Rule 17 Conflicts–state and Federal Courts

When a lawyer has cases in both a Georgia Superior Court and a federal court scheduled at the same time, the federal court case takes priority. This means the lawyer must appear in federal court first, and the state court must reschedule.

To use this rule, the lawyer must tell the state court judge about the conflict as soon as possible. The lawyer needs to show proof of the federal court date, such as a notice or order from that court. Simply claiming there is a conflict is not enough without showing the paperwork to back it up.