For clients navigating divorce in Charleston, Berkeley & Dorchester counties. Send a confidential message — we'll reply by email or phone, whichever you prefer.
Hall & Means represents clients facing divorce across Charleston, Berkeley, and Dorchester counties. Mary Ann Hall and Jessica Means are Charleston divorce attorneys focused on family law — whether you're researching your options, preparing to file, or already in active proceedings, you'll work directly with your attorney, not a paralegal screening calls.
Why Hall & Means
Mary Ann Hall and Jessica Means lead Hall & Means together, representing clients through divorce, custody, alimony, and the financial decisions that come with them. Both attorneys focus on family law in the 9th and 1st Judicial Circuit Family Courts, with deep local relationships across mediators, guardians ad litem, and financial professionals throughout the tri-county region.
Meet your attorneys →Built around advocating for our clients in divorce, custody, and family transitions. The Family Law Hub reflects that focus — written for the questions our clients actually ask.
Three-county family law practice across the 9th and 1st Judicial Circuit Family Courts, with a local network of mediators, guardians ad litem, and financial professionals.
You work with Mary Ann or Jessica. Your calls and emails are returned by your attorney — not screened by a paralegal, not routed to an associate.
What to expect
From the first call to active representation, the path is the same for every client. We tell you what's happening, what it costs, and what choices are yours to make — before we ask you to commit to anything.
Phase 1
You reach out by phone or message. One of our staff or firm team members responds — typical response time within 24 hours. Confidentiality starts with the first interaction. The first conversation is focused on understanding your situation, not selling you on services.
Response within 24 hoursPhase 2
We schedule a 2-hour consultation and review the documents we determine are relevant to your case — we will tell you which ones to bring. An initial retainer is quoted at that consultation, based on the facts of your case — initial because the final cost depends on how the case unfolds. We lay out the legal pathways available to you with honest costs and timelines for each.
Attorney-client privileged from word onePhase 3
If we're a fit, we put a representation agreement in place. We file the complaint or finalize a separation agreement on your timeline — not before.
Filing on your timeline, not oursFinal Phase
Initial filings submitted. We coordinate service, schedule the first hearing if needed, and begin building your case. You retain authority over substantive decisions — settlement terms, signatures on agreements, and key strategy choices. We handle procedural matters (discovery, scheduling, extensions to keep your case moving) without asking permission for each step. Throughout, you work directly with Mary Ann or Jessica.
Direct attorney access throughoutDivorce in South Carolina
South Carolina allows divorce on five statutory grounds under S.C. Code § 20-3-10 — four fault grounds and one no-fault ground: living separate and apart for one continuous year. Marital property is divided by equitable apportionment, not a 50/50 rule. Hall & Means represents divorce clients across Charleston, Berkeley, and Dorchester counties. Here is the framework that governs your case.
South Carolina Code § 20-3-10 recognizes exactly five grounds for divorce: adultery; desertion for one year; physical cruelty; habitual drunkenness, including habitual drunkenness caused by the use of a narcotic drug; and the no-fault ground — living separate and apart without cohabitation for one continuous year. There is no “irreconcilable differences” divorce in South Carolina; the one-year separation is the only no-fault path. A fault ground can shorten the wait, but it must be proved in court — none is automatic.
Residency matters too: under § 20-3-30, you may file after living in South Carolina for one year — or after just three months if both spouses are South Carolina residents when the action begins. Spouses living apart during that year often set interim terms — support, the home, the children's schedule — in a written separation agreement.
South Carolina divides marital property by equitable apportionment (S.C. Code §§ 20-3-610 through 20-3-680) — a division the court finds equitable, which may or may not be equal. South Carolina is not a community-property state, and there is no 50/50 default. Marital property generally includes what either spouse acquired during the marriage, regardless of whose name is on the title (§ 20-3-630); property owned before the marriage and kept separate, gifts from third parties, and inheritances are generally nonmarital. The court weighs the fifteen factors of § 20-3-620(B) — from each spouse's contributions, including as homemaker, to income, health, and marital debt.
Alimony is factor-driven, never automatic: § 20-3-130 lets the court award several forms — periodic, lump-sum, rehabilitative, reimbursement, or separate maintenance — weighed against thirteen statutory factors.
