Houston County voters will decide if probate judge should be licensed attorney

Currently Alabama does not require probate judges to have a law license, but some counties have proposed and passed local statutes with the additional requirement.

Houston County Probate Judge Patrick Davenport, graduate of the Cumberland School of Law at Samford University, recommended adding the amendment with the prerequisite to local ballots in February 2019 and reiterated his support during a press conference this month.

Davenport said he often rules on significant matters, including multimillion-dollar estates and the commitment of the mentally ill.

“It’s critically important in my opinion that the judge be qualified to hear those cases,” he said.

Because of the Dothan-Houston County area’s medical and economic draw, many come to the area to seek medical and psychiatric treatment. Davenport said some of those individuals end up involuntarily detained at Southeast Health’s psychiatric wing.

The law provides due process before a judge within a certain number of days of their detainment. In each of those cases, there are lawyers representing the petitioner and the person being committed.

“In those cases, some 800 a year in Houston County, there are lawyers making legal arguments as it relates to the rules of civil procedure, the rules of evidence, and what I have found over time is that it is critically influent that the judge be qualified to understand the substantive law as well as the procedural law to protect that individual’s rights,” Davenport said.

Cases involving large estates also come through the probate judge’s court. In district court, any amount in controversy over $20,000 would have to be filed in circuit court. However, judges in probate court might see a case involving assets in excess of $1 million.

“It’s only fair and just for the parties that they have a judge that is qualified to serve,” Davenport said. “I’m not a young guy anymore. I won’t be here forever. I’m hoping to see that we set in place a system that is good for our community.”

Davenport began his second six-year term in office after running unopposed in 2018. While the request – if approved – would thin the potential pool of opponents, Davenport said that did not motivate him to make the request.

“It is not my intent to do this out of self-preservation,” he said. “I think it’s why I didn’t pursue it in my first term. (The request is) a growing trend. More than a third of the counties have lawyers as probate judges.”

If area voters agree with Davenport, future probate judges will be required to be licensed attorneys.