After Bumpy 100-Year Ride, Georgia Legislature Taps Brakes on Direct-Action Litigation Against Liability Insurers of Motor Carriers

In an article published on March 20, 2024, in the Daily Report, John Bonnie and Steve Rapp discuss changes to Georgia’s direct-action statutes regarding motor carrier liability insurers, bringing the state into line with all but three other states.

“Revisions to Georgia’s two direct-action statutes (O.C.G.A. Sections 40-1-112 and 40-2-140) will largely prevent a plaintiff from directly suing a motor carrier’s liability insurer in the absence of a judgment, ending a nearly 100-year-old peculiarity in Georgia law that was at odds with the otherwise universal prohibition on direct-action claims against liability insurers,” say Bonnie and Rapp. “This change in perspective and the resulting amendments to the direct-action statutes are noteworthy examples of the evolution of circumstances over time and the adaptation of law and public policy to reflect those changes.”

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