The judgment creditor retains the right to bring an action to enforce a judgment instead of proceeding under this article.
§ 9-12-136.Actions to enforce judgments preserved
Chapter 12. Verdict and Judgment · Article 6. Enforcement of Foreign Judgments · Last amended 1986 · Last verified July 17, 2026
In one sentenceO.C.G.A. § 9-12-136 confirms that a judgment creditor keeps the right to sue on a foreign judgment as an ordinary civil action instead of using Article 6’s filing procedure, preserving whichever route better fits the creditor’s case.
Full Text of § 9-12-136
Plain-English Summary
Article 6 offers a fast lane for enforcing an out-of-state judgment, but this section makes clear it is a fast lane, not the only road. The judgment creditor keeps the option to file a full lawsuit on the judgment instead — treating the earlier judgment as the debt owed and asking a Georgia court to enter a fresh judgment on it, the way creditors proceeded before this uniform act existed.
That choice can matter for practical reasons. A creditor might prefer a new lawsuit when the earlier judgment does not clearly qualify as a “foreign judgment” under this article’s definition, when the creditor wants a Georgia court to resolve some question the filing procedure does not reach, or for any number of case-specific reasons. Whatever the reason, this section removes any doubt that adopting the streamlined filing procedure narrowed the older option.
Georgia’s own Code sections outside this article already anticipate that choice. A form for a complaint suing on an existing judgment as its own debt sits in the Code’s chapter on general civil forms, ready for a creditor who elects the lawsuit route rather than filing under Article 6.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does filing a foreign judgment under this article give up the creditor’s right to sue on it instead?
No. This section states that the judgment creditor retains the right to bring an action to enforce a judgment instead of proceeding under this article.
Why might a creditor sue on a foreign judgment instead of just filing it under this article?
Reasons vary — doubt about whether the judgment fits this article’s definition, a wish to have a Georgia court resolve a related question, or other case-specific considerations that make a lawsuit the better fit.
Is suing on a foreign judgment a new lawsuit?
Yes. It is an ordinary civil action that treats the earlier judgment as the debt owed and asks a Georgia court to enter its own judgment on that debt.
Does Georgia law supply a form for this kind of lawsuit?
Yes. Georgia’s general civil forms chapter includes a sample complaint for suing on an existing judgment as its own debt.
Which route is faster: filing under this article or suing on the judgment?
Filing under this article is ordinarily faster, since it skips a new lawsuit, but this section keeps the slower route available whenever a creditor has reason to use it.
Amendment History
Code 1981, § 9-12-136, enacted by Ga. L. 1986, p. 380, § 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
Also known as: georgia right to sue on foreign judgmentalternative to filing foreign judgment georgiaaction on a judgment georgia versus foreign judgment filingdomesticate or sue on judgment georgia