Brazell v. J. K. Boatwright & Co., 324 Ga. App. 502

Boatwright filed a collection suit Oct 14, 2011 against West Georgia Collection Bureau, LLC, owned by the Brazells.
Brazells acknowledged service Nov 8, 2011; they filed an answer on Dec 19, 2011 asserting laches and unclean hands.
Boatwright moved for default judgment Feb 10, 2012, claiming the Brazells were in default as of Dec 9, 2011 and noting they had not paid required costs.
Brazells later answered and moved to open the default on Mar 12, 2012, arguing misjoinder of a necessary party and ongoing settlement negotiations; they tendered court costs.
A July 11, 2012 hearing occurred; Brazells filed an amended verified answer Aug 6, 2012 and a supplemental response to the motion to open.
On Aug 27, 2012 the trial court denied the motion to open, finding two conditions precedent not met and that no valid showing under oath existed; judgment for Boatwright entered.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether four conditions precedent to opening default were satisfied	Boatwright	Brazells	No; conditions not all met, so court abused discretion?
Whether failure to verify pleadings can be cured to open default	Boatwright	Brazells	No; verified defect not cured; no discretion to open.

K-Mart Corp. v. Hackett, 237 Ga. App. 127 (1999) (opening default requires four conditions precedent; discretion limited)
Roberson v. Gnann, 235 Ga. App. 112 (1998) (compliance with four conditions precedent is mandatory)
Ga. Kidney & Hypertension Specialists v. Fresenius USA Mktg., 291 Ga. App. 429 (2008) (showing under oath required to open default; discretion not applicable without it)
Mayor & Aldermen of Savannah v. Batson-Cook Co., 291 Ga. 114 (2012) (overruled on other grounds; cited for related principle)
Stewart v. Turner, 229 Ga. App. 119 (1997) (showing under oath must include meritorious defense)
Ragan v. Smith, 188 Ga. App. 770 (1988) (meritorious defense requires concrete showing under oath)