Gillis v. Goodgame

In Gillis v. Goodgame, 199 Ga. App. 413 (404 S.E.2d 815) (1991), the plaintiff appealed the trial court's grant of summary judgment to the defendant based on the plaintiff's failure to file a supporting affidavit. While the appeal of the grant of summary judgment was still pending, the trial court entered a final judgment in favor of the defendant. The Court held that a trial court retains jurisdiction during the pendency of an appeal which is improperly filed with this Court and which must ultimately be dismissed for lack of appellate jurisdiction. A proper analysis in Gillis would have been that, as the trial court's action could not be taken without also making a judgment regarding the propriety of the summary judgment order, which was under appeal, it had no jurisdiction to act and its order was a nullity.