A lessor shall permit the person named in a court order for the purpose, or if no order has been served upon the lessor, the spouse, a parent, an adult descendant or a person named as an executor in a copy of a purported will produced by him, to open and examine the contents of a safe deposit box leased by a decedent, or any documents delivered by a decedent for safekeeping, in the presence of an officer, manager, or assistant manager of the lessor; and the lessor, if so requested by such person, must deliver:

(1) Any writing purporting to be a will of the decedent to the executor, if one be therein named, otherwise to the court having jurisdiction of the decedent’s estate;

Terms Used In South Carolina Code 34-19-50

  • Beneficiary: A person who is entitled to receive the benefits or proceeds of a will, trust, insurance policy, retirement plan, annuity, or other contract. Source: OCC
  • Decedent: A deceased person.
  • Deed: The legal instrument used to transfer title in real property from one person to another.
  • Executor: A male person named in a will to carry out the decedent
  • Jurisdiction: (1) The legal authority of a court to hear and decide a case. Concurrent jurisdiction exists when two courts have simultaneous responsibility for the same case. (2) The geographic area over which the court has authority to decide cases.

(2) Any writing purporting to be a deed to a burial plot or to give burial instructions to the person making the request for a search; and

(3) Any document purporting to be an insurance policy on the life of the decedent to the beneficiary named therein.

No other contents shall be removed, pursuant to this section until an executor or administrator qualifies and makes claim to the contents.

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