DocketNumber: S19M0969
Citation Numbers: 829 S.E.2d 348
Judges: Bethel
Filed Date: 6/10/2019
Status: Precedential
Modified Date: 7/29/2022
*351On April 12, 2017, Ryan Alexander Duke was indicted for malice murder, felony murder, aggravated assault, burglary, and concealing the death of another in connection with the October 23, 2005, death of Tara Grinstead. Duke was initially provided counsel through the Tifton Judicial Circuit Public Defender's office, but, in September 2018, he obtained pro bono private counsel. The case was set for trial in Irwin County Superior Court, and, in the lead-up to trial, Duke filed a series of motions in the trial court seeking public funding for expert witnesses and investigators to aid his defense.
Notwithstanding the trial court's finding that Duke is indigent and that the assistance of experts is necessary to mount a proper defense, his motions were denied, and the trial court did not grant Duke's request for a certificate of immediate review pursuant to OCGA § 5-6-34 (b). In the absence of a certificate from the trial court, Duke filed both a motion asking this Court to stay the proceedings below and an application asking the Court to exercise discretion to allow an interlocutory appeal pursuant to the analysis set forth in Waldrip v. Head ,
For the reasons set forth below, we overrule Waldrip to the extent it permits this Court to disregard the requirement set forth in OCGA § 5-6-34 (b) that a party must obtain a certificate of immediate review from the trial court before pursuing an interlocutory appeal not otherwise authorized by OCGA § 5-6-34 (a). Because the trial court did not issue a certificate of immediate review in this case, this Court is without jurisdiction to consider Duke's application for interlocutory appeal. His application is therefore dismissed. The stay we previously issued in this case will dissolve when our remittitur is received by and filed in the trial court.
1. Statutory Requirements for Interlocutory Review are Jurisdictional .
"The solemn duty devolves upon this [C]ourt to inquire into its jurisdiction to entertain each appeal and review the alleged errors of the trial court." Byrd v. Goodman ,
OCGA § 5-6-34 governs what trial court orders may be reviewed immediately by an appellate court. Specifically, subsection (a) of the statute lists the trial court judgments and orders that may be appealed immediately. This list includes "[a]ll final judgments ... where the case is no longer pending in the court below." OCGA § 5-6-34 (a) (1).
Other cases can be appealed immediately only with permission from both the trial court and the appellate court. OCGA § 5-6-34 (b). When a trial court enters an order, decision, or judgment not otherwise subject to immediate appeal under OCGA § 5-6-34 (a), appeal from that order may be had only "[w]here the trial judge ... certifies within ten days of entry thereof that the order, decision, or judgment is of such importance *352to the case that immediate review should be had." OCGA § 5-6-34 (b). Upon such certification, "the Supreme Court or the Court of Appeals may thereupon, in their respective discretions, permit an appeal to be taken from the order, decision or judgment ..."
Through the collateral order doctrine, we have also recognized that "a very small class of interlocutory rulings are effectively final in that they finally determine claims of right separable from, and collateral to, rights asserted in the action, too important to be denied review and too independent of the cause itself to require that appellate consideration be deferred until the whole case is adjudicated." State v. Cash ,
We have said the same about many other statutory requirements for appeal. See, e.g., Crosson v. Conway ,
The order at issue in this case is clearly not a final judgment, as Duke's case remains pending in the court below. Duke has also made no argument before this Court that the trial court order is otherwise immediately appealable under OCGA § 5-6-34 (a).
Moreover, despite his counsel's eleventh-hour efforts at oral argument to characterize the order at issue as a collateral order, that argument plainly fails. Under the collateral order doctrine, an order that does not resolve the entire case in the trial court may be appealed immediately if it "(1) resolves an issue that is 'substantially separate' from the basic issues to be decided at trial, (2) would result in the loss of an important right if review had to await final judgment, and (3) completely and conclusively decides the issue on appeal such that nothing in the underlying action can affect it." Fulton County ,
Because the trial court's order denying Duke's requests for funding was not immediately appealable as a final judgment or as a collateral order, Duke's only option for seeking review of that order was to pursue an interlocutory appeal. Because the trial court did not issue a certificate of immediate review, Duke did not satisfy that statutory requirement for bringing such an appeal. Nevertheless, Duke invoked this Court's ruling in Waldrip , asking this Court to allow his interlocutory appeal notwithstanding the fact that no certificate of immediate review was issued by the trial court. It is against this statutory and decisional backdrop and the procedural history of this case that we reconsider our holding in Waldrip .
