We're continuing our webinar series with Kathryn Cook DeAngelo, Senior Counsel to our Elder Law practice division.
In her latest video, The Basics of Wills in South Carolina, she moves from general estate planning into the document most people think of first: the will itself.
What Kathryn Covers
Kathryn opens by explaining what a will does: it directs where your property goes after you die, has no effect while you're alive, and can be changed anytime you're mentally competent to do so. From there, she covers:
- The difference between dying with a will and dying without one, and who is legally allowed to make a will in South Carolina
- What belongs in a will, including naming a personal representative (who has no authority until after death and formal appointment by the probate court), naming beneficiaries, and providing for minor or incapacitated beneficiaries through a trust rather than a direct bequest
- Why a will has no authority over healthcare decisions, and why that requires separate documents
- Signing formalities, when a will is filed with the probate court, and why keeping the original in a safe, known location matters
- Whether all a person's assets pass under a will or move through probate, since some assets pass outside it depending on how they're titled
Her closing advice: read the will carefully before signing, confirm every name is spelled correctly, and don't sign anything that doesn't express your wishes exactly and fully.
This is one of several installments in the series. Her previous video, Estate Planning: Getting Your Estate and Affairs in Order, covered the fundamentals of estate planning.
About Kathryn Cook DeAngelo
Kathryn has served as Senior Counsel to our Elder Law practice division since 2021. She's a Certified Elder Law Attorney (CELA), certified by the National Elder Law Foundation (NELF)*, with more than 35 years focused on elder law across North and South Carolina. Before turning to law, she spent 12 years teaching high school.
The National Elder Law Foundation (NELF) is the only national organization accredited by the American Bar Association (ABA) to certify practitioners of elder and special needs law.
If you have questions after watching, our Elder Law team at Collins Family & Elder Law Group is ready to help. Call (704) 289-3250 to schedule a consultation.
