Nursing Home Abuse and Neglect Lawyers Serving Communities Across Georgia

Nursing home abuse and neglect refers to the harm a long-term care resident suffers when a facility fails to provide the care that Georgia and federal law require. Under Georgia’s Bill of Rights for Residents of Long-term Care Facilities, O.C.G.A. § 31-8-100 et seq., residents are entitled to adequate medical care, nutrition, hydration, supervision, and protection from mistreatment. Federal regulations reinforce that standard, requiring Medicare- and Medicaid-certified facilities to keep residents free from avoidable harm under 42 C.F.R. § 483.25. When a facility’s failure causes injuries such as pressure sores, malnutrition, falls, or wrongful death, the resident or surviving family may bring a civil claim. Suthers & Harper handles these claims for families throughout coastal and southeast Georgia, from Savannah and Chatham County to the smaller communities that surround it.

Families across Georgia rarely expect that placing a parent or spouse in a nursing home could lead to a serious injury or an early death. When it does, the question is usually the same: did the facility do something wrong, and is there a way to hold it accountable. Suthers & Harper has spent more than 25 years answering that question for families in Savannah and the communities around it, building nursing home cases that turn on medical records, staffing data, and state inspection findings.

Families who suspect that a loved one was harmed in a Georgia facility can review their options with the firm’s nursing home abuse and neglect attorneys at no cost, whether the facility sits in Chatham County or several counties inland.

Georgia Communities Served by Suthers & Harper in Nursing Home Cases

Suthers & Harper represents nursing home abuse and neglect clients across coastal and southeast Georgia, including Savannah, Pooler, Brunswick, Hinesville, Richmond Hill, and Statesboro. Cases are typically filed in the State Court or Superior Court of the county where the facility operates, and Georgia law gives most claimants two years from the date of injury to file under O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33.

Savannah and Pooler (Chatham County)

The firm is based in Savannah and handles Chatham County nursing home cases, including those arising in fast-growing Pooler. Chatham County sits in the Eastern Judicial Circuit, and civil claims are heard in the State Court and Superior Court of Chatham County. Families in the area can read more about nursing home abuse cases in Pooler.

Brunswick (Glynn County)

Brunswick anchors Glynn County and the Brunswick Judicial Circuit, where nursing home claims are filed in the Glynn County State Court or Superior Court. The county’s coastal facilities serve residents from Brunswick and nearby St. Simons Island. The firm’s coverage of Brunswick nursing home abuse claims walks through the local court and filing deadlines.

Hinesville (Liberty County)

Hinesville is the seat of Liberty County, part of the Atlantic Judicial Circuit, which also covers neighboring Bryan County. Nursing home cases are filed in the Liberty County State Court or Superior Court. More detail is available on the firm’s page for Hinesville nursing home neglect cases.

Richmond Hill (Bryan County)

Richmond Hill lies in Bryan County, also within the Atlantic Judicial Circuit. Superior Court matters are handled at the Bryan County courthouse at 151 South College Street in Pembroke. The firm’s overview of Richmond Hill nursing home abuse claims addresses how local cases proceed.

Statesboro (Bulloch County)

Statesboro is the seat of Bulloch County and the Ogeechee Judicial Circuit, where nursing home claims are filed in the Bulloch County State Court or Superior Court. Suthers & Harper has obtained results in Bulloch County, including a $325,000 recovery in a nursing home malnutrition case. Families can learn more about Statesboro nursing home abuse claims.

Professional ethics and common sense prohibit us from guaranteeing results in any case. Past performance does not guarantee future results. Each case is different and must stand on its own facts and circumstances.

What Laws Protect Nursing Home Residents in Georgia?

Georgia and federal law give nursing home residents specific, enforceable protections. The state Bill of Rights for Residents of Long-term Care Facilities, O.C.G.A. § 31-8-100 et seq., requires facilities to provide adequate care and to respect a resident’s dignity, safety, and medical needs. The Disabled Adults and Elder Persons Protection Act, O.C.G.A. § 30-5-3, defines neglect to include the failure to provide essential services such as medical care, food, and hygiene. On the federal side, 42 C.F.R. § 483.25 obligates certified facilities to ensure that residents do not develop avoidable conditions such as pressure sores or significant unplanned weight loss. A violation of these standards can support both a regulatory complaint and a civil negligence claim in Georgia courts.

Georgia families can report suspected nursing home abuse or neglect to the Healthcare Facility Regulation Division of the Georgia Department of Community Health, which inspects long-term care facilities and investigates complaints. A regulatory finding does not by itself resolve a civil claim, but inspection records and citations often become important evidence in a nursing home lawsuit.

How Long Do You Have to File a Nursing Home Claim in Georgia?

Most Georgia nursing home injury claims must be filed within two years of the date of injury under O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33. When a resident dies, a wrongful death claim is also generally subject to a two-year deadline. Because evidence such as staffing records and care charts can be lost over time, families are usually better served by contacting an attorney well before the deadline approaches.