2. Waldrip Created a Judicial Exception to the Statutory Requirements for Bringing an Interlocutory Appeal .
In Waldrip , the petitioner, who had been convicted of murder, filed a habeas corpus petition alleging ineffective assistance of counsel.
However, without reference to any authority, this Court went on to state that the purpose of the certificate requirement "is not to permit trial courts to deprive appellate courts of their jurisdiction." Waldrip ,
Because of this defect in the interlocutory review process, this Court on rare occasions has assumed jurisdiction to consider an appeal despite the absence of a final judgment or a certificate of immediate review from the trial court. We have chosen to bypass the statutory requirements for interlocutory review and address the substantive issues raised on appeal when the case presented an important issue of first impression concerning a recently enacted statute for which a precedent was desirable, dismissal would deny the litigant the right of appellate review in this state, or consideration of the trial court order as 'final' served the interest of judicial economy. In effect, this Court has granted the application for interlocutory review in those exceptional cases that involve an issue of great concern, gravity, and importance to the public and no timely opportunity for appellate review.
*354(Citations omitted.)
The Court went on to assert that
both the state constitution and code give this Court authority to establish rules of appellate procedure for this state. The constitution states that each court may exercise the powers 'necessary in aid of its jurisdiction' and gives the Supreme Court express responsibility for administering the entire judicial system. The code gives this Court authority to 'establish, amend, and alter its own rules of practice' Even if the legislature had not expressly provided this authority, this Court has the inherent power to maintain a court system that provides for the administration of justice in an orderly and efficient manner.
(Citations omitted).
The Court announced that we have "the power to consider appeals of interlocutory orders when we disagree with the trial court concerning the need for immediate appellate review of an interlocutory order."
The Court went on to express its disagreement with the trial court's decision not to grant the petitioner's request for a certificate of immediate review in that case. Further, we explained that we granted the petitioner's interlocutory application because the circumstances presented "one of those rare cases in which we exercise our discretion to review an interlocutory order without a trial court certificate because the appeal presents a legal issue of great concern and importance and rights may be lost if review is delayed until a final judgment is entered."
The opinion in Waldrip was embraced by a bare majority of the Court. The majority opinion drew a sharp dissent authored by Justice Carley and joined by Justices Thompson and Hines, who argued, among other things, that the Court lacked the authority to bypass the statutory prerequisites for an interlocutory appeal.
3. The Rationales Articulated in Waldrip are Unpersuasive .
We now examine in turn the various rationales articulated by the Waldrip majority in support of its decision. Through such examination, we discover that Waldrip rests on an unsturdy foundation.
(a) Appellate Court Jurisdiction is Established by the Georgia Constitution and Statutes .
The Waldrip majority divined the necessity of its holding from the absence of any mechanism allowing this Court to immediately review the decision of a trial court in a case that we deem to present an issue of gravity and concern. Curiously, it stated that its holding was necessary because the certificate of immediate review requirement in OCGA § 5-6-34 (b) was not designed to "permit *355trial courts to deprive appellate courts of their jurisdiction." Waldrip ,
But the Court's jurisdiction is not controlled by the trial court; it is fixed by the Georgia Constitution and the statutory law. As we noted at the outset, statutory procedural requirements for appeal, if not complied with, deprive the State's appellate courts of jurisdiction to consider the case at hand. See, e.g., Jones ,
While attempting to remedy one perceived problem, Waldrip actually created several others. By announcing this Court's discretion to override the requirements of OCGA § 5-6-34 (b), Waldrip injected this Court into a role that the General Assembly entrusted exclusively to the trial court; namely, deciding whether, in the first instance, an issue merits interlocutory consideration. By requiring the prompt, affirmative assent of the trial court before an interlocutory appeal can proceed, OCGA § 5-6-34 (b) allows the trial court to manage litigation before it to a conclusion except in those circumstances in which the trial court believes that the issues presented by a litigant need clarification by an appellate court before the case proceeds. Aside from cases covered by OCGA § 5-6-34 (a), absent a timely certificate of immediate review, a litigant's opportunity for appellate review arises only once a final order in the case is issued. See Turner v. Harper ,
Moreover, despite the claims of Duke and the Waldrip majority to the contrary, OCGA § 5-6-34 (b) does not bar appellate courts from deciding any cases for which they have jurisdiction. The statute merely outlines specific circumstances in which that jurisdiction may attach before the issuance of an order that is immediately appealable under OCGA § 5-6-34 (a). A litigant's opportunity for appellate review is not denied by this process; it is, at worst, delayed in a way specifically designed by the General Assembly.
