Garner v. Redwine, 309 Ga. App. 158

Elizabeth Redwine Garner sought a declaratory judgment regarding the third amendment to her father's revocable trust, specifically about the contents of his personal residence.
The trustee filed a competing declaratory judgment petition and sought to resign due to health issues; a settlement with the Redwines followed.
The settlement required the Redwines to hold the personal contents in trust and not distribute until resolution of Garner's civil action.
A temporary restraining order and injunction preserved the status quo regarding the personal contents of the home.
The third amendment provides that the trust becomes irrevocable at death and contains a specific bequest structure (7.1.1) and a trust remainder (7.2), with Garner's share including the personal contents if she elects to receive them and the contents' value deducted from her share.
At death, the trust was over $30 million, but assets were insufficient to fund the $8 million specific bequest plus taxes and administration.

Issue	Plaintiff's Argument	Defendant's Argument	Held
Whether Garner has a declaratory-judgment right to the personal contents	Garner seeks guidance on her rights to the contents.	Redwines contend settlement/disposition moots the issue.	Court held declaratory-judgment jurisdiction exists; status quo preserved.
Whether trustee was a necessary party to Garner's declaratory action	Trustee omission should not bar review since no ruling on joinder occurred.	Trustee should have been joined as a necessary party.	No reversible error; no ruling below on joinder to review.
Whether Garner is precluded by a consent decree from contesting the amendment's meaning	Consent decree bars any challenge to the third amendment.	Consent decree precludes only contesting validity, not construction.	Consent decree does not bar Garner from seeking guidance on interpretation.
Whether the language creates a specific gift to Garner or renders it general for abatement purposes	The specific instruction to distribute the contents to Garner makes it a specific bequest.	Even with a stated deduction, the gift could be general if intended as a residue.	Language shows Garner's entitlement to the personal contents as a specific bequest, not a general legacy.
Whether the trust had funds to satisfy the $8 million bequest, taxes, and expenses	Sufficient funds exist to fund the specific bequests before remainder.	There were insufficient funds to meet all obligations.	Case A10A1694 deemed moot after reversal in A10A1693.

Henderson v. First National Bank of Rome, 189 Ga. 175 (1939) (specific devise interpreted by language and intention; not rendered general by remainder)
Sinclair v. Sinclair, 284 Ga. 500 (2008) (liberal construction of declaratory judgments to resolve rights in estate administration)