Probate Law
South Carolina probate attorneys focused on your needs
One of the most important legal issues involving estate law has to do with probate. This is an essential legal process that must be undertaken to verify the last will and testament of someone, often after their death.
Probate law in South Carolina can be a complicated, time-consuming process. And if there any legal challenges that arise along the way, the probate process can sometimes last many months or more than a year.
That's why it's critical that you talk to a South Carolina probate lawyer who thoroughly understands the law and how it applies to your particular circumstances. That's why we want to meet with you as soon as possible at Benjamin R. Matthews and Associates, LLC law firm.
What is probate?
Probate is a legal term used to describe the process of verifying someone's will after their death. The probate process exists in order to legally verify that there are no obstacles to transferring a deceased individual's assets to his or her heirs.
The probate process in South Carolina often takes at least eight months. During that time, the following steps must be taken in order to prevent any legal challenges to the will. These include:
- Notifying creditors of person's death.
- Notifying beneficiaries outlined in last will and testament.
- Locating heirs, recipients of the deceased's assets.
- Naming executor of the will. (This process will take much longer if the deceased did not specify an executor in his or her will.)
- Taking an inventory of the deceased's assets, one of the main jobs of the executor.
- Distributing the deceased's assets to the heirs.
Even if no objections are raised during each step in this process, probate can take months and often requires submitting many, detailed legally-binding documents to various courts, including the South Carolina probate court handling the deceased's probate proceedings. Don't try to tackle this process on your own. Contact our law firm today.
How we can help
Our experienced probate attorneys can help you every step of the way - from filling out forms to representing you in all court proceedings. We can also discuss creating a trust to avoid probate. If you have any questions along the way, you can call us anytime.
We'll never make any important legal decisions without first consulting with you. You decide what happens. We're simply here to help make the probate process goes as smooth as possible. Talk to us today and learn how we can help you.