This is unequivocally the scheme adopted by the General Assembly. As we observed before Waldrip , the General Assembly placed "unfettered discretion" and "carte blanche authority" in the trial court to issue or deny a certificate of immediate review, and "there are no clearly delineated specifications or ascertainable standards [of that exercise of discretion and authority] for appellate review." (Citations and punctuation omitted.) Scruggs ,
While, in some cases, the interests of judicial economy may not be served when a reversible error is addressed by appellate courts only after the entry of a final judgment, that is not a problem this Court is empowered to remedy. The General Assembly has entrusted the first exercise of authority to allow interlocutory review to trial courts, and it is not for this Court to override that decision. As this Court has previously noted "the certificate of immediate review is not 'surplusage' but is instead an essential component of a trial court's power to control litigation." (Citation omitted.) Scruggs ,
(b) Waldrip Cited Unsound and Inapposite Case Law .
The Waldrip majority opinion cited unpersuasive authority in support of its holding. In addition to relying upon standards enacted by the American Bar Association and a holding of the North Carolina Supreme Court, neither of which have been granted any authority under the Georgia Constitution, the key premise of Waldrip , that this Court has the discretion to "bypass statutory requirements for interlocutory review," was based on a case in which the Court deviated from its longstanding practice of resolving jurisdictional matters before proceeding to the merits as well as a pair of cases with very narrow holdings that Waldrip misapplied.
The Waldrip majority opinion first cited In re Bd. of Twiggs County Commrs. ,
Twiggs County Commrs. cited the provisions of former Code § 6-905 (Ga. L. 1965, p. 40) for the proposition that it should reach the merits of the case without resolving the jurisdictional issue. That code section provided that the act relating to appellate procedures "shall be liberally construed so as to bring about a decision on the merits of every case appealed, and to avoid dismissal of any case or refusal to consider any points raised therein, except as may be specifically referred to herein."
Former Code § 6-905 was enacted as part of the Appellate Practice Act of 1965. Shortly after its enactment, we noted that the Act "prescribes the conditions as to the right of a party litigant to have his case reviewed. We view these prescribed conditions as jurisdictional." Wood v. Atkinson ,
But the language of former Code § 6-905 (and current OCGA § 5-6-30 ) does not mean that an appellate court can simply bypass the statutory requirements for bringing an appeal in order to reach the merits-if it did, every statute creating a requirement for bringing an appeal would be nothing more than a legislative suggestion. As we have *357discussed above, we have many precedents holding to the contrary. See, e.g., Crosson , 291 Ga. at 221 (2),
In Twiggs County Commrs. , this Court made no attempt to discern whether those requirements were met. We instead pretermitted the jurisdictional issue and moved straight to the merits of the case. This was error. As this Court has held numerous times before and since it decided Twiggs County Commrs. , this Court must satisfy itself that it has jurisdiction before deciding the merits of a case. See, e.g., Brock v. Hardman ,
Notably, Twiggs County Commrs. has been cited for this proposition only once-by the Waldrip majority. Because Twiggs County Commrs. deviated so sharply from the Court's longstanding precedents, including in cases decided after Twiggs County Commrs. , the Waldrip majority should not have relied upon it.
