Cravens v. Slaughter, 2026 WL 2828652 (Ga. Sept. 22, 2026). The Supreme Court of Georgia (Bethel, J.; all Justices concur, except Peterson, C.J., disqualified) vacates and remands a decision treating a UM settlement as proof that plaintiff had already settled his liability claims. Plaintiff settled with his UM carrier while disputing whether an earlier liability settlement had formed. Id. at **1–2. The Court held that precedent requiring exhaustion of available liability coverage before recovering UM benefits in litigation does not prevent voluntary settlement of a UM claim before the liability claim is settled. No statute imposes that restriction, and parties remain free to contract. Id. at **5–6. The Court did not decide whether an enforceable liability settlement existed, leaving that question for reconsideration on remand. Id. at *6.
