Greenville Estate Planning Attorney
Greenville estate planning covers wills, trusts, powers of attorney, probate and the long-term-care questions that arrive with them. The North Street office handles the plan and the funding, and the probate that follows.
Greenville families often hold a home, a retirement account and a business or professional practice built over a career. An estate plan has to account for all three, and for the possibility that the owner cannot manage them for a period before death. A will alone does not answer that question; a durable power of attorney and a funded trust may.
The work starts with the family and the property, not with a document. A simple estate may need a will, a power of attorney, a health care power of attorney and a living will. A more complex one may need a revocable trust, a special needs trust, a business succession plan or a charitable gift. The first meeting identifies which of those actually applies.
Estate planning and probate in Greenville County
Greenville County probate is handled by the Greenville County Probate Court. A South Carolina will generally requires two witnesses. The personal representative collects the estate, pays valid debts and taxes, and distributes the remaining property under the will or under the South Carolina intestacy rules.
The office is at 109 E. North Street. It serves Greenville, Greer, Simpsonville, Mauldin, Travelers Rest and the surrounding Upstate communities, and it handles both the planning side and the probate administration that follows.
How South Carolina handles estate planning and probate
South Carolina estate planning starts with a will, a trust where it fits, a durable power of attorney, a health care power of attorney and a living will. The plan has to account for South Carolina probate, the client’s county and any property in another state.
Probate is handled by the probate court in the county where the decedent lived. A will generally requires two witnesses. The personal representative collects the estate, pays valid debts and taxes, and distributes the remaining property under the will or the South Carolina intestacy rules.
A revocable trust can keep property out of probate, but only when the assets are retitled into the trust. Irrevocable trusts, special needs trusts and charitable trusts each solve a different problem, and the tax and long-term care consequences should be reviewed before signing.
What to bring to a first meeting
- Your current will, trusts and powers of attorney.
- Deeds to real property and recent statements for accounts, retirement plans and insurance.
- The names of the people you want as executor, trustee and agents.
- Information about a prior marriage, children from a prior relationship, or a beneficiary with special needs.
- Any business ownership documents or buy-sell agreements.
Frequently asked questions
Not always. A will may be enough for a simple estate. A trust can help with probate avoidance, incapacity, a blended family, a special needs beneficiary or a business interest, but only when the assets are actually transferred into it.
Property passes under the South Carolina intestacy rules to the spouse, children and other relatives in a fixed order. A will lets you choose the people and organizations that receive the property instead.
Some property passes outside probate through a trust, beneficiary designations or joint ownership. The plan has to coordinate those methods; a will alone does not avoid probate.
Your current will and trusts, deeds, account and retirement statements, insurance policies and the names of the people you want as personal representative, trustee and agents.
Last updated November 2026. General information, not legal advice.