An Evolving Judgeship

The Montgomery County Probate Judgeship was created in 1850 as an elected position with a term of six years.

Originally the duties of the Probate Judge were administrative duties and responsibilities relating to the control of roads, ferries, bridges, and the management of public buildings. The Probate Judge was also responsible for the custody of land records and protected chattels by registration of brands. The first Judge of Probate for Montgomery County was David Campbell who was in office from 1850-1875. Judge Campbell previously served as Probate Judge in 1838 when the office was still a part of the county court system.

The responsibilities of the Probate Judge are far more complex and demanding than they were in the 1850s. Today, the Judge of Probate is one of the primary contacts with local government for many residents of the county. Most citizens of Montgomery County have some type of communication with his office whether through vehicle registration, probating of wills, deed and title searches, adoptions, guardianships, conservatorships, purchasing of marriage or business licenses, or other legal issues addressed through the Court. The Probate Judge is also the Chief Election Official.

History of Probate Court

The court system established in 1819 by the first session of the Alabama legislature was similar to that which had previously existed in the Mississippi Territory. A five-judge county court was required to sit at certain intervals as an orphans’ court to handle both probate and orphans’ business. This court functioned as the chief administrative and legislative body in the county and as an inferior court with limited criminal and civil jurisdiction.

In 1821 the composition of this county court changed to one judge and one clerk. The other judges were assigned to a newly established court of county commissioners. This arrangement provided a certain amount of separation between administrative and judicial functions at the county level. The county court retained the judicial powers of its predecessor, with the county judge exercising the same powers previously held by the chief judge of the original county court. The new commissioners’ court was assigned administrative and legislative functions, such as control over roads, ferries, and bridges, and the management of public buildings. This situation remained unchanged until the middle of the nineteenth century.

In 1850, a probate court was established in each county. The previous positions of judge and clerk were thus consolidated into the office of the judge of probate. Unlike the county judge, who was appointed for a term of six years, the judge of probate was popularly elected for a term of six 4 years. All functions previously held by the county court, except criminal and civil jurisdiction, were transferred to the probate court. The probate judge was given responsibilities formerly exercised by the county judge and clerk of the county court and was authorized to appoint his own clerk. In some cases, the judge of probate also became a member of the court of county commissioners.

Additional responsibilities have been added since the 1850s. Most of these concerned the expansion of previous responsibilities in election administration, licensing, and record keeping. The most important addition was made in 1866, when the judge of probate was designated an ex officio judge of the Court of County Commissioners in all counties. Exceptions to this law were made between 1866 and 1915, when the probate judiciary was finally clarified. At this time, the judge of probate was reestablished as ex officio judge of the county court in all counties with a population less than 50,000 and became judge of the juvenile court in all counties where a separate juvenile court had not been established.

Constitutional amendments adopted in 1972 and 1973 revised Alabama’s constitutional provisions concerning the state judiciary once again. While the 1972 amendment abolished the office of the justice of the peace, the 1973 judicial article established a court structure composed of the Supreme Court of Alabama, the Court of Criminal Appeals, the Court of Civil Appeals, the circuit courts, the probate courts, a new set of inferior courts known as district courts, and municipal courts in those municipalities electing to retain their own court rather than incorporate into the appropriate district court. In 1977, responsibility for juvenile justice was removed from the probate court and assigned to district or, in some cases, circuit courts.

List of Probate Judges from 1850-Present

• Hugh Watson, 1850-1856
• David Campbell, 1856-1868
• George Ely, 1868-1874
• Charles W. Buckley, 1874-1882
• F. C. Randolph, 1883-1896
• J. B. Gaston, 1897-1914
• Charles B. Teasley, 1915-1918
• David W. Crosland 1920-1933
• Grover C. Hall 1933-1935
• William W. Hill 1935-1953
• David E. Dunn, Sr. 1953-1959
• John A. Sankey 1959-1965
• Perry O. Hooper 1965-1975
• Walker Hobbie, Jr. 1975-1998
• Reese McKinney, Jr. 1998-2013
• Steven L. Reed 2013-2019
• J C Love, III 2019 - Present