(a) Amendments. A party may amend his pleading as a matter of course and without leave of court at any time before the entry of a pretrial order. Thereafter the party may amend his pleading only by leave of court or by written consent of the adverse party. Leave shall be freely given when justice so requires. A party may plead or move in response to an amended pleading and, when required by an order of the court, shall plead within 15 days after service of the amended pleading, unless the court otherwise orders.
§ 9-11-15.Amended and supplemental pleadings
Chapter 11. Civil Practice Act · Article 3. Pleadings and Motions · Last amended 1972 · Last verified July 17, 2026
In one sentenceO.C.G.A. § 9-11-15 lets a party amend a pleading as a matter of course before a pretrial order is entered and by leave of court (freely given when justice requires) afterward, provides that an amendment arising from the same conduct, transaction, or occurrence relates back to the original pleading's filing date -- including an amendment changing a party under specific notice and mistake conditions -- and allows supplemental pleadings covering events after the original pleading.
Full Text of § 9-11-15
(b) Amendments to conform to the evidence. When issues not raised by the pleadings are tried by express or implied consent of the parties, they shall be treated in all respects as if they had been raised in the pleadings. Such amendment of the pleadings as may be necessary to cause them to conform to the evidence and to raise these issues may be made upon motion of any party at any time, even after judgment; but failure so to amend does not affect the result of the trial of these issues. If evidence is objected to at the trial on the ground that it is not within the issues made by the pleadings, the court may allow the pleadings to be amended and shall do so freely when the presentation of the merits of the action will be subserved thereby and the objecting party fails to satisfy the court that the admission of the evidence would prejudice him in maintaining his action or defense upon the merits. The court may grant a continuance to enable the objecting party to meet the evidence.
(c) Relation back of amendments. Whenever the claim or defense asserted in the amended pleading arises out of the conduct, transaction, or occurrence set forth or attempted to be set forth in the original pleading, the amendment relates back to the date of the original pleading. An amendment changing the party against whom a claim is asserted relates back to the date of the original pleadings if the foregoing provisions are satisfied, and if within the period provided by law for commencing the action against him the party to be brought in by amendment (1) has received such notice of the institution of the action that he will not be prejudiced in maintaining his defense on the merits, and (2) knew or should have known that, but for a mistake concerning the identity of the proper party, the action would have been brought against him.
(d) Supplemental pleadings. Upon motion of a party the court may, upon reasonable notice and upon such terms as are just, permit him to serve a supplemental pleading setting forth transactions or occurrences or events which have happened since the date of the pleading sought to be supplemented. Permission may be granted even though the original pleading is defective in its statement of a claim for relief or defense. If the court deems it advisable that the adverse party plead to the supplemental pleading, it shall so order, specifying the time therefor.
Plain-English Summary
Pleadings rarely stay static once discovery starts turning up new facts, and this section governs how Georgia litigants adjust them. Before a pretrial order gets entered, a party may amend a pleading as a matter of course, without asking permission. After that point, amendment requires either leave of court or the adverse party’s written consent, but the statute directs courts to give that leave freely when justice requires it. A party responding to an amended pleading generally has 15 days to plead or move in response when the court orders a response, unless the court sets a different deadline.
Subsection (b) addresses what happens when the evidence at trial strays from the pleadings. If the parties try an issue by express or implied consent even though it wasn’t raised in the pleadings, the law treats that issue as if it had been pleaded all along, and either party may move to amend the pleadings to match the evidence, even after judgment, without the amendment’s absence affecting the trial’s outcome. If a party objects that evidence falls outside the pleaded issues, the court should freely allow amendment when it would serve the merits and the objecting party can’t show prejudice, and the court may grant a continuance to let the objecting party respond to the new evidence.
Subsection (c) supplies Georgia’s relation-back doctrine: an amendment arising from the same conduct, transaction, or occurrence as the original pleading relates back to the original filing date. An amendment that changes the party being sued relates back on the same terms if, within the time the law allows for commencing the action against that party, the new party received enough notice of the case that its defense on the merits won’t be prejudiced, and knew or should have known that, but for a mistake about identity, the action would have named it from the start. Subsection (d) rounds out the section with supplemental pleadings — on a party’s motion, reasonable notice, and terms the court finds just, a party may add allegations about events that happened after the original pleading was filed, even if that original pleading had its own defects, and the court may order the adverse party to respond.
Frequently Asked Questions
Can a Georgia party amend a pleading without asking the court?
Yes, as a matter of course, at any time before a pretrial order is entered. After that point, amendment requires leave of court or the adverse party's written consent.
How freely do Georgia courts allow amendments after a pretrial order?
The statute directs that leave to amend shall be freely given when justice so requires, though it's no longer automatic once a pretrial order is in place.
What is relation back, and when does a Georgia amendment relate back to the original pleading?
Relation back means the amendment is treated as if filed on the original pleading's date; it applies whenever the amended claim or defense arises from the same conduct, transaction, or occurrence set out or attempted to be set out in the original pleading.
Can an amendment that adds or changes a defendant relate back to the original filing date?
Yes, if within the limitations period the new party received enough notice of the action to avoid prejudice to its defense, and knew or should have known that, but for a mistake about identity, the action would have been brought against it.
What is a supplemental pleading, and how does it differ from an amendment?
A supplemental pleading, allowed under subsection (d) on motion and reasonable notice, adds transactions, occurrences, or events that happened after the original pleading was filed, rather than correcting or adding to what already existed when the pleading was filed.
Amendment History
Ga. L. 1966, p. 609, § 15; Ga. L. 1968, p. 1104, § 4; Ga. L. 1972, p. 689, § 6.
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
Also known as: Georgia amended complaint rulerelation back amendment Georgia lawsuitGeorgia equivalent of Rule 15supplemental pleading Georgia civil caseamend pleading before pretrial order Georgia