In the Interest of M. J., a Child (Mother)

Court of Appeals
of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,____________________
June 03, 2026

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A26A0539. IN THE INTEREST OF M. J., A CHILD (MOTHER).

The mother of minor child M. J. appeals the Juvenile Court of Fulton County’s
motion to dismiss the underlying dependency petition on the ground that her
constitutional due process rights were violated because the hearing which authorized
the removal of M. J. was conducted without the mother’s knowledge or presence. In
response to the mother’s due process argument, the juvenile court found that the
Juvenile Code’s requirement that a preliminary protective hearing be scheduled
within 72 hours of a child’s removal, as was done here,1 protected the mother’s due
process rights. See OCGA § 15-11-145(a).

The Supreme Court of Georgia “has exclusive jurisdiction over all cases
involving construction of the Constitution of the State of Georgia and of the United
States and all cases in which the constitutionality of a law, ordinance, or constitutional
provision has been called into question.”2 Because this case involves arguments
construing the construction of the federal Constitution which were ruled upon by the
juvenile court, it appears that jurisdiction over this appeal may lie in the Supreme
Court. As the Supreme Court has the ultimate responsibility for determining appellate

1
The hearing was actually held at a later date when the original juvenile court
judge recused herself in response to the mother’s recusal motion.
2
Atlanta Independent School System v. Lane, 266 Ga. 657, 657 (1) (469 SE2d 22)
(1996); see Ga. Const. of 1983, Art. VI, Sec. VI, Par. II (1).
jurisdiction,3 this appeal is hereby TRANSFERRED to the Supreme Court for
disposition.

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

3
See Saxton v. Coastal Dialysis & Med. Clinic, 267 Ga. 177, 178 (476 SE2d 587)
(1996).