Willie E. Garlington v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Company - Case Dismissed

GA Court of Appeals Opinions

Filed March 5th, 2026

Detected March 5th, 2026

Summary

The Court of Appeals of Georgia dismissed the appeal in Willie E. Garlington et al v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Company, docket number A26A1016. The dismissal was based on the finding that the default judgment entered by the trial court was not a final judgment, as it left the issue of equitable relief pending.

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What changed

The Court of Appeals of Georgia has dismissed the appeal in Willie E. Garlington et al v. Deutsche Bank National Trust Company (Docket No. A26A1016). The appellate court found that it lacked jurisdiction because the trial court's default judgment, entered as a sanction for discovery non-compliance, was not a final judgment. The court noted that the default judgment left the issue of equitable relief pending, citing OCGA § 5-6-34(a)(1) and relevant case law regarding final judgments.

This dismissal means the underlying case remains active in the trial court. The defendants, who appealed the default judgment, will need to continue litigating the matter of equitable relief. The appellate court's decision reinforces the principle that appeals can generally only be taken from final rulings that resolve all issues in the case, and that default judgments that do not fully resolve all claims are not immediately appealable.

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March 5, 2026 Get Citation Alerts Download PDF Add Note

WILLIE E. GARLINGTON v. DEUTSCHE BANK NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY

Court of Appeals of Georgia

Citations: None known
Docket Number: A26A1016
Disposition: Dismissed
Opinion
Authorities (2)
Cited By (0)
Summaries (0)
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Disposition

Dismissed

Combined Opinion

Court of Appeals
of the State of Georgia

ATLANTA,____________________
March 05, 2026

The Court of Appeals hereby passes the following order:

A26A1016. WILLIE E. GARLINGTON et al v. DEUTSCHE BANK
NATIONAL TRUST COMPANY.

In or about 2006, Willie E. and Vivian C. Garlington granted Deutsche Bank
National Trust Company (“Deutsche” or the “Bank”) and/or its predecessor in
interest a security deed on certain real property they owned in Rockdale County (the
“Property”). In 2017, the Garlingtons executed an “Affidavit of Recession [sic] and
Cancellation of Security Deed” which purported to nullify that security deed. The
Garlingtons also executed and recorded a warranty deed transferring title to the
Property to themselves, together with Shontae B. Garlington, and Tony L. Ware.
They recorded both documents in the Rockdale County real property records. After
learning of the purported rescission of its security deed and the transfer of the
Property, Deutsche filed the underlying action seeking a declaration that its security
deed remained valid and that it held a valid first-priority interest on the Property, as
well as an order requiring that the real estate records of Rockdale County be amended
to reflect these facts. Following the Defendants’ repeated refusal to comply with
Deutsche’s discovery requests – even when ordered to do so by the trial court – the
Bank moved for sanctions. The trial court granted that motion, struck the Defendants’
answer and counterclaims, and entered a default judgment against Defendants and in
favor of the Bank. Defendants filed this appeal from the trial court’s order. We lack
jurisdiction.
Under OCGA § 5-6-34(a)(1), direct appeals generally may be taken from “[a]ll
final judgments, that is to say, where the case is no longer pending in the court
below[.]” See also Yanes v. Escobar, 362 Ga. App. 896, 897 (870 SE2d 506) (2022)
(“an order is final and appealable when it leaves no issues remaining to be resolved,
constitutes the court’s final ruling on the merits of the action, and leaves the parties
with no further recourse in the trial court”) (punctuation omitted). Here, the default
judgment entered by the trial court is not a final judgment, as it left pending the issue
of what, if any, equitable relief Deutsche is entitled to. See Alexander v. Francis, 369
Ga. App. 580, 587 (2) (894 SE2d 161) (2023) (an entry of default judgment that leaves
the question of damages pending is not a final judgment); Holloway v. McMichael, 151
Ga. App. 802, 802-803 (261 SE2d 747) (1979) (an entry of default judgment as to
liability only is not subject to a direct appeal).
Given that the case remains pending below, Defendants were required to follow
the interlocutory appeal procedures set forth in OCGA § 5-6-34(b) to obtain
immediate review of the trial court’s order. See Islamkhan v. Khan, 299 Ga. 548, 551
(2) (787 SE2d 731) (2016). Defendants’ failure to follow these procedures, which
include obtaining a certificate of immediate review from the trial court, deprives us of
jurisdiction over this appeal. In re Bruni, 369 Ga. App. 488, 493(8) (893 SE2d 862)
(2023) (“The jurisdiction of an appellate court to consider an appeal depends upon
whether the appeal is taken in substantial compliance with the rules of appellate
procedure prescribing the conditions under which the judgment of the trial court may
be considered appealable.”) (citation and punctuation omitted). Accordingly, this
appeal is hereby DISMISSED.

Court of Appeals of the State of Georgia
Clerk’s Office, Atlanta,____________________
03/05/2026
I certify that the above is a true extract from
the minutes of the Court of Appeals of Georgia.
Witness my signature and the seal of said court
hereto affixed the day and year last above written.

, Clerk.