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FLORENCE, S.C. – When Florence County voters head to the polls on June 12, they will face a choice between Jesse Cartrette Jr. and Emily Jordan to be the Republican Party’s nominee for the position of probate judge.
Cartrette
Cartrette is a Florence native. He attended Francis Marion University and the Charleston School of Law, where he was a member of the first graduating class in 2007.
After graduating from law school, Cartrette clerked for Judge Thomas Russo. Russo has served as an at-large circuit court judge since May 25, 2005. Cartrette formed his own law firm after leaving his clerkship.
Cartrette has also been involved in the Florence County Republican Party. He served in various leadership positions in the party and in its youth organizations. He also worked to elect those seeking political office and re-elect those already elected once regardless of party if he felt the person was a capable representative. He also has served as a board member and currently serves as counsel to the Senior Citizens Association of Florence County.
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“I’ve served this community for 20 years since I was a young man,” Cartrette said.
Cartrette estimates that 60-70 percent of his practice consists of probate law.
He has been a member of the South Carolina Bar since May 27, 2008.
Jordan
Jordan is an Alabama native. She attended the University of Alabama and the Thomas Goode Jones School of Law at Faulkner University in Montgomery, Ala. While in law school she met and fell in love twice: once with her husband, Daniel, a Florence native, and also with probate law after attending her first wills and trusts class.
After graduating from law school, Jordan clerked for Judge D. Craig Brown for over two years. Brown has been a circuit court judge in Florence County since Feb. 3, 2010. Then, she went to work at her husband’s law firm, where she has exclusively focused on probate law.
Running for office, Jordan said, was definitely outside her comfort zone but she does feel comfortable helping her clients and in the probate court.
“Putting myself out there like that is definitely a big step for me but becoming a probate judge has been something I’ve wanted to do since law school,” Jordan added.
Jordan has also been involved and had a number of positions in the Junior League of Florence.
Jordan has been admitted to the South Carolina Bar since Nov. 29, 2011.
The position
Probate judges perform the powers granted to the probate court under Title 62 of the South Carolina Code. Those powers include the administration of trusts and estates, petitions for guardianships or conservatorships, gifts made under the Uniform Gift to Minors Act, marriage licenses, and involuntary commitments. Probate courts may also be involved in wrongful death and survival actions as well as interpreting marital agreements, the determination of paternity, and interpreting common-law marriages.
Probate judges are the only directly elected judges in the Palmetto State. They are elected every four years. Other judges, such as the state supreme court judges, court of appeals judges, circuit court judges and family court judges, are elected by the legislature. Masters-in-equity and magistrates are appointed by the governor with the consent of the Senate.
J. Mumford Scott is the current probate judge in Florence County. He was appointed on Dec. 31, 2013, to fill the unexpired term of Kenneth Eaton, who served as probate judge for 13 years. Scott ran unopposed in 2014. He received 99.32 percent of the votes cast in that election. Scott did not file for re-election in 2018.
Salaries of probate judges are based upon the population of the judge’s county according to the latest census. The latest census, in 2010, indicated that Florence County had a population of over 136,000 people, meaning the base salary of a probate judge in Florence County would be $38,000 per year, as of 1989, plus an annual cost-of-living adjustment provided to state employees. Nothing in the relevant code section, S.C. Code Ann. § 8-21-760, prohibits the county from paying more than the base salary. However, if the county elects to pay more, the probate judge’s salary cannot be reduced during the judge’s term in office.
Scott’s salary is currently $94,535 according to Florence County Finance Director Kevin Yokim. That salary includes a $1,575 supplement from the state. Yokim wasn’t sure whether the salary would be the salary for the new probate judge or if the County Council would need to set a new one.
Qualifications
Cartrette cited his experience serving as a guardian ad litem and as a trained and certified mediator in probate and family court as reasons he is qualified to be probate judge.
“I’ve run the gamut as they say, or the full spectrum as one would say, in probate court with regard to litigation a probate court might hear,” Cartrette said.
Cartrette added that he had a “great rapport” with Scott, the current probate judge, and his staff which he thinks can provide continuity for the people of Florence County.
He added that compassion is required of a probate judge. Cartrette also mentioned serving on the Charleston School of Law’s Honor Council, a student-led disciplinary committee, and winning the Civility Award, the school’s highest honor, while in law school.
Jordan cited her passion for probate law which she’s had since law school, her experience as a law clerk for Brown, and her experience being a leader in the Junior League as her main qualifications for the probate judge position.
"During my interview with him [Brown], I told me that I wanted to be able to really focus on estate planning and probate law and I understood the clerkship would really have very little to do with that but I felt it was very important for me as a starting point to get that experience,” Jordan said. “I got to see firsthand how the roles and responsibilities of a judge is. I got to deal with and watch him interact with individuals.”
Jordan also worked on scheduling, docket matters, and other administrative tasks for Brown, skills she believes she will need as a probate judge.
“I think that my passion, that’s where I’ve chosen to focus my practice entirely is beneficial for me,” Jordan said. “It gives me an advantage. I’m in probate court almost every week gives me an advantage as well because I am familiar with probate court which can be similar and different from the other courts here in Florence.”
Plans if elected
Cartrette also plans to continue to make the probate court accessible to the public but wants to make sure to observe the rules of court. He also believes his previous connections with the County Council would make it easier for him, as probate judge, to obtain the grant money to expedite the process of digitization of the court’s records.
Cartrette also discussed having discussions with the Florence County Bar Association and the general public to receive opinions from those groups about the functioning of the probate court.
Jordan said she would want to digitize the forms, files, and records of the probate court to make the court more user-friendly. She also wants to overhaul the current probate court website to make it more user-friendly. She said that would allow people with questions to find their answers online which, in turn, would make the probate court run more efficiently and effectively.
She discussed having Florence become a part of the mental health court pilot program. The mental health pilot program removes those with mental health issues from other courts and gets them mental help. Jordan believes that this will ultimately make Florence safer as a community.
Vote Cartrette or vote Jordan
“I’ve lived in Florence County all my life with the exception of the time that I had to spend in law school,” Cartrette said. “I have worked in this community fervently and served it and I have loved the people of Florence County and served them diligently in various capacities for the entirety of my adult life. I would be honored to serve as their probate judge if elected.”
“I hope the citizens of Florence County will support and vote for me in the upcoming Republican Primary on June 12 th,” Jordan said via email.
After the election
If neither candidate secures a majority in the primary election, a run-off will occur on June 26. The winner of the primary and, if necessary, a run-off, will face Democrat Rebecca McGill in the Nov. 6 general election.