed after July 1, 2009.

U.S. Code.

For provisions of Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, Rule 5, and annotations pertaining thereto, see 28 U.S.C.

Law reviews.

For article, “Foreign Corporations in Georgia,” see 10 Ga. St. B.J. 243 (1973).

For article surveying Georgia cases in the area of trial practice and procedure from June 1979 through May 1980, see 32 Mercer L. Rev. 225 (1980).

For article surveying developments in Georgia domestic relations law from mid-1980 through mid-1981, see 33 Mercer L. Rev. 109 (1981).

For annual survey of law on domestic relations, see 62 Mercer L. Rev. 105 (2010).

For article on the 2018 amendment of this Code section, see 35 Ga. St. U. L. Rev. 45 (2018).

For article on the 2019 amendment of this Code section, see 36 Ga. St. U.L. Rev. 1 (2019).

For article, “2019 Legislative Review,” see 24 Ga. St. B.J. 28 (June 2019).