TITLE 37 MENTAL HEALTH

Section 7. Hospitalization and Treatment of Alcoholics, Drug Dependent Individuals, and Drug Abusers, 37-7-1 through 37-7-168.

ARTICLE 6 RIGHTS AND PRIVILEGES OF PATIENTS, THEIR REPRESENTATIVES, AND OTHERS GENERALLY

37-7-150. Right to appeal orders of probate court, juvenile court, or hearing examiner; payment of costs of appeal; right of patient to subsequent appeal; right of patient to legal counsel on appeal.

The patient, the patient's representatives, or the patient's attorney may appeal any order of the probate court or hearing officer rendered in a proceeding under this chapter to the superior court of the county in which the proceeding was held, except as otherwise provided in Article 6 of Chapter 9 of Title 15, and may appeal any order of the juvenile court rendered in a proceeding under this chapter to the Court of Appeals or the Supreme Court. The appeal to the superior court shall be made in the same manner as appeals from the probate court to the superior court, except that the appeal shall be heard before the court sitting without a jury as soon as practicable but not later than 30 days following the date on which the appeal is filed with the clerk of the superior court. The appeal from the order of the juvenile court to the Court of Appeals or the Supreme Court shall be as provided by law but shall be heard as expeditiously as possible. The patient must pay all costs upon filing any appeal authorized under this Code section or must make an affidavit that he or she is unable to pay costs. The patient shall retain all rights of review of any order of the superior court, the Court of Appeals, or the Supreme Court, as provided by law. The patient shall have a right to counsel or, if unable to afford counsel, shall have counsel appointed for the patient by the court. The appeal rights provided to the patient, the patient's representatives, or the patient's attorney in this Code section are in addition to any other appeal rights which the parties may have, and the provision of the right for the patient, the patient's representatives, or the patient's attorney to appeal does not deny the right to the Department of Behavioral Health and Developmental Disabilities to appeal under the general appeal provisions of Code Sections 5-3-2 and 5-3-3.

(Code 1933, § 88-402.19, enacted by Ga. L. 1978, p. 1856, § 1; Ga. L. 1986, p. 982, § 13; Ga. L. 1994, p. 1072, § 5; Ga. L. 1995, p. 10, § 37; Ga. L. 2009, p. 453, § 3-2/HB 228; Ga. L. 2016, p. 883, §§ 3-13, 3-14/HB 927.)

The 2016 amendment, effective January 1, 2017, substituted "Court of Appeals or the Supreme Court" for "Court of Appeals and the Supreme Court" twice and substituted "Court of Appeals, or the Supreme Court" for "Court of Appeals, and the Supreme Court" in the fifth sentence. See the Editor's notes for applicability.