Court System:

The Georgia Constitution of 1983 as amended vested the judicial power of the state in the following classes of courts:  magistrate courts, probate courts, juvenile courts, state courts, superior courts, Court of Appeals, and Supreme Court  (Article VI, Section I.)  The entire State of Georgia is divided into judicial circuits, and each created its own system of courts consisting of  at least one superior court, magistrate court, a probate court, and, where needed, a state court and a juvenile court pursuant to the Constitution.  (Article VI, Section I, Paragraph VI.)  Currently, there are approximately 46 judicial circuits in the State of Georgia. Credit and collection actions generally are determined by the Superior Court, State Court and Magistrate Court.  An overview of the Georgia Court sytem may also be accessed throught the web site of the Supreme Court of Georgia.  Click here.
 

• Superior Court:   The Superior Court has  original, exclusive, or concurrent jurisdiction, as the case may be, of all causes, both civil and criminal, granted to them by the Constitution and laws. It also exercises a general supervision over all inferior tribunals.  (Section 15-6-8, Official Code of Georgia.)

  State Court:   Each state court has jurisdiction, within the territorial limits of the county or counties for which it was created and concurrent with the superior courts, over trial of civil cases without regard to the amount in controversy except those actions in which exclusive jurisdiction is vested int he superior courts, and limited criminal cases.  (Section 15-7-4, Official Code of Georgia.)

  Magistrate Court:  All small claims courts, justice of the peace courts and magistrate courts are classified as Magistrate Courts as of the effective date of the Georgia Constitution of 1983.  (Article VI, Section X, Paragraph I, subpara. (6).)  There is one Magistrate Court in each county of the State of Georgia.   (Section 15-10-1.)  It has jurisdiction over civil claims including garnishment and attachment and money or property claims in which the value claimed does not exceed $5,000.00.  (Section 15-10-2(5).)
   

The Superior Courts, State Courts and Magistrate Courts each operates under a set of Uniformed Rules prescribed in accordance with the directive of Article VI, Section IX, Paragraph I, of the Constitution of the State of Georgia of 1983.  These Uniformed Rules may be accessed through the web site of the Gwinnett Judicial Circuit.  Click here