This is the second part of a two-part post on who has priority to serve as Personal Representative of your estate.
When people pass away without wills, the determination of who can be appointed as their Personal Representative (P.R. for short) can get sticky. Here are some of the most common issues that arise.
Minor Children – If the decedent is not legally married at death (whether by divorce, death or perhaps they had the common sense never to get married in the first place), their children have the right to serve as P.R. But, what if their children are minors? Obviously, a minor is not “fit” to serve (minimum age is 18) and therefore S.C. Probate Code determines who is next in line. Often times in these situations, people assume that it would be the decedent’s parents; however, that is not the case.
In South Carolina, if you leave behind no will and have minor children before YOUR parents are entitled to serve, the appointment will go to THEIR other parent or guardian. That’s right, your ex-spouse (or baby mama as the case may be) will suddenly be in charge of everything you own. And, it doesn’t matter that they have told 100 people they hate you or that they took you to the cleaners in family court, unless it can be shown that they are unfit to serve due to criminal history, incarceration, incapacity, etc. then they get the job. The bottom line is that since you didn’t choose someone in your will, the law assumes that the best person to serve is the legal guardian of your primary heir. This scenario gets even more entertaining when you have children with more than one person so that the court must now referee between the two. Enter Jerry Springer . . .
Separation – Because South Carolina does not have “no-fault” divorce, many couples have to live separated for 1 year in order to qualify for a divorce. To avoid expenses and complications, many of them don’t part ways through legal documentation and instead simply “split up.” While this may save you money in family court, the consequences can be disastrous in probate court. S.C. Probate Code is clear in Section 62-2-802 what is required before a spouse will lose their entitlement to be considered a “spouse.”
Essentially, one of the following has to have occurred:
divorce or annulment. And, it isn’t even enough for a couple to “think” they are divorced. The Judge has to actually have signed the decree. In a landmark case titled Hatchell-Freeman v. Freeman, a wife was actually entitled to serve as P.R. and entitled to receive a share of the estate even though they had attended the final hearing on their divorce (simply because the Judge had not signed the decree).
A decree of separate maintenance or property settlement agreement acknowledged by the court which terminates these rights.
Adultery, abandonment or other acts of the spouse are not relevant to the Probate Court under these sections. So, the bottom line is that if you find yourself in this situation you need legal help and a properly drafted will to ensure your ex isn’t in control against your wishes.
Common-Law Marriage – We will discuss common law marriage in greater detail in a future post but for purposes of this discussion, just know that common law marriage must be affirmatively proven in the court and until that time the question of who has priority to serve as the Personal Representative may be difficult to answer. Because a spouse has priority to serve, the question is – who serves while it is determined whether or not someone is the spouse? In this case, the court may rely on a Special Administrator to handle the estate until the marriage issue can be resolved. Or, in a perfect world, the potential spouse and other heirs would agree by consent as to who will serve in the interim.
There is no shortage of court hearing to determine who will serve as Personal Representative. And, even after the appropriate person is appointed, parties may find themselves litigating whether or not that person is doing the job properly. In the end, the only way to protect your assets from these disputes is to make these choices before you go!