Jessica S. Ferguson
AssociateJessica Ferguson is an Associate in Turner Padget's Greenville office, where she is a member of the Estate & Business Planning team.
Upon graduating from the University of South Carolina School of Law, Jessica served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable Amy W. McCulloch, Richland County Probate Court Judge. During this clerkship, Jessica collaborated with Judge McCulloch and Associate Probate Judge Jaqueline Belton to solve complex probate issues, instilling an understanding of and passion for probate law as the foundation of Jessica’s legal career.
Prior to joining Turner Padget, Jessica worked for South Carolina Legal Services, a non-profit law firm with a mission of providing equal access to justice for all. She was quickly promoted from Staff Attorney to Administration of Estates, Lead Attorney, and provided holistic legal services for indigent clients throughout the upstate, ranging from counsel and advice to extended services, with a focus in probate and elder law, including estate planning, administration, and litigation.
Discussing your estate plan can be daunting, and probating a loved one’s estate can be difficult, but Jessica’s holistic approach to providing excellent legal guidance and representation through difficult times provides you with peace of mind.
Jessica strives to provide her clients quality legal services in a comfortable and relaxed atmosphere. She focuses on each client’s individual needs and collaborates with the client to create the best-fitting estate plan.
- Provided peace of mind to clients by preparing their advance directives, such as Wills, Durable Powers of Attorney, and Health Care Powers of Attorney.
- Protected client’s wealth through the creation of Revocable, Irrevocable, Inter Vivos,Testamentary, and Special Needs Trusts.
- Ensued the well-being of clients’ loved ones in Guardianship and Conservatorship actions.
- Guided clients though the opening, administration, and closing of loved ones’ estates, including representing clients in probate litigation issues.
- University of South Carolina School of Law, J.D., 2019
- University of Tennessee, B.A. in Honors Psychology, Double Minor in Philosophy and Neuroscience, 2016, Magna Cum Laude
- South Carolina, 2019
- North Carolina, 2022
- Tennessee, 2023
- South Carolina United States District Court, 2021
Professional or Industry Involvement
- SC House of Delegates, 13th Circuit Delegate, 2022-2024
- Greenville Estate Planning Council, Member, 2022-present
- LGBT+ Chamber of Commerce, Member, 2022-present
- Greenville County Bar, Member, 2021-present
- South Carolina Bar Elder Law Committee, Outreach Co-Chair, 2021 – 2022
- South Carolina Bar Wills Committee, Member, 2021-2022, Co-Chair, 2022-2023
- South Carolina Bar Wellness Committee, Member, 2021- 2022, Co-Chair, 2022-2023
- South Carolina Bar Judicial Qualifications Committee, Member, 2020-2021
Community or Pro Bono Involvement
- The Volunteer Income Tax Assistance (VITA) - The University of South Carolina School of Law - Tax Return Preparer - 2022
- U.S. Masters Swimming- Greenville Splash Chapter- Member- 2021- present
- Greenville Business Magazine's "Legal Elite" in Estate & Trust Litigation, 2024
- Greenville Business Magazine's "Legal Elite" in Trust & Estate Planning, 2024
- 2023 Woman in Business, Greenville Business Magazine, July 2023
- 2023 Legal Elite, Greenville Business Magazine, July 2023
Articles
- Inspiring a Generation of Attorneys to Consider Probate Law, South Carolina Lawyers Weekly
- More than attorneys can add value to estate planning
- The Importance of Well-Drafted Internal Powers of Attorney
- Guardianship And Conservatorship In South Carolina
- Fillauer, J.P., Bolden, J., Jacobson, M., Partlow., B, Benavides, A., Shultz, J. (2019). The Effects of Frustration on Working Memory Capacity. Applied Cognitive Psychology, https://onlinelibrary.wiley.com/doi/abs/10.1002/acp.3587
Presentations & Speaking Engagements
- When there's a will, there's a way: Wills and Advance Directives, Community Foundation of Greenville Podcast, December 2022
- Advance Directives, Office of Research and Organizational Development, Clemson University, October 20, 2022.
- Wills, Trusts, & Estates, Law School for Non-Lawyers, Greenville Technical College, October 4, 2022.
- Created outreach/training content for SCLS’ YouTube:
- How to Open an Estate in South Carolina
- Basic Estate Administration
- Guardianship and Conservatorship
- Guest Speaker at Greenville Technical College’s Paralegal Association, November 17, 2020
- Coordinated and hosted: Julie M. Linton, MD, Leroy Robinson, MD, Amber Flanigan LMSW, MPH, CHES, Gilda CobbHunter, BS, MA, LISW, The State of Healthcare in Rural South Carolina, Panel Discussion, March 20, 2019
- Guest Speaker at USC School of Law’s 1L Orientation Wellness Panel, August 20, 2018
