Conyers council votes to join amicus brief in Chang v. City of Milton

The mayor and council voted to approve Resolution 757, authorizing the city to participate in an amicus brief in Chang v. City of Milton, an appeal pending before the Georgia Supreme Court.

Carrie (city staff) summarized the case for the council: she said a motorist (mister Chang) died after his vehicle struck a concrete planter located off the roadway, and that a jury previously awarded what Carrie described as "tens of millions of dollars" in damages. The legal question before the Georgia Supreme Court, Carrie explained, is whether a fixture located in the right-of-way constitutes a road hazard that would expose a city to greater liability.

Carrie said the resolution seeks clarification of the limits of municipal liability, noting that some immunities available to counties and the state are not automatically available to cities. She also told the council that scores of other Georgia cities have adopted similar resolutions in recent weeks asking the court to limit municipal exposure.

A council member moved to approve Resolution 757, the motion was seconded and the council approved the resolution by verbal vote. The council did not record individual roll-call votes in the transcript; staff indicated the motion carried by voice vote.

Council members framed the action as an effort to seek consistent statewide guidance on what constitutes a road hazard in the right-of-way and to avoid unpredictable liability for routine fixtures such as mailboxes, poles or signs.

The resolution authorizes city participation in the amicus brief; staff did not announce additional fiscal commitments during the discussion.