(a) When an execution which was regularly issued from a court is lost or destroyed, the judge or justice of the court from which the same was issued may at any time, upon proper application and proof of the facts by the affidavit of the applicant, his agent, or his attorney or by any other satisfactory proof, grant an order for the issuing of an alias execution in lieu of the lost original execution. The alias execution shall have all the legal force and effect of the lost or destroyed original execution.
§ 9-13-8.Issuance of alias execution to replace lost original
Chapter 13. Executions and Judicial Sales · Article 1. General Provisions · Last amended 1985 · Last verified July 17, 2026
In one sentenceO.C.G.A. § 9-13-8 lets a court, a state officer, or — for county or local government executions — a probate judge issue an alias execution to replace a lost or destroyed original, carrying the same legal force as the lost original once the loss is properly shown.
Full Text of § 9-13-8
(b) When an execution which was regularly issued by an officer of the state as authorized by law is lost or destroyed, the state officer or the successor to the state officer by whom the same was issued may at any time issue an alias execution in lieu of the lost original execution. The alias execution shall be dated the same date as the original execution and the officer shall endorse the word “alias” on the alias execution. The alias execution shall have all the legal force and effect of the lost or destroyed original execution.
(c) When an execution which was regularly issued by an officer of a county or local government as authorized by law is lost or destroyed, the judge of the probate court of the county in which the original execution was issued may issue an alias execution upon the filing by the party having the right to control the original execution of a statement under oath of the loss or destruction of such original execution. The judge shall endorse the word “alias” on the alias execution. The alias execution shall have all the legal force and effect of the lost or destroyed original execution.
Plain-English Summary
An execution can be lost or destroyed after it issues, leaving the party who holds the underlying right without the paper needed to enforce it. This section covers three separate sources of executions and gives each its own path to a replacement.
Subsection (a) handles executions regularly issued from a court. The judge or justice of that court may, on proper application and proof — by affidavit of the applicant, an agent, an attorney, or other satisfactory proof — grant an order for an alias execution in place of the lost original at any time. Subsection (b) handles executions issued by a state officer acting under legal authority: the officer, or that officer’s successor, may issue the alias directly, dated to match the original and marked with the word “alias.” Subsection (c) handles executions issued by an officer of a county or local government: the probate judge of the county where the original issued may grant the alias once the party entitled to control the original files a sworn statement of its loss or destruction, and again the alias gets endorsed “alias.”
Whichever path applies, the result is the same: the alias execution carries all the legal force and effect the lost or destroyed original had. The party is not left starting over — the alias stands in the original’s place.
Frequently Asked Questions
What proof is required to get an alias execution for a lost court execution?
Proper application and proof of the loss, which can be shown by affidavit of the applicant, an agent, or an attorney, or by other satisfactory proof, presented to the judge or justice of the issuing court.
Who issues an alias for a lost execution that a state officer originally issued?
The state officer who issued it, or that officer’s successor, who dates the alias the same as the original and endorses it with the word “alias.”
Who issues an alias for a lost execution issued by a county or local government officer?
The judge of the probate court of the county in which the original execution was issued, upon a sworn statement filed by the party entitled to control the original.
Does the alias execution have the same legal effect as the lost original?
Yes. Under all three subsections, the alias execution has all the legal force and effect of the lost or destroyed original execution.
Is a court order always required to obtain one of these alias executions?
Only under subsection (a), which requires an order from the judge or justice; subsections (b) and (c) let the state officer or the probate judge issue the alias directly on the required showing.
Amendment History
Ga. L. 1857, p. 104, § 1; Code 1863, § 3892; Code 1868, § 3912; Code 1873, § 3988; Code 1882, § 3988; Civil Code 1895, § 4752; Civil Code 1910, § 5321; Code 1933, § 63-210; Ga. L. 1985, p. 1243, § 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: lost execution replacement georgiaalias execution lost or destroyed originalprobate court alias execution county officergeorgia lost writ of fieri facias replacement