Ronald John Schmidt v. Georgia Department of Human Services, Ex. Rel., Andrew Schmidt

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,__________________ December 18, 2013

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A14D0165. RONALD JOHN SCHMIDT v. GEORGIA DEPARTMENT OF HUMAN SERVICES, EX. REL., ANDREW SCHMIDT.

Ronald and Sandra Schmidt divorced in 1997. In 2013, the Georgia Department of Human Services filed a complaint for declaratory judgment to determine whether Ronald Schmidt remained obligated to pay child support based upon the provisions of the divorce decree defining emancipation events. Construing the provisions of the decree, the trial court ordered Ronald Schmidt to continue to pay child support through May of 2014. Ronald Schmidt filed an application for discretionary appeal in this Court. We lack jurisdiction. The Supreme Court has appellate jurisdiction over “[a]ll divorce and alimony cases.” Ga. Const. of 1983, Art. VI, Sec. VI, Par. III (6). This jurisdiction extends to cases “involving an original claim for child support which arose in either a divorce or alimony proceeding.” Spurlock v. Department of Human Resources, 286 Ga. 512, 513 (1) (690 SE2d 378) (2010). See also Camp v. Camp, 247 Ga. 533 (277 SE2d 55) (1981) (question as to whether a child of divorced parents was emancipated for purposes of the continued payment of child support should have been raised by application in the Supreme Court). Accordingly, this application appears to fall within the appellate jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of Georgia and is hereby TRANSFERRED to that appellate court for appropriate disposition.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia 12/18/2013 Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,__________________ 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.