Contact the Public Information Officer
Any questions related to media coverage or releases, please contact:
Kathleen Joyner, Public Information Officer
Supreme Court of Georgia
Nathan Deal Judicial Center
330 Capitol Avenue, S.E.
1st Floor, Suite 1100
Atlanta, Georgia 30334
Phone: (404) 651-9385
Please note that Court staff cannot interpret the law or decisions of this Court, provide legal advice, recommend an attorney, or bring to the Justices’ attention your concerns about a particular case pending before the Court.
Request to Broadcast, Televise, Record or Photograph Session
The undersigned media representative requests permission on behalf of the below-referenced news organization to broadcast, televise, record or photograph all or a portion of the session of the Supreme Court on the date referenced below. This request is made pursuant to the Media Rules contained within the Rules of the Supreme Court of the State of Georgia, which states: “No more than 4 still photographers and 4 television cameras will be permitted in the courtroom for coverage at any time while a proceeding is in session. However, the Court will allow all photographers and television stations to pool or divide the time, so that all will be allowed to participate.” Please contact the Public Information Officer with your request.
Supreme Court Rule XIV. Media Rules
Rule 75. Proceedings in the Supreme Court may be broadcast by television and radio, recorded electronically, and photographed by still news photographers, if in compliance with the provisions of this plan and the Code of Judicial Conduct.
Rule 76. No broadcasting, recording, or photographing shall distract from the dignity of the Court proceedings.
Rule 77. No more than 4 still photographers and 4 television cameras will be permitted in the courtroom for coverage at any time while a proceeding is in session. However, the Court will allow all photographers and television stations to pool or divide the time, so that all will be allowed to participate. The positioning and removal of cameras shall be done only when the Court is in recess. Any pooling arrangements among those seeking to provide camera coverage shall be the sole responsibility of media persons. Neither the Clerk nor the Public Information Officer is responsible for resolving disputes regarding the same.
Rule 78. The Court, upon request, will permit persons to obtain audio from the Court’s public address system on a first-come, first-served basis.
Rule 79. Persons desiring to cover a proceeding must furnish their own equipment and shall be responsible for it.
Rule 80. All television cameras are restricted to the alcove of the Courtroom. Television cameras or still cameras which produce distracting noise or sound may not be used.
Rule 81. During sessions of the Court, still news photographers may sit anywhere in the courtroom designated for use by the public, and may take pictures. However, if they wish to take pictures while standing they must do so from behind the back rows of spectator seats or from the alcove. No flashbulbs or noisy motor drives or battery-operated film advances may be used in the courtroom.
Rule 82. During the time the Court is in session, television personnel will be limited in their movements to the alcove area of the courtroom. They and still news photographers will be permitted to enter and leave the courtroom through the back doors of the alcove into the lawyer’s lounge.
Rule 83. All persons covering a hearing or event will remain in the areas designated by the Court and will avoid activity that might disrupt the proceedings.
Rule 84. This plan shall not affect the coverage of any judicial proceeding by a news reporter or other person who is not using a camera, broadcast, or recording device but who is taking notes or making sketches.
Rule 85. Attorneys appearing before the Supreme Court may not give interviews in the courtroom or in the Judicial Building, and media representatives shall not seek interviews in the courtroom or in the Judicial Building, without permission of the Court.
Rule 86. All media representatives who cover a judicial proceeding are subject to this plan and thereby agree to observe the rules and objectives set out herein.
Rule 87. In the event that the Court holds judicial sessions at places other than in the courtroom of the Judicial Building in Atlanta, the spirit of this plan shall be followed to the extent possible.
Rule 88. The restrictions under this plan are not to be applied to the coverage of ceremonial or non-judicial proceedings.
Rule 89. The Supreme Court reserves the right in any particular proceeding to modify by court order any of the above rules and provisions, whether on its own motion or on the written request of any member of the media affected by the rules and provisions.
Rule 90. The Supreme Court shall retain the exclusive authority to limit, restrict, prohibit, and terminate the photographing, recording, and broadcasting of any judicial session.