South Carolina · Estate & Probate
The South Carolina Wills, Trusts & Estates Guide
Understand South Carolina's will requirements, probate process, trust laws, and essential planning documents like powers of attorney.
2026-2027 Edition · Cited to South Carolina law · Plain language
Paperback · $19.99
Ships in 3 to 5 business days. US shipping is $5.99 for one book or $8.99 for two or more. Damaged or misprinted copies are replaced; no refunds. ISBN 9798905118791.
eBook
Read on your phone, tablet or computer. Buy it here and your download link arrives by email, or get it from Google Play Books.
Audiobook
Buy it here and your download link arrives by email, with a free app to listen in. Digitally narrated.
Add-on: Texas Wills & Powers of Attorney Pack · $39.99
Eleven editable forms that go with this guide, including a will, financial and medical powers of attorney and a living will, with a signing guide. Instant download; Word and PDF.
✓ Free bonus toolkit: register your book after purchase and download checklists, worksheets and a starter template for this topic.
Cited to the statute · Legal information, not legal advice
South Carolina wills, trusts, and estate plans, explained
The two-witness rule, intestate succession, the elective share, living trusts, powers of attorney, and the living will.
ABOUT THIS BOOK
A South Carolina estate plan has to meet the state's own rules, and some of them surprise people who have moved from elsewhere.
The South Carolina Wills, Trusts & Estates Guide explains those rules under the South Carolina Probate Code and the South Carolina Uniform Trust Code. It covers what makes a will valid, including the requirement of two witnesses, why notarization is not required except to make a will self-proving, and why an unwitnessed handwritten (holographic) will is generally not honored.
The guide explains intestate succession, including the rule that a surviving spouse receives one-half of the intestate estate when there are children, and the spouse's elective share of one-third of the probate estate. It also covers:
• Revocable living trusts and how they differ from wills
• Trustee duties, beneficiary rights, decanting, and nonjudicial settlement agreements
• The statutory durable financial power of attorney and the health care power of attorney
• The Declaration of a Desire for a Natural Death, known as a living will
• Pet trusts, creditor claim deadlines, and the absence of a state estate or inheritance tax
Written from two perspectives, the person making a plan and the executor, trustee, or beneficiary, the guide closes with checklists, a glossary, comparison tables, and questions to ask an attorney. Legal information, not legal advice.
WHAT’S INSIDE
- The Foundation: South Carolina's Probate Code and Trust Code
- Dying With a Will (Testate Succession)
- Dying Without a Will (Intestate Succession)
- Trusts: The Revocable Living Trust and Beyond
- Exceptions and Defenses
- Rights of Executor, Trustee or Beneficiary
- Step-by-step procedures from each side, with deadlines at a glance
- 25 real-world questions and answers
- Statute index, key court decisions and official forms
- Toolkit: checklists, comparison tables, glossary and common mistakes to avoid
WHY READERS TRUST THIS GUIDE
Plain language. Cited to the statute. Dated so you know it is current.
Every rule is cited to South Carolina law so you can verify it.
Cited, so you can check it
Every rule names the section of South Carolina law it comes from, so you can read the source yourself.
Plain language, no filler
Written to be read start to finish by someone with no legal training, with worked examples.
Dated and updated
Each guide carries a law-current date and new editions ship when the law changes.
Bonus toolkit
Register your book for this topic’s checklists, worksheets and starter template, as soon as they are ready.
QUESTIONS BEFORE YOU BUY
South Carolina will requirements: what to know before you order.
Straight answers about what the guide is, what it covers and how it reaches you.
Does a will need to be notarized in South Carolina?
No. A will needs the testator's signature and two witnesses. Notarization is used only to add a self-proving affidavit, which can simplify probate. The guide explains both steps.
Can a handwritten will be valid in South Carolina?
Not on its own. South Carolina does not recognize unwitnessed holographic wills; any will needs two witnesses, with a narrow exception for wills valid where signed. The guide explains the rule.
Is this legal advice?
No. It is legal information in plain language, cited to the law, so you understand your options and know what to ask. Reading it creates no attorney-client relationship.
Is it written for South Carolina?
Yes. This guide is written for South Carolina law and cites the South Carolina statutes and rules it relies on. If your case is in another state, choose that state's edition.
KEEP GOING
More guides for South Carolina.
Other titles readers of this guide pick up next.
BOUGHT THIS BOOK?
Register it for the bonus toolkit.
Enter the book number from the inside cover. You get this guide’s bonus download as soon as it is ready and a note when a new edition is ready. About a minute.
PLEASE READ
Legal information, not legal advice. STACKED LEGAL® is a publisher, not a law firm. Buying or reading this book creates no attorney-client relationship and promises no outcome. Laws change; verify current law and talk to a licensed attorney in South Carolina about your situation.
Paperbacks ship in 3 to 5 business days. No refunds; we replace damaged or misprinted copies. eBooks are sold and delivered by Google Play Books and Amazon under their terms. See the Sales, Shipping & License Policy.