Serves New Hanover, Brunswick, Pender, and Onslow counties from Wilmington. Nick Leger represents executors, administrators, and trustees through probate and intestate administration — inventories, creditor notices, accountings, and distribution — and litigates will caveats, undue-influence claims, and spousal elective-share disputes. The practice is limited to estate work and guardianship.

Serves 4 countiesEstate PlanningTrust AdministrationProbateProbate LitigationTrust LitigationGuardianship

A small father-and-son practice in downtown Wilmington, serving New Hanover, Pender, and Brunswick counties. James Seay III carries personal representatives through estate administration — gathering and valuing assets, notifying creditors, filing inventories and accounts, and distributing to heirs — and handles will contests. Initial consultations are a flat $250 except in estate planning matters.

Serves 3 countiesVirtual consultationsEstate PlanningProbateProbate LitigationGuardianship

Serves the Crystal Coast from Bridges Street in Morehead City, with clients in Beaufort, New Bern and Jacksonville. Its probate work runs from qualifying the personal representative and obtaining letters testamentary through creditor claims, the spousal year's allowance, inventories and final accountings, and extends to will caveats. Cecil Harvell opened the practice in 1987.

Since 1987Estate PlanningTrust AdministrationProbateProbate LitigationElder Law+4

Serves Wilmington and New Hanover County from Wrightsville Avenue. Two of its attorneys work in trusts and estates, taking fiduciaries through estate and trust administration and handling estate-tax, gift-tax and charitable gift planning. Jill Kaess is a CPA, a Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning and Fiduciary Law certified by the North Carolina State Bar, and an ACTEC Fellow.

Estate PlanningTrust AdministrationProbateTax PlanningCharitable Planning

Serves Wilmington and the surrounding New Hanover County area from an office on Oleander Drive. The practice pairs court-supervised probate and estate administration — inventorying assets, paying creditors, and distributing to heirs — with advanced estate planning and tax work. Sole attorney Rick E. Graves is a Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning and Probate Law.

Solo PracticeEstate PlanningProbateTax PlanningAsset ProtectionBusiness Succession

Serves Craven County from downtown New Bern in a transactional practice covering estate planning and probate, real property, and corporate work. Attorney Lacee B. Smith prepares wills, advance directives and trusts, and the firm represents administrators and executors through probate estates. For most matters the fee is a fixed amount agreed at the start; the firm takes no litigation.

Estate PlanningProbate