How Does the New Bifurcation Rule Under Georgia’s SB 68 Work?

One of the most strategically significant changes in Georgia’s 2025 tort reform is the right to split a trial into separate phases. Under SB 68, either party in many injury cases can now demand that liability be decided before the jury hears anything about damages, and the trial can even be divided into three phases. This guide explains what bifurcation (and trifurcation) means, the new right under SB 68, the possible phases, the exceptions, and the effect on plaintiffs and defendants.

What Bifurcation (and Trifurcation) Means

Bifurcation means dividing a trial into separate phases so that distinct issues are decided one at a time, rather than all at once. In a traditional single trial, the jury hears all the evidence, liability and damages together, and decides everything. With bifurcation, the trial is split so that, for example, the jury first decides who is at fault before hearing any evidence about the plaintiff’s injuries or damages.

Georgia’s new rule goes a step further, allowing not just two phases but potentially three, sometimes called trifurcation. The idea is to keep evidence relevant to one issue from influencing the jury’s decision on a different issue, particularly to prevent emotionally powerful evidence about injuries from coloring the threshold question of fault.

The New Right Under SB 68 (§ 51-12-15)

Under the new provision, O.C.G.A. § 51-12-15, any party in a bodily injury or wrongful death action can demand a bifurcated trial. The demand must generally be made in writing before the pretrial order is entered, and when a party properly and timely elects bifurcation, the court is generally required to grant it, subject to limited exceptions discussed below.

This is a notable shift because it gives either side, but in practice often the defense, the ability to force a split trial as a matter of right rather than leaving it to the judge’s discretion. The same jury hears all the phases; bifurcation divides the sequence of issues, not the decision-makers. This provision is one of SB 68’s retroactive changes, applying to pending and future cases regardless of when the injury occurred.

The Three Possible Phases

Under the structure, a case can proceed in up to three phases, each limited to evidence relevant to that phase. In the first phase, the jury determines liability and the allocation of fault, who caused the incident and in what proportions, without hearing about the extent of the plaintiff’s injuries or damages. If the jury finds no liability, the case ends there, with no damages phase.

If the jury finds the defendant liable, the second phase addresses compensatory damages, the plaintiff’s medical expenses, lost wages, pain and suffering, and other losses. If punitive damages are also at issue, a third phase addresses those, along with related attorney’s fee determinations. So the sequence runs from fault, to compensatory damages, to punitive damages and fees, with each later phase reached only if the prior one supports continuing. This phased structure is what lets a defendant ask the jury to decide fault in isolation, before the human impact of the injuries is presented.

Exceptions ($150,000 Threshold and Sexual Offense)

The right to bifurcate is not absolute. The statute provides limited exceptions under which a court may deny a bifurcation demand. One applies when the amount in controversy is less than $150,000; in smaller cases, the court need not split the trial. The other applies when the plaintiff was injured by an alleged sexual offense and would likely suffer serious psychological or emotional distress from having to testify in multiple phases.

These exceptions are narrow. In the large category of serious injury and wrongful death cases that exceed the $150,000 threshold and do not involve a sexual offense, neither exception applies, and a timely bifurcation demand will generally be granted. So while the exceptions exist, they do not reach the typical high-value injury case where bifurcation is most often sought.

Effect on Plaintiffs and Defendants

The practical impact of bifurcation falls differently on each side. For defendants, particularly in serious cases, bifurcation can be advantageous: it lets the jury decide fault without first being exposed to sympathetic evidence about the plaintiff’s injuries, which defendants argue leads to a fault determination based on the facts rather than emotion. If the defense prevails on liability in the first phase, the case ends without any damages being awarded.

For plaintiffs, bifurcation can be a meaningful disadvantage. When the jury decides liability in isolation, it does so without the full context of the harm, which plaintiffs argue can make the fault question feel abstract and detached from the real consequences. This means a plaintiff’s liability case must be able to stand on its own, without the persuasive weight of the injury evidence. The shift is significant enough that how a case is prepared and presented may change when bifurcation is in play. Because either party can demand it in qualifying cases, and courts must generally grant a timely demand, bifurcation has become an important strategic consideration in Georgia injury litigation.

Key Takeaways

• Bifurcation splits a trial into separate phases (liability, then damages); SB 68 allows up to three phases (trifurcation), adding a separate punitive-damages phase.
• Under O.C.G.A. § 51-12-15, any party in a bodily injury or wrongful death case can demand bifurcation before the pretrial order, and the court generally must grant a timely demand.
• The phases run from liability and fault, to compensatory damages, to punitive damages and attorney’s fees, with each phase reached only if the prior one supports it.
• Exceptions exist for amounts in controversy under $150,000 and for sexual-offense cases, but they do not reach most large injury and wrongful death cases.

This article provides general information about Georgia law and is not legal advice. Statutes and court decisions change, and how the law applies depends on the specific facts of a situation. For advice about a particular matter, consult a licensed Georgia attorney.