Reeves v. Gross

Reeves v. Gross

No. 3D23-0856, 2025 WL (Fla. 3d DCA)

District Court of Appeal of Florida, Third District

Relevant Facts

• Garth C. Reeves, Sr., the former publisher of The Miami Times, executed a will on October 4, 2019, at age 100, less than two months before his death

• In 2003, Reeves executed testamentary documents naming his grandson, Garth Basil Reeves, as a major beneficiary

• In January 2015, April 2019, and October 2019, Reeves executed documents disinheriting Basil, explaining that Basil had already received his inheritance during Garth Sr.’s lifetime

• The final will (October 4, 2019) left 95% of the estate to The Integrity Foundation, a charitable entity created in 2016

• Basil filed a petition to revoke the October 4, 2019 testamentary documents, claiming Garth Sr. lacked testamentary capacity

• H.T. Smith, Garth Sr.’s general counsel and longtime attorney, testified he met with Garth Sr. weekly and found him alert and fully understanding of his assets and wishes

• Smith witnessed the October 4, 2019 signing ceremony and confirmed Garth Sr. was of sound mind

• Dr. Marc Agronin, a board-certified geriatric psychiatrist who never examined Garth Sr., reviewed medical records and opined Garth Sr. had suffered from dementia with delirium since at least September 2019

• Garth Sr. was hospitalized September 21-23, 2019 for a cervical injury from a fall and received sedating medications

• After the will was signed, Garth Sr. suffered a stroke on November 11, 2019 and was subsequently diagnosed with dementia

Legal Issues

• Whether material issues of fact existed concerning Garth Sr.’s testamentary capacity that precluded summary judgment

• Whether Basil met the heavy burden of overcoming the presumption of testamentary capacity

• Whether Dr. Agronin’s expert opinion based on medical records was sufficient to raise a triable issue of fact regarding lack of capacity on the specific date of execution

Positions of the Parties

• Basil Reeves (Appellant) contended that material issues of fact existed concerning Garth Sr.’s testamentary capacity based on Dr. Agronin’s expert opinion that Garth Sr. suffered from dementia with delirium from September through his death in November, and therefore lacked capacity to execute a valid will on October 4, 2019

• Oliver Gross (Personal Representative/Appellee) argued that Garth Sr. possessed testamentary capacity through testimony from H.T. Smith and attorney Nostro that Garth Sr. was alert, fully understood the nature of his assets and familial relations, engaged in directed discussions about the will, and comprehended the practical effect of the documents when executing them

Decision of the Court and Reasons

The District Court of Appeal affirmed the trial court’s grant of summary judgment in favor of the personal representative. The court held that Basil failed to meet the heavy burden of overcoming Florida’s presumption of testamentary capacity at the time of execution. Although Dr. Agronin’s opinion established the possibility that Garth Sr. suffered from dementia from September through November 2019, this bare possibility was insufficient to overcome the presumption. The court noted that Florida law recognizes individuals with mental capacity issues may experience lucid moments, and capacity is determined only by the testator’s mental state at the time of execution. The fact that Garth Sr. had signed similar disinheriting documents as far back as 2015, coupled with testimony from credible witnesses present at the October 4 signing that he was alert, attentive, and fully comprehended his assets and wishes, demonstrated he likely experienced lucidity on that date. Dr. Agronin’s reasoning failed to explain why the documented lucid intervals reported by other witnesses could not have occurred on the specific date of execution, and the stroke occurring after the will’s execution did not establish incapacity beforehand.