Legal FAQs Yes. When you are considering suing the State of Georgia in one of its State Courts, it is often best to sue for state law violations, as opposed to relying on a Civil Rights Act theory of liability. When you are considering suing the State of Georgia in one of its State Courts, it is often best to sue for state law violations, as opposed to relying on a Civil Rights Act theory of liability.
In 1992, the Georgia Legislature passed a law, pursuant to an amendment to Georgia’s Constitution, called the "Georgia Tort Claims Act" (GTCA), partially waiving the State of Georgia’s immunity for the actions of its actors and entities brought pursuant to State law. It is modeled after a similar federal law called the "Federal Tort Claims Act" (FTCA).
The GTCA provides for the opposite result as we see with Federal Civil Rights Act violations, in that, instead of possibly being able to sue only the individual governmental actor (as is true for a Civil Rights Act violation), you sue only the State of Georgia for the individual governmental actor’s violation of person’s state rights. If you can sue under the GTCA, the State of Georgia is treated just like a private entity, meaning that you only need to prove an individual acted "negligently," except that there are statutory limits to the maximum amount of recovery.This right to sue for negligent acts pursuant to the GTCA is not, however, absolute. It is abrogated under a number of circumstances, most prominently where the individual is performing a "discretionary function or duty" at the time of the alleged violation. The definition of this "official function" exception is difficult to precisely discern from the interpretative case law, as courts are all over the map, but the core principle is that governmental actors are not subject to suit for actions they take affecting government policy or monies.
In order to be able to sue under the GTCA, an individual has to provide the State with proper written notice of the alleged violation(s) within twelve (12) months of its occurrence. Strict compliance is required or you can lose the right to sue! This pre-suit requirement is limited to suing under the GTCA and does NOT apply to a Civil Rights Act lawsuit.
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