Mjq Concourse, Inc. v. Arch Specialty Insurance Company

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia ATLANTA,____________________ July 09, 2015 The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order: A15A2005. MJQ CONCOURSE, INC. et al. v. ARCH SPECIALTY INSURANCE COMPANY. On February 23, 2015, the trial court entered two orders granting partial summary judgment in favor of defendant Arch Specialty Insurance Company in this declaratory judgment action. On March 30, 2015, co-defendants MJQ Concourse, Inc., Benjamin Rhoades, Chad Phillips, and Armando Celentano filed a notice of appeal to this Court.1 We lack jurisdiction. To be timely, a notice of appeal must be filed within 30 days after entry of the appealable order. See OCGA § 5-6-38 (a). The proper and timely filing of a notice of appeal is an absolute requirement to confer jurisdiction on this Court. See Perlman v. Perlman, 318 Ga. App. 731, 739 (4) ( 734 SE2d 560 ) (2012); GMC Group v. Harsco Corp., 293 Ga. App. 707 ( 667 SE2d 916 ) (2008). Because the appellants filed their notice of appeal 35 days after entry of the orders they wish to appeal, this appeal is untimely. It is therefore DISMISSED for lack of jurisdiction. Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia 07/09/2015 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. [1] The notice of appeal was signed on March 19, 2015, but – for reasons that are not clear from the record – was not stamped “filed” until March 30, 2015. Appellants also filed an amended notice of appeal on March 30, 2015.