Preserving Heirs_ Property

SCSJ conducted its fifth wills’ clinic in Tarboro, North Carolina, as part of its efforts to prevent a leading cause of land loss in the South: heirs’ property passing without a will. During the October 21-23 clinic, 20 Edgecombe County residents had 55 end of life documents made free of charge. Many thanks to everyone who made the service possible: SCSJ coordinating attorney Chris Brook, the office of the Edgecombe County Agricultural Extension, and the ten law student volunteers from Carolina and Campbell Law. SCSJ will conduct its next wills’ clinic in Edgecombe County the weekend of February 17-19. www.southerncoalition.org/documents/willsclinicphoto_0.jpg

NOTE: we are having another wills' clinic October 22-23 in Tarboro, NC. Contact SCSJ attorney Chris Brook at (919) 323-3380 for more details. Following other wills' clinics we have held across the state, SCSJ conducted its first wills’ clinic in Spout Springs, North Carolina, as part of its efforts to prevent a leading cause of land loss in the South: heirs’ property passing without a will. During the September 23-25 clinic, 18 Harnett County residents had 54 end of life documents made free of charge. Documents drafted included wills, living wills, health care powers of attorney, and durable powers of attorney. Many thanks to everyone who made the service possible: SCSJ coordinating attorney Chris Brook, the Spout Springs Presbyterian Church, which hosted the clinic, and the ten law student volunteers from Carolina and Campbell Law. Carolina Law second-year student and wills’ clinic volunteer Jean Abreu highlighted the rewards in “assisting clients in securing their property for future generations.”

SCSJ staff attorney Christopher Brook spoke to more than 100 Edgecombe County residents on September 17, 2011 about the challenges associated with heirs’ property. Heirs’ property is land that has been passed down through a family without a will and has played a part in African-American land loss. Speaking at “Come Be Empowered! Family Matters,” sponsored by the Edgecombe County Clerk of Court, Brook outlined the importance of end of life documents to mitigate heirs’ property problems as well as outlining strategies for families with heirs’ property. Brook also publicized SCSJ’s upcoming October 22-23 wills’ clinic in Edgecombe County.

Right: SCSJ interns Cameron Bond and Will Johnson work with an attendee to help prepare end-of-life documents. SCSJ conducted its fourth wills’ clinic in Tarboro, North Carolina, as part of its efforts to prevent a leading cause of land loss in the South: heirs’ property passing without a will. During the July 15-17 clinic, fifteen Edgecombe County residents had forty-six end of life documents made free of charge. Many thanks to everyone who made the service possible: SCSJ coordinating attorney Chris Brook, the office of the Edgecombe County Agricultural Extension, and the ten law student volunteers from Carolina Law and North Carolina Central Law. Carolina Law rising second-year and SCSJ summer legal intern Jean Abreu highlighted the rewards in “assisting clients in securing their property for future generations.”

The Southern Coalition for Social Justice conducted its third wills’ clinic in Tarboro, North Carolina the weekend of February 19-20. During the clinic, twelve Edgecombe and Nash County residents had forty-four end of life documents made free of charge. Many thanks go to everyone who made the service possible: SCSJ coordinating attorney Chris Brook, the office of the Edgecombe County Agricultural Extension, and the ten law student volunteers from Carolina, Central, and Campbell Law. Carolina Law first-year and second time wills’ clinic volunteer D.J. Dore reflected that, “This type of work is exactly why I went to law school. It’s a great feeling to get outside the classroom and do something meaningful.” Pictured left: Central Law Third-year Aishah Casseus and Campbell Law Third-year Paul Zucchino assist Edgecombe County resident Gwendolyn Hooker in the preparation of end of life documents.

Thanks to efforts led by Southern Coalition for Social Justice families with heirs' property can sleep a little more soundly this evening. On January 21, 2011, the North Carolina State Bar Council approved 2009 Formal Ethics Opinion 8. Most significantly, this ethics opinion limits the circumstances in which an attorney for property developers can also serve as a commissioner selling the land in question. This clear conflict of interest can result in one attorney driving a difficult to understand process that results in the loss of property that has been in a family for centuries. “Partition actions are still a danger to families with heirs’ property, which is particularly common in rural African-American families. And, while it cannot solve all problems relating to partition actions, 2009 FEO 8 makes these proceedings a little more equitable for those trying to hang out to their ancestral lands,” said SCSJ staff attorney Chris Brook. Picture: The Freeman family stands on Freeman Beach, a historically black-owned beachfront property located at the north end of Carolina Beach that was the only beach accessible to African Americans in the South during Jim Crow years. SCSJ represents Freeman family heirs in preserving the land from a takeover by a developer.

Woodra Harrell of Tarboro, North Carolina just could not stop raving about her wills’ clinic experience. One of 19 people who received 62 end of life documents on November 13 and November 14, 2010, Mrs. Harrell “would recommend” the Southern Coalition for Social Justice wills’ clinic “to anyone” despite the “daunting subject matter.” “Sometimes when you get something done for free people make you feel that. It was not that atmosphere at all. [SCSJ] cared and made you feel part of the process,” concluded Mrs. Harrell. And we couldn't be happier for that! The Tarboro wills' clinic is SCSJ's third since July. Thanks to our coordinating attorney Becky Jaffe, the Edgecombe County Agricultural extension, 10 UNC and Campbell law student volunteers and the serviced families who all made it possible!

On October 28, 2010, the North Carolina State Bar Ethics Committee unanimously passed 2009 FEO 8, an ethics opinion protecting heirs' property owners in North Carolina. The opinion forbids attorneys from both representing developers seeking to partition heirs' property and serving as the commissioner tasked with selling this family land at auction. When an attorney holds these two roles, developers can purchase the land for cheap and family members' could receive less than market value for their ancestral homes. In practice, the opinion will result in fewer situations where a developers' attorney runs an entire partition proceeding. "This is a huge step towards fairness in heirs' property proceedings here in North Carolina," said SCSJ staff attorney Christopher Brook. SCSJ headed up a coalition in support of 2009 FEO 8 featuring North Carolina Representative Angela Bryant, the North Carolina Advocates for Justice, Land Loss Prevention Project, the North Carolina Justice Center, the UNC Center for Civil Rights, the Heirs' Property Retention Coalition, and Self-Help. The ethics opinion now goes to the North Carolina State Bar Ethics Council for final approval.

What do two SCSJ attorneys, seven law students from UNC and Campbell, and 48 hours in Southport, North Carolina get you? If you were one of 19 participants in SCSJ’s October 15-17 wills’ clinic, you got a total of 56 end-of-life documents to help you effectuate your plans and give you an extra piece of mind that you have helped your family prepare for a life without you. Working with an SCSJ-represented family that owns heirs’ property in the area and its church community, the clinic produced documents ranging from wills to health care powers of attorney, all while enjoying one of the last warm days down at the beach. “These wills clinic are an excellent opportunity to meet community needs, and provide law students with skills in the field of end-of-life planning,” said SCSJ coordinating attorney Becky Jaffe.