The doctrine of sovereign immunity has produced a hangover for Clayton County and the city of College Park over how to split taxes on alcohol sales at Hartsfield-Jackson International Airport. This bar tab dispute is worth $2.5 million.

The Georgia Supreme Court Friday tossed a trial judge's decision on the issue and remanded the case for further consideration in light of a recent ruling in an abortion case that dealt with sovereign immunity.

“Simply put, the constitutional doctrine of sovereign immunity forbids our courts to entertain a lawsuit against the state without its consent,” Justice Keith Blackwell wrote in a 71-page opinion on June 19 for Eva Lathrop v. Nathan Deal, No. S17A0196.

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