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Buchananv.Hannon

CourtCourt of Appeals of Georgia
Docket No.A22A1650
DecidedJanuary 24, 2023
Reporter366 Ga. App. 769; 883 S.E.2d 439; 2023 Ga. App. LEXIS 31; 2023 WL 369325
JudgesRickman, C.J.; Doyle, P.J.; Phipps, S.A.J.
Tags
CivilProbateWill ConstructionTestator IntentSpecific DeviseSummary JudgmentDeclaratory Judgment
Case Summary

Gloster Buchanan’s will gave his home first to his wife if she survived him, then to daughter Carol if she did not, and to Carol and niece Hannon if “she” did not survive. After the wife died before Gloster but Carol survived, Hannon sought a share. The trial court read both instances of “she” as the wife, found irreconcilable bequests, and granted Hannon summary judgment. The Court of Appeals reversed, holding that the will must be read as a whole and its provisions harmonized where possible. The later “she” refers to Carol, named immediately before it, so that clause applies only if Carol predeceased Gloster. The earlier clause therefore gave Carol the home when the wife predeceased him and Carol survived, consistent with intestate succession to Gloster’s only surviving child absent clear contrary intent. Because Carol survived Gloster, she alone inherited. The court left unresolved any ambiguity in the later clause that would matter only if Carol had died first; it reversed and remanded with direction to enter summary judgment for Carol.

Opinion

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