Zinkhan v. Bruce; Bruce v. Zinkhan

The probate court has exclusive jurisdiction to issue and revoke letters of testamentary guardianship.

Thank you for sharing!

Your article was successfully shared with the contacts you provided.

These cases arise from dueling custody proceedings commenced after George Zinkhan III shot his wife, Marie Zinkhan, and killed himself, leaving their two minor children orphaned. Based on George and Marie’s nomination of Lawrence Chris Zinkhan “Zinkhan”, George’s brother, as the children’s testamentary guardian in their respective wills , an Athens-Clarke probate court issued letters of testamentary guardianship pursuant to OCGA § 29-2-4 b to Zinkhan. Thereafter, Lawrence and Donna Bruce, Marie’s brother and sister-in-law, respectively, filed a petition for custody in McDuffie County, which Zinkhan moved to dismiss for lack of jurisdiction. The superior court denied Zinkhan’s motion and awarded joint legal custody of the children to the Bruces and Zinkhan and physical custody to the Bruces on a temporary basis. In Case No. A10A1458, following our grant of his application for interlocutory appeal, Zinkhan appeals the superior court’s order granting the Bruces’s petition for custody “custody order”. He argues that the superior court lacked subject matter jurisdiction to consider their petition because the probate court had original exclusive jurisdiction to appoint him as the children’s testamentary guardian. In Case No. A10A1508, the Bruces appeal the probate court’s order granting letters of testamentary guardianship to Zinkhan , contending that the probate court failed to consider the best interests of the children prior to appointing Zinkhan. Given the related nature of these appeals, we have consolidated them for disposition.

In Case No. A10A1508, we find that OCGA § 29-2-4 b mandated the issuance of letters of testamentary guardianship to Zinkhan without notice and a hearing. Accordingly, we affirm the probate court’s order. In Case No. A10A1458, we further find that the superior court lacked subject matter jurisdiction over the Bruces’s petition for custody; therefore, we reverse the custody order.

Zinkhan v. Bruce; Bruce v. Zinkhan

The probate court has exclusive jurisdiction to issue and revoke letters of testamentary guardianship.

Share with Email

Thank you for sharing!

Trending Stories

More From ALM

Subscribe to Daily Report