When a nursing home claim alleges professional negligence by a nurse, physician, or other licensed provider, Georgia law requires the complaint to be filed with a supporting expert affidavit under O.C.G.A. § 9-11-9.1. The affidavit must identify at least one negligent act or omission. A missing or defective affidavit is a common reason professional negligence claims are dismissed, which is one reason these cases are built carefully from the start.

What Damages Can Families Recover in a Georgia Nursing Home Case?

Georgia law allows an injured resident or a surviving family to pursue several categories of damages, depending on the facts:

• Economic damages, such as medical bills, the cost of corrective care, and related out-of-pocket losses
• Noneconomic damages, including the resident’s physical pain, emotional suffering, and loss of dignity
• Punitive damages, available under O.C.G.A. § 51-12-5.1 when the evidence shows willful misconduct, malice, or a conscious indifference to consequences

Damages in a Georgia nursing home case can include economic losses like medical and corrective-care costs, noneconomic harm such as pain and loss of dignity, and, in cases involving willful misconduct, punitive damages under O.C.G.A. § 51-12-5.1. Punitive damages are meant to punish and deter egregious conduct rather than to compensate a specific loss.

Falls are the leading cause of injury for adults 65 and older, and more than 14 million older adults, about one in four, report a fall each year, according to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention (2024 data). In a nursing home, many of these falls are preventable, and a fall that leads to a fracture or head injury can signal inadequate supervision or care planning.

Suthers & Harper was among the first firms in the country to take a nursing home abuse case to trial and obtain an award of punitive damages, and the firm has the resources to pursue claims that can cost hundreds of thousands of dollars to bring through trial. Its record across Georgia and South Carolina is summarized on the firm’s nursing home verdicts and settlements page.

How Are Nursing Home Cases Handled Across Coastal Georgia Courts?

Each Georgia county routes civil claims through its own State Court and Superior Court. Nursing home cases in Savannah are heard in Chatham County, in the Eastern Judicial Circuit, while cases in Brunswick go through Glynn County, in the Brunswick Judicial Circuit, and cases in Statesboro through Bulloch County, in the Ogeechee Judicial Circuit. Liberty and Bryan Counties, which include Hinesville and Richmond Hill, both sit in the Atlantic Judicial Circuit.

A nursing home case generally begins with an investigation into the facility’s records and staffing, followed by a complaint filed in the appropriate county court. When the claim rests on professional negligence, the expert affidavit required by O.C.G.A. § 9-11-9.1 must accompany the complaint. From there the case moves through discovery, and most claims resolve by settlement, though the firm prepares every case as if it will be tried.

Nursing home cases in coastal Georgia are filed in the county where the facility operates, from the Chatham County courts in Savannah to the Bulloch County courts in Statesboro. Claims based on professional negligence must include an expert affidavit under O.C.G.A. § 9-11-9.1, and the standard two-year filing deadline under O.C.G.A. § 9-3-33 applies in most cases.

Why Families Across Georgia Turn to Suthers & Harper for Nursing Home Cases

Suthers & Harper is led by a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, an invitation-only group limited to the top trial lawyers in the United States and Canada, and the firm brings more than 42 years of trial experience to complex injury and wrongful death litigation. For more than 25 years, the firm has dedicated part of its practice to protecting elderly residents of nursing homes, assisted living facilities, and personal care homes across Georgia and South Carolina.

The firm is recognized by Best Lawyers, has been named to the Georgia Super Lawyers Top 100, and is Martindale-Hubbell AV rated. It takes on substantial cases involving overlapping medical, scientific, and legal questions, and it has the financial resources to see those cases through. Consultations are free, and the firm will meet families at home or at any location that is convenient for them.

Suthers & Harper is led by a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and brings more than 42 years of trial experience to nursing home litigation across Georgia and South Carolina. The firm is Martindale-Hubbell AV rated and has been named to the Georgia Super Lawyers Top 100, and it offers free consultations to families considering a nursing home claim.

Related Practice Areas

• The firm’s overview of nursing home neglect claims in Georgia explains how understaffing and poor care planning lead to resident harm.
• Bed sore and pressure sore litigation addresses wounds that develop when residents are not repositioned or monitored.
• Falls and fracture cases cover injuries tied to inadequate supervision and unsafe conditions.
• Malnutrition and dehydration claims involve residents who do not receive adequate food or fluids.
• Nursing home wrongful death cases arise when neglect or abuse contributes to a resident’s death.

Talk to a Georgia Nursing Home Abuse Attorney

Suthers & Harper represents families pursuing nursing home abuse and neglect claims in Savannah, Pooler, Brunswick, Hinesville, Richmond Hill, Statesboro, and communities throughout coastal and southeast Georgia. The firm was among the first in the country to try a nursing home abuse case to verdict and obtain punitive damages, and it offers free, no-obligation consultations at a family’s home or any convenient location. Call 800.320.2384 or contact the firm online to discuss a Georgia nursing home case.