Melican v. Parker

657 S.E.2d 234, 283 Ga. 253, 2008 Fulton County D. Rep. 423, 2008 Ga. LEXIS 139
CourtSupreme Court of Georgia
DecidedFebruary 11, 2008
DocketS08A0006
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 657 S.E.2d 234 (Melican v. Parker) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Supreme Court of Georgia primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Melican v. Parker, 657 S.E.2d 234, 283 Ga. 253, 2008 Fulton County D. Rep. 423, 2008 Ga. LEXIS 139 (Ga. 2008).

Opinion

CARLEY, Justice.

During the last decade of his life, Harvey Strother (Testator) had an extramarital affair with Anne Melican. In that period, he executed codicils to his will on three occasions to provide for Ms. Melican and her son (Propounders). Testator died in January 2004. The will named Sydney Parker as executor and as trustee of a testamentary trust created for Testator’s wife. Propounders petitioned to probate the codicils. However, caveats were filed by Mr. Parker, in his dual capacities as executor and trustee, and one of the Testator’s grandsons, David Strother (Caveators), contending that the codicils were invalid based on a lack of testamentary capacity and undue influence. Propounders filed motions to dismiss Mr. Parker’s caveat and for summary judgment. The probate court denied the two motions, but certified both orders for immediate review. We granted an interlocutory appeal to consider those orders.

[254]*2541. Only those who have some interest in the will or estate which will be affected or concluded by probate have a right to file a caveat. Doughty v. Futch, 219 Ga. 677, 679 (135 SE2d 286) (1964). Essentially the same rule has long existed, “by virtue of statutes or decisions, in practically all the other states. [Cits.]” Johnston v. Willis, 127 A 862, 864 (Md. 1925). See also Anno., 94 ALR2d 1409, § 1 (1964) (“The right to contest a will is generally confined, either by express statutory language, judicial construction of broader statutory language, or by decisional law, to ‘persons interested.’ [Cit.]”). Furthermore, there has been “a healthy trend”

to broaden rather than restrict the definition of those entitled to contest the probate of an alleged will during the period administration of the estate is pending. This trend may well be attributable to the fact that the creation of testamentary trusts is now commonplace in the preparation of wills taking full advantage of laws, rules and regulations governing estate taxes. Liberality as to parties who may contest the probate of an alleged will is an inherited tradition of great antiquity.

State v. Haddock, 140 S2d 631, 636 (Fla. App. 1962), rev’d on other grounds, 149 S2d 552 (Fla. 1962). “Among such parties named in the [Georgia] cases are a purchaser from the heir, or his judgment creditor, an administrator appointed for the testator before discovery of the will, persons claiming under an earlier will, and others. [Cits.]” 2 Daniel F. Hinkel, Pindar’s Ga. Real Estate Law and Procedure § 16-26, p. 96 (6th ed. 2004) (also noting that “[p]ersons not entitled include general creditors of the estate, an adopted child of the testator’s child, and others”).

The question of who has standing to caveat a will has been determined on a case by case basis, the general statement of the rule being that a will may be contested by any person interested in the estate of the deceased, but cannot be contested by strangers. [Cits.] ... [A] person who will be injured by probate of a will, or who will benefit by its not being probated, has an interest in the proceeding so as to provide the necessary standing to caveat.

Lavender v. Wilkins, 237 Ga. 510, 512 (1) (228 SE2d 888) (1976). One of the questions presented in this case is

whether one who, whether named as executor or not, is appointed as an active trustee in a will, has standing to [255]*255contest a later purported will [or codicil] of the same testator. . . . The few cases considering the point are unanimous in the conclusion that one named as a testamentary trustee has standing to contest a later alleged will [or codicil] of the same testator.

Anno., supra. See also Eunice L. Ross & Thomas J. Reed, Will Contests (2nd ed.) § 3:6; 79 AmJur2d Wills § 795. Even those courts which “have denied such right to the executor . . . have made a distinction, in this respect, between an executor on the one hand and a trustee on the other, holding that the latter has standing as a party aggrieved to” caveat or contest a later will or codicil. In re Rogers’ Estate, 83 A2d 268, 274 (II) (N.J. Super. 1951). See also InterFirst Bank of Fort Worth v. Estate of Henderson, 719 SW2d 641, 643 (Tex. App. 1986); O’Leary v. McGuinness, 98 A2d 660, 664 (Conn. 1953); Johnston v. Willis, supra. Thus, such courts have held that, where an entity “as executor did not have sufficient capacity to maintain a will contest, yet in its capacity as trustee under the earlier will it could contest the latter will.” In re Maricich’s Estate, 371 P2d 354, 355 (Mont. 1962). See also Reed v. Home Nat. Bank, 8 NE2d 601 (Mass. 1937).

Although we need not resolve the standing of Parker as executor, we nevertheless recognize that, since a testamentary trustee is “clothed with the title and charged with the management and control of the trust property,” his interest therein “ ‘is held to be of a decidedly more substantial nature than is the interest of an executor in the property of his decedent.’ ” (Emphasis omitted.) In re Maricich’s Estate, supra. See also In re Rogers’Estate, supra at 275 (II); Johnston v. Willis, supra at 865.

A trustee named in an earlier will not only receives his appointment by virtue of the will, if and when it is determined that it is the last will of the decedent, but is bequeathed the legal title to the trust res. In that respect he is in the same position as any legatee.

O’Leary v. McGuinness, supra. The right of a legatee under an earlier will to contest a later one

is necessarily based upon the possible or potential interest created by the earlier will. When an ordinary legatee is thus allowed to appear, it would seem strange to deny a similar right to a trustee named in the earlier will. The potential interest of a trustee is as important and as real as that of a legatee. In fact a trustee is a legatee, and he takes legal title [256]*256as such. If the earlier will is eventually allowed, the trustee will at once become the sole representative before the law of all the beneficiaries of the trust. It is immaterial to the present issue that his interest will then be representative and not personal in character. ... It is enough if each party attempting to appear shows a legitimate potential property interest derivable from the earlier will justifying his presence. [Cit.]

Reed v. Home Nat. Bank, supra at 602 (1). See also In re Rogers’ Estate, supra. Therefore, we follow the general rule that all legatees, trustees, and cestuis que trustent named in an earlier will, “ ‘if they desire to act, are entitled as of right to appear in opposition to the probate of a paper purporting to be a later will’ ” or codicil. State v. Haddock, supra at 637. See also Reed v. Home Nat. Bank, supra.

There is “some intimation” in case law that, where the beneficiaries of the testamentary trust “are not adversely affected by the subsequent will or codicil, as where it merely names an additional executor or trustee, the trustee under the prior will has no such interest or standing as would permit him to contest the subsequent will.” Anno., supra. Where a codicil merely appoints a different trustee, the trustee under the prior will clearly does not have standing to file a caveat, because a “trustee has no pecuniary interest in the estate, his prospective commissions not being considered such an interest under the will.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
657 S.E.2d 234, 283 Ga. 253, 2008 Fulton County D. Rep. 423, 2008 Ga. LEXIS 139, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/melican-v-parker-ga-2008.