No action for medical malpractice which, prior to July 1, 1976, has been barred by the provisions of this chapter relating to actions shall be revived by this article.
§ 9-3-74.Barred actions not revived
Chapter 3. Limitations of Actions · Article 4. Limitations for Malpractice Actions · Last amended 1976 · Last verified July 17, 2026
In one sentenceNo medical malpractice claim that was already time-barred under prior law before July 1, 1976 was brought back to life when Georgia's dedicated malpractice limitations article took effect that year, so old claims already dead stayed dead under the new framework.
Full Text of § 9-3-74
Plain-English Summary
When Georgia enacted its dedicated medical malpractice limitations article in 1976, it needed to settle what happened to claims that were already dead under the prior law. O.C.G.A. § 9-3-74 answers that question directly: nothing in the new article revives a malpractice claim that had already been barred, under the chapter's prior provisions, before July 1, 1976.
This is a one-way savings clause. It does not shorten any claim that was still alive on that date, and it does not affect the new article's own periods going forward. Its only job is to confirm that the 1976 legislation, which restructured how malpractice limitations work, did not accidentally resurrect claims that the old limitations rules had already extinguished.
For anyone researching an old malpractice claim tied to conduct from the 1970s or earlier, this section is a reminder that the current two-year and five-year periods in O.C.G.A. § 9-3-71 apply going forward from 1976, not retroactively to reopen claims the prior law had already closed off.
Frequently Asked Questions
Did the 1976 malpractice article revive old claims that were already barred?
No. O.C.G.A. § 9-3-74 states that no action for medical malpractice barred before July 1, 1976, under the prior provisions of this chapter, is revived by this article.
Does this section affect a malpractice claim that was still timely as of July 1, 1976?
No. It only addresses claims already barred before that date; claims still alive on that date proceed under the article's own periods.
Why did the legislature need to add this section when it created the malpractice article?
To make clear that restructuring the malpractice limitations rules in 1976 did not reopen claims the prior limitations provisions had already closed off before the new article took effect.
Does this section set its own limitations period?
No. It is a savings clause confirming what the new article does not do — revive already-barred claims — rather than a section that itself measures a filing deadline.
What law governed malpractice claims before July 1, 1976?
The prior provisions of this chapter relating to actions, which this section references as the source of the pre-1976 bar it declines to disturb.
Amendment History
Code 1933, § 3-1105, enacted by Ga. L. 1976, p. 1363, § 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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