Venue in cases under this article shall lie in any county wherein a substantial part of the business was transacted, the tortious act, omission, or injury occurred, or the real property is located. Where an action is brought against a resident of this state, any nonresident of this state who is involved in the same transaction or occurrence and who is suable under the provisions of this article may be joined as a defendant in the county where a resident defendant is suable. Under such circumstances, jurisdiction and venue of the court of and over such nonresident defendant shall not be affected or lost if at trial a verdict or judgment is returned in favor of such resident defendant. If such resident defendant is dismissed from the action prior to commencement of the trial, the action against the nonresident defendant shall not abate but shall be transferred to a court in a county where venue is proper.
§ 9-10-93.Venue
Chapter 10. Civil Practice and Procedure Generally · Article 4. Personal Jurisdiction over Nonresidents · Last amended 1997 · Last verified July 17, 2026
In one sentenceSets venue for long-arm cases in the county tied to the business, tort, or property at issue, permits joining a nonresident co-defendant in a resident defendant’s county, and preserves jurisdiction over the nonresident even after a defense verdict, while pre-trial dismissal of the resident defendant sends the case elsewhere for proper venue.
Full Text of § 9-10-93
Plain-English Summary
Establishing that a Georgia court has power over a nonresident under the long-arm statute is only half the battle — the case still has to land in the right county. This section answers that question by tying venue to the underlying facts: the county where a substantial part of the business was transacted, where the tortious act, omission, or injury happened, or where the real property sits.
The section also handles a common wrinkle: a lawsuit against both a Georgia resident and a nonresident arising from the same transaction or occurrence. Rather than forcing the plaintiff to split the case into two lawsuits in two counties, the nonresident can be joined as a defendant in the county where the resident defendant is suable. That convenience does not evaporate if the resident defendant wins at trial — jurisdiction and venue over the nonresident survive a defense verdict in the resident’s favor.
The rule changes, though, if the resident defendant exits the case before trial starts. In that situation the claim against the nonresident does not get thrown out; instead, the court transfers it to a county where venue would be proper on its own, so the plaintiff keeps the case alive rather than losing it to a venue technicality created by someone else’s dismissal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Which counties qualify as venue for a case under the long-arm statute?
Any county where a substantial part of the business was transacted, where the tortious act, omission, or injury occurred, or where the real property involved is located.
Can a nonresident be sued in the same county as a resident co-defendant?
Yes, if the nonresident is involved in the same transaction or occurrence as the resident defendant and is suable under the long-arm article, the nonresident may be joined as a defendant in the county where the resident defendant can be sued.
What happens to venue over the nonresident if the jury sides with the resident defendant at trial?
Jurisdiction and venue over the nonresident defendant are not affected or lost just because the verdict or judgment at trial favors the resident defendant.
What happens if the resident defendant is dismissed before trial begins?
The case against the nonresident does not abate — it gets transferred to a court in a county where venue is proper on its own terms.
Does dismissing the resident defendant before trial end the case against the nonresident?
No, the action continues; the statute moves it to a county with proper venue rather than dismissing it along with the resident defendant.
Amendment History
Ga. L. 1966, p. 343, § 4; Ga. L. 1968, p. 1419, § 1; Ga. L. 1970, p. 443, § 3; Ga. L. 1997, p. 480, § 1.
Source & verification. Section text and amendment history are
reproduced verbatim from the Official Code of Georgia Annotated, published by the
Official Code of Georgia Annotated, Georgia Code Revision Commission / LexisNexis. Last verified July 17, 2026.
· Official source
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