Full Opinion

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia ATLANTA,____________________ October 20, 2026 The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order: A27D0187. DAVONNA DARRELL v. HERITAGE FAMILY DEVELOPMENT LC d/b/a HERITAGE TOWNHOMES. In this dispossessory action, the magistrate court entered a writ of possession on July 29, 2026.1 On September 26, 2026, Davonna Darrell filed an application for discretionary review in this Court. We lack jurisdiction. “[T]he only avenue of appeal available from a magistrate court judgment is provided by OCGA § 15-10-41(b)(1), which allows for a de novo appeal to the state or superior court.” Tate v. Habif, 367 Ga. App. 435, 438–39(2) (886 SE2d 389) (2023) (citation modified). Where an application for discretionary appeal represents an attempt to appeal a magistrate court order, this Court will generally transfer that application to the magistrate court with direction to send the case to state or superior court. See Harris v. Reserve at Hollywood LLC, 376 Ga. App. 553, 553 (920 SE2d 163) (2025). See also Ga. Const. of 1983, Art. VI, Sec. I, Par. VIII (“Any court shall transfer to the appropriate court in the state any civil case in which it determines that 1 The writ of possession submitted by Darrell bears a signature date of July 29, 2026, but it does not contain a file-stamp from the magistrate court’s clerk’s office. Under Court of Appeals Rule 31(c), discretionary applications “must contain a stamped ‘filed’ copy of the trial court’s order or judgment from which the appeal is sought.” On September 28, 2026, this Court ordered Darrell to submit a stamped “filed” copy of the magistrate court’s order within ten days and warned her that failure to do so would result in the dismissal of her application. As of today, Darrell still has not submitted the required order. Her failure to comply with our September 8 Order presents an independent basis for dismissing this application. jurisdiction or venue lies elsewhere.”); OCGA § 5-3-4(a) (granting superior and state courts appellate jurisdiction over final judgments of lower judicatories). Like this Court, however, the state and superior courts have appellate jurisdiction only where an appeal is filed within the time prescribed by statute. See OCGA § 5-3-7(b). See also generally Radio Sandy Springs v. Allen Road Joint Venture, 311 Ga. App. 334, 336 (715 SE2d 752) (2011) (“The proper and timely filing of a notice of appeal is an absolute requirement to confer jurisdiction upon the appellate court.” (quotation marks omitted)). While an appeal from magistrate court generally may be filed within thirty days of entry of the order sought to be appealed, see OCGA § 5-3-7(b), appeals in dispossessory actions must be filed within seven days of the date the judgment was entered. See OCGA § 44-7-56(b)(1); Stubbs v. Local Homes, LLC, 375 Ga. App. 513, 516 (915 SE2d 91) (2025); Radio Sandy Springs, 311 Ga. App. at 335–36. Here, Darrell’s application was filed 59 days following entry of the writ of possession. Given that fact, Darrell has lost her right of appeal. We therefore decline to transfer this case to magistrate court with direction to send it to state or superior court. Rather, this application is hereby DISMISSED. Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________ 10/20/2026 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.