GA Law Group represents people seeking federal post-conviction relief in Georgia. We handle habeas petitions under 28 U.S.C. § 2254 challenging state convictions, motions under 28 U.S.C. § 2255 challenging federal convictions and sentences, and appeals from both to the Eleventh Circuit.
Federal post-conviction review is the last broad opportunity to challenge a conviction or sentence. It is also governed by some of the most technical rules in American law. The Antiterrorism and Effective Death Penalty Act of 1996 (AEDPA) imposes a one-year limitations period, requires state prisoners to exhaust their claims in state court first, and directs federal courts to defer heavily to state-court decisions. Strong claims are lost every year to timing and procedure. Understanding those rules early is the difference between a petition that is heard and one that is dismissed.
Georgia has three federal judicial districts, and all three are in the Eleventh Circuit:
A § 2254 petition challenging a Georgia conviction may be filed in the district where the petitioner is confined or the district where the conviction was entered. A § 2255 motion is filed in the district court that imposed the federal sentence.
A federal habeas petition generally must be filed within one year of the date the state conviction became final on direct review (28 U.S.C. § 2244(d)). The clock pauses only while a "properly filed" application for state post-conviction relief, such as a Georgia habeas petition, is pending.
Here is the trap: Georgia gives a person convicted of a felony four years to file a state habeas petition, but the federal one-year clock starts when the direct appeal ends, not when state habeas is filed. Every month between the end of the direct appeal and the filing of a state habeas petition counts against the federal year. A person who waits three years to file a timely Georgia habeas petition may find that their federal deadline expired long before. Planning the state and federal cases together, from the start, protects both.
The limitations period can begin later in some situations, for example when the facts supporting a claim could not have been discovered earlier through due diligence, or when the U.S. Supreme Court recognizes a new right that applies retroactively. Equitable tolling and a showing of actual innocence can sometimes overcome a missed deadline, but both are narrow.
For § 2255 motions, the one-year period generally runs from the date the federal judgment became final (28 U.S.C. § 2255(f)).
A federal court will generally not grant relief on a claim a state prisoner has not first presented to the state courts through one complete round of review (28 U.S.C. § 2254(b)). For a Georgia prisoner, that ordinarily means raising the claim on direct appeal or in state habeas and, after a state habeas denial, applying to the Supreme Court of Georgia for a certificate of probable cause to appeal. A claim that was not properly raised in state court and can no longer be raised there may be procedurally defaulted, reviewable only by showing cause and prejudice or a fundamental miscarriage of justice.
When a Georgia court has already decided a claim on the merits, a federal court may grant relief only if the state court's decision was contrary to, or an unreasonable application of, clearly established federal law as determined by the U.S. Supreme Court, or was based on an unreasonable determination of the facts (28 U.S.C. § 2254(d)). This is intentionally difficult to satisfy. Effective federal habeas work builds the strongest possible record in state court with that standard in mind.
A § 2255 motion can raise claims that the sentence was imposed in violation of the Constitution or federal law, that the court lacked jurisdiction, or that the sentence exceeds the maximum the law allows. Ineffective assistance of counsel is the most common § 2255 claim, including failure to file a requested appeal, failure to investigate, and incorrect advice about a plea, because those claims usually depend on facts outside the trial record.
A second federal habeas petition or § 2255 motion challenging the same judgment generally cannot be filed in the district court without first obtaining authorization from the court of appeals, which for Georgia cases is the Eleventh Circuit. Authorization is limited to narrow circumstances, such as a new rule of constitutional law made retroactive by the Supreme Court or newly discovered evidence of a specified strength. Because of this rule, the first petition usually needs to include every viable claim.
An appeal from the denial of a § 2254 petition or § 2255 motion requires a certificate of appealability, which is issued only on a substantial showing of the denial of a constitutional right (28 U.S.C. § 2253(c)). The notice of appeal is due within 30 days in a § 2254 case and 60 days in a § 2255 case, where the United States is a party. Our attorneys are admitted to practice before the Eleventh Circuit and handle requests for a certificate of appealability and the appeals that follow. See federal appeals.
Not every path back to court is a habeas case. People serving federal sentences may be able to seek a sentence reduction for extraordinary and compelling reasons, often called compassionate release, after first asking the warden (18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(1)(A)), or a reduction when the Sentencing Commission retroactively lowers the applicable guideline range (18 U.S.C. § 3582(c)(2)).
If your Georgia direct appeal is still pending, or you have not yet filed a state habeas petition, the most important federal work happens in state court. See Georgia criminal appeals and post-conviction relief.
Reviewed by GA Law Group attorneys. Last updated October 12, 2026. This page provides general information about Georgia and federal appellate procedure, not legal advice for your situation. Deadlines are strict and fact-specific. Admission to practice before a court does not imply specialization or certification, and no particular outcome can be guaranteed.
GA Law Group represents people convicted in Georgia courts on motions for new trial, direct appeals to the Court of Appeals of Georgia and the Supreme Court of Georgia, and post-conviction relief through state habeas corpus and related motions.
Learn MoreOur attorneys are admitted to practice before the U.S. Courts of Appeals for the First, Fourth, Seventh, Eighth, Ninth, Tenth, and Eleventh Circuits, where we handle federal criminal and civil appeals from briefing through oral argument and rehearing.
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