On the morning of September 3, 2008, a LaGrange High School front office employee allowed a 14-year-old student, N. F., to leave school with a middle-aged man who claimed to be the girl’s uncle. Shortly thereafter, the man, a 52-year-old convicted felon who had given the employee a fake name and who was not related to N. F., took her to a house and molested her. N. F.’s mother, LaTasha Cotton, as parent and next friend of the girl, filed a negligence suit against the employee, Deann Smith, and her supervisor, school principal Steven Cole, in their individual capacities. Cotton now appeals from an order of the Superior Court of Troup County granting summary judgment in favor of both defendants. Cotton contends that the trial court erred in finding as a matter of law that Smith’s duties in determining whether to release a student from school were discretionary in nature, not ministerial, and that, as a result, Smith was entitled to official immunity from liability for her claims. Cotton also argues that the court erred in finding, alternatively, that, even if Smith violated a ministerial duty, such violation was not the proximate cause of N. F.’s injuries, because they were the result of an unforeseeable criminal act by a third party. As explained below, we reverse the trial court’s grant of summary judgment to Smith, while the court’s grant of summary judgment to Cole is affirmed by operation of law. 1. As an initial matter, Cotton has failed to assert on appeal any error in the trial court’s grant of summary judgment to Cole. Thus, any error in that portion of the court’s order is deemed abandoned, and the court’s grant of summary judgment to Cole is affirmed by operation of law. See Court of Appeals Rule 25 c 2; Lang v. Becham , 243 Ga. App. 132 530 SE2d 746 2000 because the appellant presented no specific argument, cited no authority, and made no reference to the transcript or record to support a claim of error regarding the grant of summary judgment to one of the appellees, any error as to that appellee was deemed abandoned.
2. Cotton contends that the trial court erred in finding as a matter of law that Smith’s duties in determining whether to release a student from school were discretionary in nature, not ministerial, and that, as a result, Smith was entitled to official immunity from liability for her claims. In order to prevail on a motion for summary judgment under OCGA § 9-11-56, the moving party must show that there exists no genuine issue of material fact, and that the undisputed facts, viewed in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, demand judgment as a matter of law. Moreover, on appeal from the denial or grant of summary judgment, the appellate court is to conduct a de novo review of the evidence to determine whether there exists a genuine issue of material fact, and whether the undisputed facts, viewed in the light most favorable to the nonmoving party, warrant judgment as a matter of law. Citations omitted. Benton v. Benton , 280 Ga. 468, 470 629 SE2d 204 2006. Viewed in this light, the record shows the following, undisputed facts.1
