Interpretation of "Not Disposed"
"Not disposed" means a case is not over. A case is still pending before the court. It has not been disposed of by dismissal, final judgment after trial or settlement. The "disposition" is the method for resolving a case. Dismissal is one way. An agreed settlement is another. A third way is a final judgment after trial.
Many times client ask "what is the status of my case" in terms of whether they still have a case that is pending in court. When an attorney answers that a case is not disposed . The client is usually confused and asks more questions like "is my case over?" or "did the judge dismiss my case?"
However, "not disposed" simply means that the case is pending. It does not mean it’s time to panic or that you should call the attorney crying. You still have an active case and need to discuss the case with your attorney to determine how things are going and if the court needs to get involved to move the case along or to resolve the pending issues that are currently pending in your case.
Common Reasons for "Not Disposed" Status of a Case
Not disposed means that the court case is still alive. However, there are a host of reasons why the case may not be scheduled for trial. In general, procedural delays are the primary reason for being in a "not disposed" status. Other reasons are pending motions, or the need for the court to hear additional evidence or testimony to decide the motion(s).
Implications of a "Not Disposed" Case for a Litigant
When a Georgia Court uses the term "not disposed", the case is not over. Some lawyers may use "open" or "pending" interchangeably with "not disposed," but there is an important distinction. When the Court considers a case as "not disposed" the matter remains active for any purpose and cannot be closed unless the Court takes some type of action.
‘Not Disposed’ means the Court has yet to enter an Order that finally resolves the case – meaning the Court has not yet disposed of all issues in the case, i.e., to dispose, as used in this context, means to determine, after trial or hearing upon consideration of the facts, that a particular issue has been finally resolved. Simply put, the status "not disposed" causes an adverse consequence upon litigants because it keeps the action pending and subject to other or further proceedings, without direction from the Court as to the status of the litigation.
Issues pending in cases that are not disposed cause the parties to incur legal costs and attorney fees each time they must file an external pleading, motion or notice to the Court to obtain rulings on issues that remain as pending in litigation.
The ‘not disposed’ status of a case is also significant to litigants who are attempting to collect on a judgment once the Court enters a judgment in their favor for the monetary sum certain. For example, as in a personal injury case, a plaintiff with an award in their favor must pursue collection efforts against the defendant or defendants for the judgment that has been issued in their favor. However, if the plaintiff(s) do not take action to collect on the judgment, that failure to act for a period of time may work to disadvantage the plaintiff when attempting to reduce the judgment to the full legal sum in the future because, absent an automatic stay, the defendant has the right to pursue appeals even if a portion of the judgment has been paid.
Litigants should consider the ‘not disposed’ status of a case because it can cause unnecessary delay and financial harm to a party if the action simply sits upon a Court’s calendar awaiting ruling or the defendant(s) respectfully obtain rulings in their favor that may permit the defendant(s) to continue pursuing appeals of issues turning into a matter of law, i.e., obtaining certified questions of law or certified interlocutory appeals and/or the right to seek the judicial opinion or ruling from a writ of certiorari from the Georgia Supreme Court or Court of Appeals depending upon the issues that are pending for adjudication by the Courts.
If parties to litigation desire to have the Court render a final ruling on the issues that are not disposed upon after disposition by the trial Court, they must act to bring the Court’s attention to the pending issues. If necessary, the parties must initiate action to obtain relief (legal rulings) from the Court for a final resolution to the pending issues.
Legal Options for Concluding a Case Stated as "Not Disposed"
The most common cause for an entry being on the "Not Disposed" list is simply that the case has not been concluded by way of motion for summary judgment, dismissal or trial. This is not to say that it is the fault of the attorney representing the parties in the case, only that the case remains open. Moving a case along to completion not only benefits the client by bringing their matter to a close, but it also saves the client money. What a litigant should not do, however, is engage in litigation just for the sake of allowing a case to pass through the system. Be assured, the courts are more than aware of attorneys who file frivolous, non-meritorious motions on behalf of clients as a means to prolong litigation and enrich themselves. While there may be legitimate reasons for prolonging a matter, such as environmental, medical or economic, nearly all cases should, through proper discourse with opposing counsel, be disposed of timely throughout the life of the case . In certain matters where delays are beyond the control of the parties or their attorneys, a motion should be filed setting forth the reasons for the delay and also setting forth a time frame for the ultimate disposition of the matter. Such motion would be accompanied by a certification of the client or clients as to the value of the matter and the necessity of pursuing same and a certification of the attorney as to the discovery undertaken and yet to be performed. That document then should be reviewed by opposing counsel. Once counsel has been able to review same and whether or not they will acquiesce in that proposal, the court should have before it both the motion of counsel and the back and forth as to the precise nature of the request for the adjournment. Such attorney who practices in this fashion benefits the litigants involved and enhances their reputation and bring justice and truth to their clients.
Examples of Cases Stated as "Not Disposed"
Examples of a "Not Disposed" Case
A plaintiff has filed suit against a defendant and after failing to file a response to the defendant’s motion to dismiss, the Court enters an order of dismissal. In fact, the Court is so confident of its ruling that it goes ahead and issues an order of final judgment, signing it on October 5, 2017. In this situation, the case is disposed, right? Not necessarily. What happens if the Court realizes two days later that it had made a mistake and enters an order setting aside the previous final order and judgment as void and reestablishing the case on the active docket? South Carolina Rule of Civil Procedure 60 deals with relief from a judgment, order, or proceeding that is void, so the case is not disposed under AOC style 26.
Another example would be a case where one of the defendants was given a deadline by which to respond to a lawsuit but failed to do so. Plaintiff obtains an order of default against the non-responsive defendant . Attorney for the defendant learns of this order of default within 60 days and files a timely motion to set aside the default along with a response to the complaint. The Court issues a new order setting aside the previously entered order of default.
As a final example, consider a case where a defendant was served with a lawsuit but never responded, answered, or moved to dismiss the case. Default is entered against the defendant. A default judgment is then entered in the amount of $40,000. A year later, after discovery has been extensively conducted and the plaintiff has retained and disclosed experts, the defendant contacts counsel and asks to participate in the case. The entry of the default was a clerical error and the defendant intended to file an answer but was side tracked and forgot. The Court sets aside the default.
In all of these scenarios, although the first time the case was "entered" and "disposed" according to AOCI style 26, the case did in fact have recent activity and was thereby not disposed.