I don't know which is more repulsive: a gang of greedy, sadistic slobs in the legislature, or a tail-tucked public that tolerates being fleeced and kicked around.
Talk about laws that help South Carolina probate attorneys fleece the bereaved. You must present a will to the probate court within 30 days of a decedent's death or be subject to a penalty..
Right. Ya wanna hit the bereaved as shortly as possible after the death of a loved one in order to get the maximum impact of all those complexities self-serving attorneys in the legislature have written into the probate process. Sure to send victims of South Carolina's probate racket scurrying off to a probate attorney, checkbook in hand. Then they can tell everyone about "the horrors of probate," and why folks should pay attorneys to set up trusts.
At first, I thought it was kinda strange that the law has been kept relatively quiet. Then I discovered that nobody has actually been penalized for violating the law, and I realized that the 30-day law is just another effort to make life as miserable as possible for anyone who dares to rely on wills and the taxpayer-funded probate process when they claim an inheritance. Surprising heirs with news that they're already in violation of a probate law has that element of shock value, so cleverly and sadistically applied by South Carolina "lawmakers." Someone needs to drive the point home to these self-serving slobs that bereavement is a permanent injury, has no time limits, and affects every person differently.
The probate/trust racket is what tyranny looks like, and it's one shameful state of affairs for South Carolina.
What YOU can do:
> Spread the word about the probate/trust racket. Most folks don't find out about the attorney-generated horrors of probate until they are struggling through the bereavement process, and shock value is a key part of the effort to browbeat people into hiring a probate attorney.
> If you need help with non-probate matters, avoid using attorneys who advertise that they specialize in probate. Many attorneys refuse to get involved in the probate racket, and one of them told me with a wink, "It's a 'highly specialized' area of law."
> Refuse to be bullied by the attorney-generated horrors of probate into paying attorneys to set up trusts. Probate is financed with tax dollars, and should be an inexpensive, viable alternative to setting up trusts. Executors (now called Personal Representatives) shouldn't need a law degree to probate an inheritance.
> Cut costs by downloading your own estate documents - especially wills - from the Internet. Paying probate attorneys outlandish fees to "draw up a will" is risky business, because attorney-legislators have a vested interest in nullifying wills.
> Last - and what certainly shouldn't be least (but probably is) - send "your representatives" an e-mail expressing your sentiments about the probate/trust racket.
