P&J Beverage Corp. v. The Bottle Shop, LLC, [Ms. S25G0016, Aug. 12, 2025] __ Ga. __ (2025). The Court (Warren, P.J.; all Justices concur, except McMillian, J., disqualified, and Land, J., not participating) vacates a damages award in favor of The Bottle Shop and holds that its abusive litigation claim fails for lack of statutory notice under OCGA § 51-7-84(a).
The Court explains that OCGA § 51-7-84(a) requires a plaintiff to give written notice identifying the specific “civil proceeding, claim, defense, motion, appeal, civil process, or other position” alleged to be abusive litigation. Ms. **2–3, 12–13. The Bottle Shop’s email, which mentioned a potential claim for “wrongful injunction” but did not identify any proceeding as abusive litigation or reference malice or lack of justification, fails to satisfy that requirement. Ms. **4–6, 15–21.
Although the email discussed a potential damages claim if P&J declined to stay an injunction later reversed on appeal, the Court distinguishes between wrongful injunction and abusive litigation, emphasizing that the former does not require a showing of malice or lack of justification. Ms. **16–18. Because The Bottle Shop never sent the required notice identifying the proceeding as abusive, its statutory claim under OCGA § 51-7-81 fails as a matter of law. Ms. **21–22.