Leticia Guyton v. Tanja Boyd-Witherspoon

Court of Appeals
of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,____________________
March 06, 2026

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A26D0368. LETICIA GUYTON v. TANJA BOYD-WITHERSPOON.

Leticia Guyton filed this application seeking discretionary review an order of
the Magistrate Court of DeKalb County granting a writ of possession to Tanja Boyd-
Witherspoon. We lack jurisdiction.
Ordinarily, the only avenue of appeal available from a magistrate court
judgment is provided by OCGA § 15-10-41(b), which provides for appellate review in
the state or superior court. See Tate v. Habif, 367 Ga. App. 435, 438–39(2) (886 SE2d
389) (2023). Thus, this Court has jurisdiction to address a magistrate court order only
if the order has been reviewed by a state or superior court. See Harris v. Reserve at
Hollywood LLC, 376 Ga. App. 553, 553 (920 SE2d 163) (2025). The Georgia
Constitution, however, provides that “[a]ny court shall transfer to the appropriate
court in the state any civil case in which it determines that jurisdiction or venue lies
elsewhere.” Ga. Const. of 1983, Art. VI, Sec. I, Par. VIII; accord Court of Appeals
Rule 11(b).
To the extent this filing may be construed as a notice of appeal, it is hereby
TRANSFERRED to the Magistrate Court of DeKalb County with direction to
transmit the case to the state or superior court of DeKalb County for disposition as
appropriate.1

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia
Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________
03/06/2026
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.

1
We recognize that we are in possession of limited material and that our
determination that jurisdiction may lie in another court is limited by the dearth of
information. Thus, our ruling should not constrain the magistrate court or the state
or superior court to the extent those courts determine either that Leticia Guyton has
not perfected a right to appeal or that those courts lack jurisdiction.