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O.C.G.A. § 51-7-83 — Measure of damages | Georgia Code
O.C.G.A. § 51-7-83 (2018) Copy Cite Official Site Syfertize CourtListener Scholar Amendments

TITLE 51 TORTS

Section 7. False Arrest, False Imprisonment, Malicious Prosecution, and Abusive Litigation, 51-7-1 through 51-7-85.

ARTICLE 5 ABUSIVE LITIGATION

51-7-83. Measure of damages.

  1. A plaintiff who prevails in an action under this article shall be entitled to all damages allowed by law as proven by the evidence, including costs and expenses of litigation and reasonable attorney's fees.
  2. If the abusive litigation is in a civil proceeding of a court of record and no damages other than costs and expenses of litigation and reasonable attorney's fees are claimed, the procedures provided in Code Section 9-15-14 shall be utilized instead.
  3. No motion filed under Code Section 9-15-14 shall preclude the filing of an action under this article for damages other than costs and expenses of litigation and reasonable attorney's fees. Any ruling under Code Section 9-15-14 is conclusive as to the issues resolved therein.

(Code 1981, §51-7-83, enacted by Ga. L. 1989, p. 408, § 2.)

Law reviews.

- For article, "Of Frivolous Litigation and Runaway Juries: A View from the Bench," see 41 Ga. L. Rev. 431 (2007).

JUDICIAL DECISIONS

Litigation expenses and attorney fees cannot be awarded until the claimant has prevailed on the claimant's underlying abusive litigation claim. Williams v. Clark-Atlanta Univ., Inc., 200 Ga. App. 51, 406 S.E.2d 559 (1991).

Appellate review of attorney fees.

- An award of attorney fees under both subsections (a) and (b) of O.C.G.A. § 9-15-14 was reviewable on direct appeal along with a judgment under O.C.G.A. § 51-7-83. Hallman v. Emory Univ., 225 Ga. App. 247, 483 S.E.2d 362 (1997).

Attorney's fees denied.

- Creditor's motion to amend the creditor's claim for sanctions against the debtor under O.C.G.A. § 9-15-14 to state a claim under O.C.G.A. § 51-7-81 was denied as the amendment was untimely and inequitable, and resolution of the claim under the former section was conclusive. In re Fowler, Bankr. (Bankr. N.D. Ga. July 10, 2006).

Attorney's fees improper before underlying suit terminated.

- Trial court erred in charging a jury on attorney's fees under O.C.G.A. § 51-7-81 because a claim under § 51-7-81 could not be brought as a counterclaim and was premature. The jury awarded fees against both the buyers and buyers' counsel, which was only permitted under § 51-7-81 and not under O.C.G.A. § 13-6-11; because the jury may have based the jury's award on an improper theory, a new trial on attorney's fees was required. Goldsmith v. Peterson, 307 Ga. App. 26, 703 S.E.2d 694 (2010).

Cited in First Union Nat'l Bank v. Cook, 223 Ga. App. 374, 477 S.E.2d 649 (1996); Great W. Bank v. Southeastern Bank, 234 Ga. App. 420, 507 S.E.2d 191 (1998).

Cases Citing O.C.G.A. § 51-7-83

O.C.G.A. § 51-7-83 (2018) Copy Cite Official Site Syfertize CourtListener Scholar Amendments
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·Taylor, Exr. v. The Devereux Found., Inc. (& Vice Versa), 885 S.E.2d 671 (Ga. 2023).

Cited 11 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Mar 15, 2023 | 316 Ga. 44

...prevailing party” in certain claims of misappropriation of a trade secret); 13-1- 11 (allowing “obligations to pay attorney’s fees upon any note or other evidence of indebtedness” and requiring that fees greater than $20,000 be reasonable); 51-7-83 (“costs and expenses of litigation and reasonable attorney’s fees” in certain cases of abusive civil litigation). 92 See also Brock Built, LLC v....
0 red0 yellow46 green0 procedural
Cited as authorityKyle Zachary Rowland v. Kyle Trevor McGovern (2026)
Cited as authorityONSITE COMMUNICATION SERVICES, LLC v. TAMMY GOOCH (2026)
Cited as authorityCLARK v. LEIGH (And Vice Versa) (2026)
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·Betallic, Inc. v. Deavours, 439 S.E.2d 643 (Ga. 1994).

Cited 18 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Jan 24, 1994 | 263 Ga. 796

...Ison joins in this dissent. NOTES [1] OCGA § 51-7-80 et seq. sets forth the cause of action for abusive litigation. In those instances where the only damages sustained by the abusive litigation plaintiff consist of attorney fees and expenses of litigation, however, OCGA § 51-7-83 (b) provides that OCGA § 9-15-14 represents the sole avenue of recovery....
0 red0 yellow12 green0 procedural
Cited as authorityCarla Graham v. Lisa Graham (2025)
Cited as authorityMcCLURE v. McCURRY Et Al. (2014)
Cited as authorityRobinson v. Glass (2010)
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·Coen v. Aptean, Inc., 838 S.E.2d 860 (Ga. 2020).

Cited 9 times | Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Feb 10, 2020 | 307 Ga. 826

0 red0 yellow14 green0 procedural
Cited as authorityCAMBRE & ASSOCIATES, LLC v. R. SHANE LAZENBY (2025)
Cited (see also)Carmen Spinola v. Ozioma Faith Akaranta (2025)
phrase: "see, e.g."
Cited as authorityP&J Beverage Corporation v. the Bottle Shop, LLC (2024)
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P&J Beverage Corp. v. the Bottle Shop, LLC (Ga. 2025).

Published | Supreme Court of Georgia | Aug 12, 2025

...A plaintiff who provides this notice and prevails in an abusive litigation claim “shall be entitled to all damages allowed by law as proven by the evidence, including costs and expenses of litigation and reasonable attorney’s fees.” OCGA § 51-7-83 (a). We hold that under the plain terms of OCGA § 51-7-84 (a), the notice must identify a civil proceeding and indicate that the party sending the notice contends that the proceeding it identifies was abusive litigation....
...2 The Bottle Shop also argued that it was entitled to attorney fees under OCGA § 13-6-113 and presented evidence that the Bottle Shop’s attorneys had charged a total amount of $98,050 2 As the basis for the abusive litigation damages, The Bottle Shop relied on OCGA § 51-7-83 (a), which, as discussed above, provides that “[a] plaintiff who prevails in an action under this article shall be entitled to all damages allowed by law as proven by the evidence, including costs and expenses of litigation and reasonabl...

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This Georgia Code resource is curated by Graham Syfert, a personal injury and workers' compensation attorney admitted in Georgia (State Bar of Georgia No. 881027, since 2006) and Florida. Attorney Syfert regularly works with Title 51 in the context of Georgia personal injury and tort claims and represents clients throughout Northeast Florida and South Georgia. For legal consultation, call 904-383-7448.