By Judge Irv Condon
We will each be faced with the loss of a loved one. What may come with the loss will be the responsibility to manage that loved one’s estate. This is called estate administration, and it takes place in your county’s Probate Court. As Judge of Probate for Charleston County, I join my fellow Probate Court judges in ensuring that we will do all we can to make this process as tolerable as possible.
Let me begin by explaining the estate administration process. Everything you own at the time of your death is generally considered to be part of your estate: house, land, vehicle, bank accounts, stocks, bonds, CDs, artwork, furniture, jewelry – anything you own at time of your demise. When your assets are solely in your name and not in a trust or is not designated to a beneficiary, then your heir(s) must go to Probate Court to be authorized to access, manage, and transfer them. Probate Court is a government office and its employees are there to help you through this most difficult time.
There are three types of estate administration, as seen in the graph: summary proceeding, normal administration, and contested.
ESTATE ADMINISTRATION
- Summary Proceeding:
- Less than $25,000 in personal property and no real estate;
- Open and close 30 days after a person has passed
- Normal Administration:
- Majority of our probate cases;
- Usually takes 9 to 10 months as our creditor’s period is 8 months
- Contested:
- Fewer cases;
- Notice and hearings each step of the way
When a person dies with no house or land within their estate; instead, they have personal property totaling less than $25000, Probate Court can help the family by way of a summary proceeding. During this process, Probate Court issues an Order authorizing the transfer of the personal property (e.g., car, boat, bank account) to the heir(s) at law. And the file is immediately closed.
Normal administration is when there is real estate in the decedent’s name, and/or the person died owning personal property that totals more than $25,000. Probate Court issues to the qualified applicant Certificates of Appointment that name them the estate’s Personal Representative. The Personal Representative is considered the manager of the estate and responsible for addressing debts, filing taxes, and filing the requisite forms due to Probate Court. These forms include proof that you notified the interested parties that the estate exists; the Inventory, on which one lists estate assets and their values; the deed of distribution, which serves as transfer of real estate ownership from the decedent to the devisees; the accounting, which must show how the estate’s monies were disbursed; and, the application for settlement, which is the declaration that all estate matters are complete and that the Personal Representative seeks discharge from their role and to have the case closed. Normal administration takes up to one year.
The third type of estate administration is contested. This takes place when a party wants a hearing and is asking the court to decide on the matter: who shall be appointed the estate’s Personal Representative? if a Will is valid? who are the heirs? Notices are sent, a judge hears all sides in court and issues an Order.
For each type of estate administration, if the decedent had executed a Last Will and Testament, the original must filed in Probate Court within 30 days from date of death. For each type of estate administration, it is recommended that you hire a lawyer to assist you. If you do not know one, it is good to ask family and friends. There is also a website – www.martindale.com – a peer review of attorneys. The South Carolina Bar has attorney referral services. You may call them at 1.800.799.6653. You may also ask them for their Pro Bono, or free legal services, to see if you qualify for such help if you cannot afford a lawyer. Another source is South Carolina Legal Services, their website is www.sclegal.org. And In Charleston, there is Charleston Legal Access, which charges legal fees on a sliding scale, based on your income. Their website: www.charlestonlegalaccess.org.
As Judge of Charleston County Probate Court, I conduct free workshops on estate administration, both virtually and in person. Go to ccprobate.charlestoncounty.org to register to attend. And I will go to your civic group or church to speak and answer questions. Call 843.666.4701 to schedule a workshop.
And you can call me, I will be glad to assist you. My office number is 843.958.5193 and my mobile is 843.817.2039. My email is irvcondon@charlestoncounty.org.
