O'Dell v. Mahoney

The Court of Appeals had jurisdiction to consider the plaintiff's appeal from the earlier grants of dismissal and summary judgment to certain defendants after the trial court entered a final judgment in favor of the plaintiff as part of his settlement agreement with other defendants.

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Phillip O’Dell entered into a Purchase and Sale Agreement “Purchase Agreement” with Roland and Sandra Mahoney for the acquisition of a house in Savannah on January 18, 2005. The Purchase Agreement refers to and incorporates a Sellers’ Property Disclosure which contains representations regarding the condition of the property. Soon after closing, O’Dell began to experience problems both with the septic system and with flooding. Due to these problems, O’Dell filed suit against the following parties: the Mahoneys; Heather Ensign, the listing agent; and Ben Farmer Realty, Inc. “BFR”, the real estate brokerage firm affiliated with Ensign. The trial court granted Ensign’s motion to dismiss on March 5, 2012, and BFR’s motion for summary judgment on April 17, 2012. The case against the Mahoneys remained on the trial calendar, and a few days before trial, O’Dell entered into a settlement agreement with the Mahoneys. The trial court entered judgment in favor of O’Dell in accordance with the settlement agreement on October 30, 2012. O’Dell then filed a notice of appeal on November 13, 2012, seeking to challenge the trial court’s orders of March 5 and April 17, 2012.

1. We first address the issue of whether we have jurisdiction in this case. It is well-settled that this Court has a duty to inquire into its jurisdiction to review the errors enumerated on appeal. See Whiddon v. Stargell, 192 Ga. App. 826, 827 386 SE2d 884 1989. At the same time, this Court is also charged with avoiding the dismissal of an appeal and reaching the merits of a case when it is reasonable to do so. OCGA § 5-6-30. This Court dismissed the appeal for lack of jurisdiction in an order dated February 7, 2013. O’Dell filed a motion for reconsideration of that order, which we granted on April 4, 2013, while directing the parties to file supplemental briefs addressing whether this Court has jurisdiction. After conducting an inquiry into the matter, we find that we do have jurisdiction over the appeal.

O'Dell v. Mahoney

The Court of Appeals had jurisdiction to consider the plaintiff's appeal from the earlier grants of dismissal and summary judgment to certain defendants after the trial court entered a final judgment in favor of the plaintiff as part of his settlement agreement with other defendants.

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