Indeed, Twiggs County Commrs. stands far afield from our body of cases requiring this Court and the Court of Appeals to inquire into our respective jurisdictions, even if the issue is not raised by the parties. In light of our case law to the contrary, especially cases decided by this Court after Twiggs County Commrs. , it is clear that Twiggs County Commrs. is not good law to the extent it suggests that jurisdictional issues need not be resolved by an appellate court before it considers the merits of an appeal. See White v. State ,
The Waldrip majority opinion also cited G.W. v. State ,
Waldrip 's reliance on G.W. was misplaced. G.W. did not dispense with the certificate requirement of OCGA § 5-6-34 (b), nor did it dispense with any statutory requirement for appeal. The Waldrip court was correct that G.W. preserved a right for the litigant to pursue an appeal in Georgia, but in doing so, it found only that an immediate appeal could *358be brought because the order in question was properly construed as a final judgment within the existing statutory framework, namely OCGA § 5-6-34 (a) (1). G.W. ,
Finally, the Waldrip majority opinion relied upon this Court's decision in Isaacs v. State ,
(c) Waldrip Relies on Inapplicable Constitutional and Statutory Authority .
Waldrip also stated that the Court's authority under the Georgia Constitution and various statutes permits it to accept an interlocutory appeal in the absence of a certificate of immediate review. This claim fails even a cursory examination.
The Waldrip majority noted that, under Article VI, Section I, Paragraph IV and Article VI, Section IX, Paragraph I of the Georgia Constitution, this Court is empowered to exercise powers "necessary in aid of its jurisdiction" and to administer the entire state judicial system. The Waldrip majority attempted to buttress its argument by also citing OCGA § 15-2-8 (5) 's grant of authority to the Court to "establish, amend, and alter its own rules of practice."
Outside of Waldrip , we have not had many occasions to examine the contours of these grants of judicial authority. However, although this Court is empowered to establish rules of appellate practice for itself and, to some extent, for the other courts of this State, we do not have the authority to create our own jurisdiction. As we held in Gable ,
But Waldrip permits this Court to intervene in a far wider range of cases than that. Although "cases that involve an issue of great concern, gravity, and importance to the public," Waldrip ,
*359(d) Waldrip Was Wrongly Decided .
As the above review of Waldrip 's holding and stated reasoning demonstrates, the Waldrip majority's efforts to correct a perceived "defect" in the statutory interlocutory review process extended beyond the Court's constitutional and statutory authority and were based on unsound and inapposite precedents. In handing down Waldrip , this Court enlarged its own power at the expense of the power the General Assembly vested in trial courts to determine when an interlocutory appeal should be permitted. Thus, we determine today that Waldrip was wrongly decided. However, because Waldrip remains binding precedent, we must decide whether the doctrine of stare decisis counsels against overruling Waldrip even though we have determined that its reasoning was unsound.
4. Stare Decisis Does Not Support Upholding Waldrip.
Under the doctrine of stare decisis, courts generally stand by their prior decisions, because doing so "promotes the evenhanded, predictable, and consistent development of legal principles, fosters reliance on judicial decisions, and contributes to the actual and perceived integrity of the judicial process." (Citation omitted.) State v. Hudson ,
The stare decisis factors counsel that Waldrip should be overruled. We have already established that the Waldrip majority's reasoning was unsound and unmoored from this Court's consistent and longstanding application of statutory appeal requirements enacted by the General Assembly. In short, Waldrip was very wrong. Such significant unsoundness cuts "heavily in favor of overruling [ Waldrip ]." Olevik v. State ,
Likewise, Waldrip does not involve substantial reliance interests. The issue addressed by Waldrip "is one of appellate procedure, not contract, property, or other substantive rights in which anyone has a significant reliance interest." (Citation omitted.) Southall v. State ,
Moreover, Waldrip is "neither ancient nor entrenched" within our judicial system. Southall ,
Moreover, Duke has not argued-and we find no independent basis for concluding-that he would be deprived of his opportunity for appellate review in the absence of the Waldrip precedent. As we noted above, a faithful application of the requirements of OCGA § 5-6-34 (b) at most delays Duke's opportunity for appellate review in this case; it does not foreclose it.
