Dorchester County Register of Wills speaks to Rotary Club of Cambridge

Posted 8/25/21

CAMBRIDGE -- Dorchester County Register of Wills Terry Wheatley spoke to members of the Rotary Club of Cambridge about some of the responsibilities of her office.

She shared that the Register of …

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Dorchester County Register of Wills speaks to Rotary Club of Cambridge

Posted

CAMBRIDGE -- Dorchester County Register of Wills Terry Wheatley spoke to members of the Rotary Club of Cambridge about some of the responsibilities of her office.

She shared that the Register of Wills is a public office established under the Constitution of Maryland. An elected position, the register may help and advise in preparing forms for administrative probate but are not allowed to give any legal advice.

Mrs. Wheatley said their purpose, working with the Orphan’s Court, is to offer protection to the decedent, heirs, legatees and creditors of the decedent and to the State of Maryland. Her office and the Orphan’s Court work with the settling of everything from simple estates with well written clear wills to matters involving contested estates that are probated by the judges.

She said that one of the questions they are asked most is “Should I make a will?”

She told the Rotarians that a will gives the individual an opportunity to state their wishes for distribution of their assets when they pass away. Mrs. Wheatley said that as long as the Will is a legally written document, the person named as personal representative can follow the decedents wishes.

Their responsibility is to collect assets, pay bills and distribute the estate according to the terms.

Although an elected position, Mrs. Wheatley was appointed to the job November 2020 to finish out the term of office for Doris Lewis who had passed away earlier in the year. Mrs. Wheatley hass worked in the legal field since age 17 when she began working in the law office of Sen. Frederick Malkus.

As a legal secretary and administrative assistant she traveled between Sen. Malkus’s Cambridge and Annapolis offices. In 1999, she began working in the office of the Register of Wills being appointed to the position of Chief Deputy in 2012.

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