Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia ATLANTA,__________________ March 10, 2014 The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order: A14D0243. FULTON COUNTY SCHOOL DISTRICT, et al. v. RONALD A.

HATCHER, SR., et al.

Plaintiffs filed an action against Fulton County School District and several individually-named defendants, seeking damages for the alleged abuse of their son, who was a student with special needs. The defendants filed a motion for judgment on the pleadings, in which they argued that the plaintiffs failed to allege a waiver of sovereign immunity and that their claims were barred by sovereign immunity. The trial court denied the motion, concluding that the pleadings reflected an allegation that immunity had been waived. Defendants seek discretionary review of the trial court’s order, but we lack jurisdiction.

The trial court’s order denying the motion for judgment on the pleadings is an interlocutory order because the case remains pending below. Therefore, the defendants were required to follow the interlocutory application procedures set forth in OCGA § 5-6-34 (b), which include obtaining a certificate of immediate review from the trial court within the requisite time period. OCGA § 5-6-35, the discretionary appeal statute, does not excuse a party seeking appellate review of an interlocutory order from complying with the additional requirements of OCGA § 5-6- (b). See Bailey v. Bailey, 266 Ga. 832 (471 SE2d 213) (1996).

The defendants’ failure to comply with the interlocutory appeal procedures deprives us of jurisdiction over this application, which is hereby DISMISSED.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia 03/10/2014 Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,__________________ I certify that the above is a true extract from the minutes of the Court of Appeals of Georgia.

Witness my signature and the seal of said court hereto affixed the day and year last above written.

, Clerk.