Full Opinion

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia ATLANTA,____________________ November 12, 2026 The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order: A27D0305. THE MANIFEST INSTITUTE et al. v. COWETA COUNTY TAX COMMISSIONER et al. Tion Parson, individually and as President of The Manifest Institute, applied for discretionary appeal from a trial court order that dismissed the Institute’s action without prejudice. The application materials show that the Institute is a non-profit religious corporation and contain no indication that Parson is an attorney or a party to the action. To the extent Parson purports to represent the Institute, “only a licensed attorney is authorized to represent a corporation in a proceeding in a court of record.” Eckles v. Atlanta Tech. Group, Inc., 267 Ga. 801, 805(2) (485 SE2d 22) (1997). Further, pursuant to Court of Appeals Rule 2(a), all filings submitted in this Court must be signed “by an attorney of record, an attorney granted courtesy appearance, or pro se party.” A court filing submitted by a non-attorney on behalf of another is ineffectual. See Gamble v. Diamond “D” Auto Sales, 221 Ga. App. 688, 689(3) (472 SE2d 446) (1996) (finding the notice of appeal filed by plaintiff’s non-attorney husband was ineffectual). Accordingly, the discretionary application filed by Parson on behalf of the Manifest Institute has no legal effect. To the extent Parson seeks an appeal individually, there is no indication that Parson is a party to the case or sought to become a party by way of intervention and was denied the right to do so. Thus, Parson lacks standing to apply for discretionary appeal. See Degussa Wall Systems v. Sharp, 286 Ga. App. 349, 350 (648 SE2d 687) (2007) (“It is well-settled that only a party to the case can appeal from a judgment, or one who has sought to become a party as by way of intervention and has been denied the right to do so.” (quotation marks omitted)). For these reasons, this application for discretionary appeal is hereby DISMISSED. The applicants’ emergency motion for supersedeas is DENIED as MOOT. Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________ 11/12/2026 I certify that the above is a true extract from the minutes of the Court of Appeals of Georgia. Witness my signature and the seal of said court hereto affixed the day and year last above written. , Clerk.