Premier Pediatric Providers, LLC v. Kennesaw Pediatrics, P.C, 318 Ga. 350

Kennesaw Pediatrics, P.C. sued Premier Pediatric Providers, LLC and won summary judgment; Premier filed a timely appeal and needed to have the hearing transcript filed within 30 days as required by statute.
Premier failed to timely cause the transcript to be filed; more than four months later, Kennesaw moved to dismiss the appeal under OCGA § 5-6-48(c), claiming the delay was unreasonable, inexcusable, and caused by Premier.
Premier explained this was a good faith mistake, having relied on an invoice suggesting the transcript had been included, and it acted promptly to file the transcript upon learning of the error.
The trial court credited Premier’s explanation, found the delay excusable, and denied the motion to dismiss.
On appeal, the Court of Appeals reversed and dismissed Premier’s appeal, holding that the delay was both unreasonable and inexcusable and that the trial court abused its discretion.
The Supreme Court of Georgia granted review to clarify appellate standards under OCGA § 5-6-48(c) and the proper roles of trial and appellate courts regarding appeals delayed by late transcript filings.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether a late-filed transcript in an appeal mandates dismissal under OCGA § 5-6-48(c)	Delay was unreasonable, inexcusable, and caused by Premier, so appeal should be dismissed	Delay was a good faith mistake, promptly corrected once discovered, making it excusable	Delay was not inexcusable; trial court did not abuse discretion by denying dismissal
Standard of appellate review for trial court decisions under OCGA § 5-6-48(c)	Appellate review is de novo if facts are undisputed	Review for abuse of discretion applies both to predicate and ultimate findings	Abuse of discretion review applies to both factual and legal (mixed) findings
Whether an appellate court may dismiss an appeal for late transcript filing under OCGA § 5-6-48(c)	Court of Appeals can dismiss for untimely transcript if trial court erred	Dismissal authority rests solely with trial court	Appellate court may not dismiss; only trial court has discretion to do so
Proper procedure if trial court abuses its discretion under OCGA § 5-6-48(c)	Appellate court should direct trial court to dismiss	Remand to trial court for reconsideration	Appellate court should remand, not mandate dismissal; trial court discretion prevails

Propst v. Morgan, 288 Ga. 862 (Ga. 2011) (establishes trial court’s decision whether to dismiss an appeal under OCGA § 5-6-48(c) is reviewed for abuse of discretion)
Kelly v. Dawson County, 282 Ga. 189 (Ga. 2007) (abuse of discretion is proper standard of review for findings regarding delay and excusability)
Sellers v. Nodvin, 262 Ga. 205 (Ga. 1992) (abuse of discretion governs trial courts’ decisions to dismiss appeals for late transcript filings)
Ford Motor Co. v. Conley, 294 Ga. 530 (Ga. 2014) (abuse of discretion covers both fact-based and legal conclusions within discretionary range)
Greyling Realty Corp. v. Lawson, 179 Ga. 188 (Ga. 1934) (abuse of discretion review means trial court’s findings stand if within reasonable range)