Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia ATLANTA,__________________ September 11, 2014 The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order: A15I0010. CITY OF FITZGERALD v. LARRY CARUTHERS.

Larry Caruthers filed a civil action against the City of Fitzgerald after he was struck on the head by a falling, rotten tree limb while standing on a curb. The City filed a motion for summary judgment on the negligence claim, arguing that the claim is barred by the doctrine of sovereign immunity. The trial court denied the motion, and the City now seeks interlocutory review of this ruling.

In Board of Regents v. Canas, 295 Ga. App. 505, 507 (1) (672 SE2d 471) (2009), we held that, under the collateral order doctrine, a defendant may directly appeal an order denying a motion to dismiss based on a determination that the defendant is not immune from suit on the basis of sovereign immunity. Our decision hinged on the principle that “sovereign immunity is an immunity from suit, rather than a mere defense to liability, and is effectively lost if a case is erroneously permitted to go to trial.” (Citation omitted.) Id. Here, the trial court found that the City is not entitled to the defense of sovereign immunity because a question of fact existed as to whether the City had actual notice of the rotten condition of the tree.

This conclusive determination is directly appealable as a collateral order. See Liberty County School District v. Halliburton, Case Number A14A0333 (2) (decided July 16, 2014); Eshleman v. Key, 326 Ga. App. 883, 884 (1) (755 SE2d 926) (2014).

“This Court will grant a timely application for interlocutory review if the order complained of is subject to direct appeal and the applicants have not otherwise filed a notice of appeal.” Spivey v. Hembree, 268 Ga. App. 485, 486 n. 1 (602 SE2d 246) (2004). Accordingly, the City’s application for interlocutory appeal is hereby GRANTED.

The City shall have ten days from the date of this order to file a notice of appeal in the trial court. If, however, the City has already filed a notice of appeal from the order at issue, it need not file a second notice. The clerk of the trial court is directed to include a copy of this order in the record transmitted to this Court.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia 09/11/2014 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.