Frost First. · Before you sign, settle, or answer questions — call us.(843) 419-6653
Frost Law GroupSummerville, SC(843) 419-6653
Estate planning · Charleston County

Estate Planning Attorney Serving Charleston, SC

Downtown, Mount Pleasant, West Ashley, James Island, Johns Island and North Charleston families work with us on plans written for South Carolina law and for the Charleston County court that will eventually read them.

Schedule a consultation(843) 419-6653
The short answer

Frost Law Group prepares wills, revocable living trusts, durable and health care powers of attorney and living wills for families throughout Charleston County. Our office is in Summerville, about thirty minutes from downtown Charleston on I-26, and we meet by phone or video when that is easier. Tara Frost served as a Dorchester County Associate Probate Judge; she drafts every plan with the Charleston County Probate Court in mind, because that is where a Charleston will is eventually proved.

What a Charleston estate plan has to handle

  • Coastal real estate. A primary home on James Island, a rental in North Charleston, a second home on Isle of Palms: each parcel titled in your own name goes through probate, and the estate fee is charged on the inventory value (S.C. Code § 8-21-770: $95 plus 0.15 percent of the value between $100,000 and $600,000, and 0.25 percent above that). A revocable living trust funded with deeds recorded at the Charleston County Register of Deeds keeps that property out of the court entirely.
  • Powers of attorney that will actually work. Under the Uniform Power of Attorney Act a financial power of attorney must be recorded like a deed in the county where you live before your agent can act after you are incapacitated. For Charleston County residents that is the Register of Deeds at 101 Meeting Street. We prepare the document in recordable form and record it.
  • New residents. A will validly signed in another state is generally valid here, but powers of attorney, health care documents and trust funding rarely survive the move intact, and South Carolina’s intestacy rules differ from most states’. Retirees arriving in Mount Pleasant and West Ashley make up a large share of our plan reviews.
  • Blended families. Second marriages are common in a retirement destination. Without a plan, a surviving spouse takes half the estate when there are children from a prior marriage, and the elective share lets a spouse claim one-third regardless of the will. Our blended-family planning page explains the trust structures that provide for both.
  • Business owners. Restaurants, contractors, medical practices and short-term rental businesses need succession terms that keep the business operating the week after a death.
  • Military families. Joint Base Charleston households have survivor benefits, SGLI designations and frequent moves that a plan must account for; Jack’s fourteen years in law enforcement give him a feel for first-responder and military benefits in particular.

What we prepare

How it works from Charleston

  1. A conversation. By phone, by video, or at our office at 128 Linwood Lane in Summerville, about thirty minutes from Broad Street and twenty from Park Circle. You leave with a recommendation and a flat-fee quote.
  2. Drafting. We draft and send a plain-English summary of what each document does. Changes are part of the price.
  3. Signing. South Carolina requires two witnesses and a notary for a will to be self-proved and for a power of attorney to be recordable. We handle the signing at our office, or we can arrange a signing closer to you.
  4. Recording and funding. Deeds to a trust and powers of attorney are recorded at the Charleston County Register of Deeds. We give you a funding checklist and letters for your financial institutions.

The Charleston County Probate Court, briefly

Charleston County estates are opened at the Probate Court’s Estate Division on the third floor of the Historic Courthouse at 84 Broad Street, which accepts filings electronically through its EZ-Filing system and offers free estate workshops. Our guide to the Charleston County Probate Court walks through fees, forms and timelines, and our Charleston probate page explains how we handle estates there. The best plan is the one that keeps your family out of that building, or gets them through it in a single visit.

Planning from Charleston County?

Call us. We will tell you what your family needs, what it costs, and whether a trust is worth it for your property.

Schedule a consultation(843) 419-6653

Questions people ask

Do I have to come to Summerville to sign?

No. We meet by phone or video and arrange signings with the witnesses and notary South Carolina requires. Most Charleston clients come once, for the signing, and many find the drive from Mount Pleasant or West Ashley shorter than they expected.

Where is a Charleston County power of attorney recorded?

At the Charleston County Register of Deeds, 101 Meeting Street, Charleston. Recording is required before an agent may act after the principal becomes incapacitated, and we recommend doing it at signing.

Does a trust avoid Charleston County probate?

Yes, for everything titled in the trust. Real estate must be deeded to the trust and recorded; accounts must be retitled or given beneficiary designations. Anything left in your own name still goes through the Probate Court, which is why funding matters as much as drafting.

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