Opinion
A24D0373
07-02-2024
IN RE: ESTATE OF MABLE JOHNSON REESE, DECEASED.
The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:
In this probate matter, Donald E. Reese, Sr., filed a petition for review in superior court, seeking review of a probate court order removing him as the executor of an estate. The superior court dismissed Reese's petition for review as untimely on April 4, 2024. Reese filed a motion for reconsideration on April 16, 2024, which the trial court denied on May 8, 2024. On June 8, 2024, Reese filed an application with this Court for discretionary review. We, however, lack jurisdiction because the application is untimely
To be timely, a discretionary application must be filed within 30 days of entry of the order sought to be appealed. OCGA § 5-6-35 (d). The requirements of OCGA § 5-6-35 are jurisdictional, and this Court cannot accept an application for appeal not made in compliance therewith. Boyle v. State, 190 Ga.App. 734, 734 (380 S.E.2d 57) (1989). Reese's application was filed 65 days after the entry of the April 4, 2024 order dismissing his petition for review, and is therefore untimely.
Although Reese filed a motion for reconsideration within 30 days of the entry of the April 4, 2024 order, the filing of a motion for reconsideration does not extend the time for filing a discretionary application for appeal, and the denial of a motion for reconsideration of an appealable order or judgment is not itself appealable. Wright v. Wright, 367 Ga.App. 15, 17, n.2 (884 S.E.2d 610) (2023); Bell v. Cohran, 244 Ga.App. 510, 511 (536 S.E.2d 187) (2000). Even if the order resolving the motion for reconsideration was appealable, Reese filed his application 31 days after the May 8, 2024 order which denied his motion for reconsideration.
Accordingly, this application is hereby DISMISSED.