Trial Preparation in Georgia Personal Injury Cases

Trial preparation in a Georgia injury case runs on fixed legal dates more than on a generic countdown: the pretrial order, the deadline for expert rulings, the non-party fault notice, and the medical narrative notice. Each one can close an option. Since 2025, SB 68 has also changed how a case can be tried, including a right to split fault and damages and new limits on arguing pain and suffering. So the plan starts with the calendar and works back.

The dates that close doors

Before trial	What happens	Source
120 days	Last day for a defending party's non-party fault notice	§ 51-12-33(d)(1)
60 days	Medical narrative and notice to the other side	§ 24-8-826(a)
30 days, or 20 for a counteroffer	Last day to serve an offer of settlement	§ 9-11-68(a)
Before the pretrial order	Written demand to split the trial	§ 51-12-15(a)
Final pretrial conference	Expert challenge hearing and ruling must be finished	§ 24-7-702(d)
Close of the evidence, or earlier if the court directs	Written jury charge requests	§ 5-5-24(b)

Uniform Superior Court Rule 7.1 says a pretrial conference is attended by the lawyers who will try the case, and failing to attend or to present a proposed order can bring a sanction short of dismissal with prejudice. A pretrial order matters because, under § 9-11-16(b), it limits the issues for trial. Read it as if it were the contract for the trial. Amendments can also be closed off by it, under § 9-11-15(a). A pretrial conference may also address “[t]he limitation of the number of expert witnesses”, so know who’s essential.

The new trial structure

For a bodily injury or wrongful death case, § 51-12-15 lets any party elect a phased trial “by written demand prior to the entry of the pretrial order”.

Phase	Decides	Evidence and argument
One	Fault of each defendant, and percentages for all at fault	Limited to those issues
Two	Compensatory damages	Limited to that issue
Three, if needed	Punitive damages, and fees or expenses	As the proceeding requires

The same judge and jury hear the phases “immediately”. A court may reject the election only on a motion, and only for two reasons: a plaintiff injured by an alleged sexual offense who’d likely suffer serious distress from testifying more than once, or an amount in controversy under $150,000. Section 9(b) of SB 68 says this provision is intended to reach pending cases unless that would be unconstitutional, so check the Act against your case’s date. A defense demand can change your order of proof. Evidence in the first phase is limited to fault and percentages, but Transcontinental Carriers v. Bennett, A26A1643 (2026), found no abuse of discretion where a plaintiff detailed his injuries and their extent there, because fault requires proof that the breach caused them. The amount of compensation waited for the second phase.

Limits on arguing pain and suffering

Under § 9-10-184, as revised by SB 68, counsel “shall not argue the worth or monetary value of noneconomic damages” outside the statute’s exception, or refer in front of the jury or panel to a specific amount. The exception opens “only after the close of evidence” at the party’s first opportunity to argue damages. It must be “rationally related to the evidence” and can’t refer to “objects or values having no rational connection”. A lawyer with both an opening and a concluding argument can’t argue a value in the conclusion unless it was argued in the opening. So the voir dire and the opening have to work without a number. Test any comparison before closing, too: in Wal-Mart v. Medders, A26A1599 (2026), arguments built on an expert’s fee and near minimum wage rates cost the plaintiff the verdict, though a per diem method isn’t barred as such. The 2025 anchoring rule covers how it applies to earlier trials.

Motions before trial

• Motions in limine. Prior incidents, other claims, insurance, and settlement talks can all be subjects. Section 24-4-408 and § 24-4-411 address some of them directly.
• Expert motions. See expert disclosures and Daubert.
• Medical expense evidence. For a covered claim, § 51-12-1.1 can bring in amounts paid and letter-of-protection terms.
• Late summary judgment. Under Uniform Superior Court Rule 6.6, such a motion doesn’t continue the trial, as summary judgment practice explains.
• Verdict form. It has to fit § 51-12-33’s percentages, and any non-party.

Picking the jury

Georgia gives parties “the right to an individual examination of the panel” under § 15-12-133. In superior court, § 15-12-122 lets each party demand a full panel of 24. In state court, a jury of 12 takes a written demand before the trial term when the claim exceeds $50,000, the figure set by House Bill 543 for actions brought or pending on or after July 1, 2023. Keep a demand on the calendar, since a smaller panel is the alternative in state court.

Focus questions on what jurors bring in with them: beliefs about lawsuits, about injury claims with no visible harm, and about corporations. Don’t ask them to promise a result.

Getting the witnesses ready

You. You may already have been deposed. Read the transcript, because § 9-11-32(a)(1) and (a)(2) put it in front of you. Practice telling your history plainly, and answering a hard question the same way as an easy one.

Family and co-workers. Before-and-after witnesses should describe what they saw, not what they’ve been told.

Doctors and experts. Decide who testifies live, by deposition, or by narrative. Under § 9-11-32(a)(4), a judge has discretion to allow a deposition even if the witness is available.

Subpoenas. A witness living outside the county has to get the fee and mileage under § 24-13-25 with the subpoena, for it to be valid.

Exhibits, charges, and closing

Build a list with what proves each element. For each exhibit, name who gets it in, or use a certification under § 24-9-902(11). Video evidence may need date and time data under § 24-9-923(c). Requested jury charges need attention early, including the comparative fault rule. Under § 5-5-24(a), a party can’t complain about a charge without objecting before the verdict, stating the grounds, though (c) preserves review of a substantial error that was harmful as a matter of law.

Trucking cases add federal rule evidence, as the truck claims overview explains. Settlement remains open throughout, including through a § 9-11-68 offer.

After a verdict

Step	Time	Source
Motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict	Not later than 30 days after judgment, after a directed verdict motion	§ 9-11-50(b)
Motion for new trial	Within 30 days of judgment	§ 5-5-40(a)
Notice of appeal	Within 30 days, or 30 days after those motions are decided	§ 5-6-38(a)

The directed verdict motion at the close of the evidence has to be made first, or the later motion has no footing. So the trial team should have that on its list. A verdict above limits raises its own questions, as bad faith explains.

Sources

• Transcontinental Carriers v. Bennett, A26A1643
• Official Code of Georgia Annotated, November 2022 public release: §§ 5-5-24, 5-5-40, 5-6-38, 9-11-15, 9-11-16, 9-11-32, 9-11-50, 9-11-68, 15-12-122, 15-12-133, 24-4-408, 24-4-411, 24-7-702, 24-8-826, 24-9-902, 24-9-923, 24-13-25, 51-12-33
• Georgia House Bill 543 (2023), as passed: § 15-12-122
• Wal-Mart Stores East v. Medders, A26A1599
• Georgia Senate Bill 68 (2025): §§ 9-10-184, 51-12-1.1, 51-12-15
• Uniform Rules for the Superior Courts of Georgia, Rules 6.6 and 7.1

This page was last reviewed in November 2026 for general information. Laws and court decisions can change after that date. It is not legal advice and does not create an attorney-client relationship.