Negligence in Georgia
Last checked Aug 15, 2026 · LawyerUnc editorial. Educational only, not legal advice.
Elements
1
Duty
The defendant owed the plaintiff a legal duty of reasonable care in the circumstances.
2
Breach
The defendant failed to meet that standard, they did something a reasonably careful person would not, or failed to do something they would.
3
Causation
The breach was a factual and legal (proximate) cause of the harm. Foreseeability matters.
4
Damages
The plaintiff suffered actual harm, medical bills, lost wages, pain, property loss.
Burden of proof
Preponderance of the evidence, more likely than not.
A Georgia fact pattern
Negligence in georgia.
Statute of limitations
2 years
O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33
From when the right of action accrues (usually the injury).
- Loss of consortium is four years under the same section. Reputation injuries are one year.
- A city usually needs written ante litem notice within six months (O.C.G.A. § 36-33-5). Many counties are twelve months (§ 36-11-1). That notice is not the two-year lawsuit.