Finally, Waldrip is unworkable for both appellate and trial courts. First, the reach of its rationale is limitless, as, contrary to the express will of the General Assembly, Waldrip places appellate courts-and only appellate courts-in the position of determining which cases pending in the trial courts of this State present issues of such gravity and importance that appellate intervention is warranted. And, although the Waldrip majority described this authority as merely "discretionary," nothing in our law establishes the outer boundaries of appellate courts' discretion to exercise this power or gives litigants or trial courts any meaningful indication of how and under what circumstances appellate courts will exercise the power to disregard clear statutory requirements.
Moreover, the discretion this Court claimed for appellate courts in Waldrip would seem to apply equally with regard to any statutory requirement for appeal. The presence of such discretion would require appellate courts, in every instance in which a statutory requirement has not been complied with by an appellant, to exercise its discretion in determining whether an appeal should nonetheless be permitted, whether or not the issue is raised by the parties. Such unfettered discretion would enlarge appellate courts' power to entertain appeals that they are statutorily barred from considering while also significantly expanding their workload.
Waldrip presents significant workability problems for trial courts, as well. Because a trial court has no means of predicting when a case may be snatched from its docket pursuant to a Waldrip review, the trial court may find itself (as it did in the matter before us) with jurors and witnesses summoned for trial but no case to try. By permitting an interlocutory appeal to proceed in the absence of a certificate of immediate review, Waldrip thus divests trial courts of one of their essential tools for controlling litigation before them. Scruggs ,
As this Court has made clear, "[t]he scheme for appellate interlocutory review is legislative in nature," and, "[i]n the event that the General Assembly determines that the established framework does not adequately safeguard the interests" of litigants in particular classes of cases, "it is for that body to change it." Rivera v. Washington ,
Accordingly, we overrule Waldrip to the extent it permits this Court to disregard the requirement set forth in OCGA § 5-6-34 (b) that a litigant must obtain a certificate of immediate review from the trial court before pursuing an interlocutory appeal from an order not subject to immediate appeal under OCGA § 5-6-34 (a). More broadly, we also disapprove any reading of Waldrip and any other decision of this Court to the extent such reading suggests that appellate courts are free to disregard a statutory requirement *361for appeal in the absence of an articulated and colorable claim that the application of such statute will deprive a litigant of a right under federal law or the Georgia Constitution.
In light of the foregoing, because the trial court did not issue a certificate of immediate review in this case, this Court is without jurisdiction to consider Duke's application for interlocutory appeal.
Application dismissed.
All the Justices concur.
Certain types of orders, though immediately appealable, must be appealed by following the discretionary application procedure set forth in OCGA § 5-6-35. See Grogan v. City of Dawsonville ,
Because failure to satisfy any of the three prongs of the test is fatal, we need not consider whether Duke has met the first or third prong.
Hicks was a habeas corpus case in which this Court granted the appellant's application for a certificate of probable cause despite the fact that the application was not timely filed "because the habeas court failed to correctly inform petitioner of the proper procedure for obtaining appellate review of its order." (Footnote and punctuation omitted.) 273 Ga. at 359,
At oral argument, Duke's counsel suggested that this case presented an opportunity for this Court to refine the Waldrip analysis. Of course, this implicit admission that Waldrip is in need of refining only emphasizes the unworkable nature of Waldrip as it was decided.
As we noted in our order granting Duke's request for supersedeas and stay and directing briefing regarding the viability of Waldrip , the underlying merits of Duke's application for interlocutory appeal appear to present difficult, complex, and important constitutional questions for which there is no controlling legal precedent. Even though the merits of these issues may be litigated on appeal in the event Duke is convicted, because the trial court did not issue a certificate of immediate review, we are without jurisdiction to consider Duke's application, and, therefore, we cannot reach any of the merits of the arguments he raises at this time.
The stay we previously issued in this case will dissolve when our remittitur is received by and filed in the trial court. See Green Bull Ga. Partners, LLC v. Register ,