HB669.html

36-92-1.
As used in this chapter, the term:
(1) 'Claim' means any demand against a local government entity for money for a loss caused by negligence of a local government entity officer or employee using a covered motor vehicle while carrying out his or her official duties or employment.
(2) 'Covered' motor vehicle means:
(A) Any motor vehicle owned by the local government entity; and
(B) Any motor vehicle leased or rented by the local government entity.
(3) 'Local government entity' or 'local government entitie means counties and municipal corporations of this state. Said terms shall also include a consolidated city-county government and any public authority, commission, board, or similar agency which is created by general or local Act of the General Assembly and which carries out its functions wholly or partially within a county or municipality of the state or on a multi-jurisdictional basis. The term shall also include any such agencies which are created or activated by an appropriate ordinance or resolution of the governing body of a county or municipal corporation acting individually or jointly with other counties, municipalities, or consolidated city-county governments of the state. Said terms shall not include local school systems.
(4) 'Local government entity officer or employee' means an employee of a local government entity, an elected or appointed official of a county, municipal corporation, or consolidated city-county government, a law enforcement officer, an agent of such local government, or a person acting on behalf of or in the service of the local government entity in any official capacity for compensation, other than an amount representing reimbursement of actual expenses or per diem payments for travel or meetings. The term shall not include an independent contractor doing business with a local government entity nor an appointed member of a board, commission, or authority. The term shall not include a private corporation, whether for profit or not for profit, nor any private firm, business proprietorship, company, trust, partnership, association, or other such private entity.
(5) 'Loss' means personal injury, disease, death, damage to tangible property, including lost wages and economic loss to the person who suffered the injury, disease, or death; pain and suffering; mental anguish; loss of consortium; and any other element of actual damages recoverable in actions for negligence.
(6) 'Motor vehicle' means any automobile, bus, motorcycle, truck, trailer, or semitrailer, including its equipment and any other equipment permanently attached thereto, designed or licensed for use on the public streets, roads, and highways of the state.
(7) 'Occurrence' means an accident involving a covered motor vehicle.

36-92-2.
(a) The immunity of local government entities for loss arising out of claims for the negligent use of a covered motor vehicle is waived up to a minimum of $500,000.00 per person per occurrence, $1,000,000.00 aggregate per occurrence, and $250,000.00 aggregate for property damage per occurrence. Such waiver may be increased to any amount if:
(1) The governing body by resolution or ordinance voluntarily adopts such higher waiver;
(2) The local government entity becomes a member of an interlocal risk management agency created pursuant to Chapter 85 of this title to the extent of the coverage purchased; or
(3) The local government entity purchases commercial liability insurance in the amounts purchased.
(b) Local government entities waive their sovereign immunity only to the extent and in the manner provided in this chapter and only with respect to actions brought in the courts of the State of Georgia. Such entities do not waive any immunity with respect to actions brought in the courts of the United States.

36-92-3.
(a) A local government entity officer or employee who commits a tort involving the use of a covered motor vehicle within the scope of his or her official duties or employment is not subject to lawsuit or liability therefor. Nothing in this chapter, however, shall be construed to give such officer or employee immunity from suit and liability if it is proved that the officer´s or employee´s conduct was not within the scope of his or her official duties or employment.
(b) A person bringing an action against a local government entity under the provisions of this chapter must name as a party defendant only the local government entity for which the officer or employee was acting and shall not name the officer or employee individually. In the event that the officer or employee is individually named for an act for which the local government entity is liable under this chapter, the local government entity for which the officer or employee was acting must be substituted as the party defendant.
(c) A settlement or judgment in an action or settlement on a claim brought pursuant to this chapter constitutes a complete bar to any further action by the claimant against a local government entity officer or employee or the local government entity by reason of the same occurrence.
(d) This chapter shall not waive the workers´ compensation exclusive remedy when local government entity officers or employees are injured on the job.

36-92-4.
All tort actions brought against a local government entity under this chapter shall be brought in the state or superior court of the county wherein the local government entity against which the claim is brought is located.

36-92-5.
The trial of an action against a local government entity brought under this chapter shall be conducted by a judge with a jury; provided, however, the parties may agree that the same may be tried by a judge without a jury.

36-92-6.
No award for damages under this chapter shall include punitive or exemplary damages or interest prior to judgment.

36-92-7.
In any claim, action, or proceeding brought under this chapter, the signature of an attorney or party constitutes a certificate by him or her that he or she has read the pleading, motion, or other paper; that to the best of his or her knowledge, information, and belief formed after reasonable inquiry it is well grounded in fact and is warranted by existing law or a good faith argument for the extension, modification, or reversal of existing law; and that it is not interposed for any improper purpose, such as to harass or to cause unnecessary delay or needless increase in the cost of litigation. If a pleading, motion, or other paper is not signed, it shall be stricken unless it is signed promptly after the omission is called to the attention of the pleader or movant. If a pleading, motion, or other paper is signed in violation of this Code section, the court, upon motion or upon its own initiative, shall impose upon the person who signed it, a represented party, or both, an appropriate sanction, which may include an order to pay to the other party or parties the amount of the reasonable expenses incurred because of the filing of the pleading, motion, or paper, including reasonable attorneys´ fees.

36-92-8.
Nothing in this chapter shall be construed to authorize an execution or levy against any local government entity´s property or funds. Execution or levy against a local government entity´s property or funds is expressly prohibited.

36-92-9.
In no event shall recovery against a local government entity be proper unless the fact finder determines that the negligence of the officer or employee operating the covered motor vehicle was the dominant cause of the injury or damage. In making an award against a local government entity pursuant to this chapter, the fact finder shall apportion the negligence which led to the injury or damage between the local government entity and any other parties, including the claimant, involved in the occurrence. Subject to the limits of Code Section 36-92-2, an award of damages against a local government entity cannot exceed the percentage of negligence determined to be applicable to the local government entity on behalf of which the covered motor vehicle is being operated, multiplied by the amount of total loss suffered by the claimant found by the jury.

36-92-10.
(a) No person, firm, or corporation having a claim for money damages against any local government entity pursuant to this chapter shall bring any action against a municipal corporation for such injuries without first giving notice as provided in subsection (b) of this Code section.
(b) Within six months of the occurrence upon which a claim against the local government entity is predicated, the person having the claim shall present the claim in writing to the governing authority of the local government entity for adjustment setting the time, place, and extent of injury, as nearly as practicable, and the negligence which caused the injury. No action shall be entertained by the courts against the local government entity until the cause of action therein has been first presented to the governing authority for adjustment.
(c) Upon presentation of such claim, the governing authority shall consider and act upon the claim within 30 days from the presentation; and the action of the governing authority, unless it results in the settlement thereof, shall in no sense be a bar to an action therefor in the courts.
(d) The running of the statute of limitations shall be suspended during the time that the demand for payment is pending before such governing authority without any action on their part.

36-92-11.
This chapter shall apply to all claims and causes of actions arising out of events occurring on or after January 1, 2002."