When children are involved, custody is decided on the best interest of the child — the standard set by S.C. Code § 63-15-230 — guided by the seventeen factors listed in § 63-15-240(B). Both parents stand equal before the court (§ 63-5-30); South Carolina abolished any preference for mothers of young children (§ 63-15-10). At contested temporary custody hearings, each parent must file a parenting plan (§ 63-15-220).
Child support follows South Carolina's statewide Child Support Guidelines (§ 63-17-470) — an income-shares model built on both parents' combined income and the number of children.
Common questions
Short answers to what Charleston clients ask most. Every case turns on its facts — for advice about yours, request a confidential consultation.
There is no fixed timeline — the ground you file on sets the floor. South Carolina's only no-fault ground requires one continuous year of living separate and apart (S.C. Code § 20-3-10). You must also meet the § 20-3-30 residency rule: one year in South Carolina, or three months if both spouses are residents when the action begins. A contested case can add hearings and mediation.
Only if you are filing on the no-fault ground. South Carolina's only no-fault path requires living separate and apart without cohabitation for one continuous year (S.C. Code § 20-3-10). South Carolina has no irreconcilable-differences divorce. Adultery, physical cruelty, and habitual drunkenness are fault grounds that can let you file sooner; desertion is itself a one-year ground. Each fault ground must be proved in court.
There is no standard price — it depends on the facts of your case and how it unfolds. An uncontested divorce involves fewer proceedings than a contested case. The biggest drivers are disputed custody, a marital estate that needs valuation, the number of hearings, and how long the case runs. At Hall & Means, an initial retainer is quoted at your consultation, based on the facts of your case.
No. South Carolina divides marital property by equitable apportionment — a division the court considers equitable, which may or may not be equal (S.C. Code §§ 20-3-610 to 20-3-680). South Carolina is not a community-property state and has no 50/50 default. The court weighs the fifteen factors listed in § 20-3-620(B). Property owned before the marriage and kept separate, third-party gifts, and inheritances are generally nonmarital (§ 20-3-630).
Adultery is one of South Carolina's four fault grounds for divorce (S.C. Code § 20-3-10) and must be proved in court. It can also bar alimony, but conditionally — never absolutely. Under § 20-3-130(A), adultery bars alimony only if it occurs before the earliest of a signed property or marital settlement agreement, a permanent order of separate maintenance and support, or a permanent order approving such an agreement.
Hiring a Charleston attorney does not decide which county hears your case — that is a separate venue question we confirm before filing. South Carolina has one statewide Family Court (S.C. Code § 63-3-530), so the same law applies in every county. Charleston and Berkeley counties sit in the 9th Judicial Circuit; Dorchester sits in the 1st. Charleston County Family Court is at 100 Broad Street. We represent clients in all three.
No — you can file on your own, and the SC Judicial Branch publishes a self-represented divorce packet (SCCA 400P SRL-DIV). What a lawyer adds is judgment about what you are agreeing to: how property is apportioned under § 20-3-620(B), whether alimony applies, and whether a custody arrangement meets the § 63-15-240(B) best-interest factors. Hall & Means concentrates in family law in Charleston, South Carolina.
Temporary relief in a South Carolina divorce is decided at a temporary hearing, where the court addresses the interim custody or support a spouse has requested while the case is pending. Under SCRFC Rule 21(f)(1) the evidence is confined to affidavits, financial declarations, and statutorily required documents such as a parenting plan. Rule 21(f)(2) requires written evidence to be served and filed at least five days beforehand.
Court filing fees are set by the court and change over time — confirm the current amount with the Clerk of Court before you file. This page is general legal information, not legal advice, and does not create an attorney-client relationship. South Carolina law changes and every case turns on its specific facts. Consult a licensed South Carolina family-law attorney about your situation.
Resources
Our Family Law Hub covers South Carolina divorce law in depth. If you want to understand what you're walking into before you call, these are the places to start. Filing from outside the city? See the Tri-County locations we serve; if either spouse is on active duty, start with military divorce in Charleston.
We also have divorce pages for five communities across the Tri-County: Mount Pleasant, North Charleston, Summerville, Goose Creek and Moncks Corner. If your case will be filed in Berkeley or Dorchester County, read our step-by-step guide for a Berkeley County divorce or a Dorchester County divorce.
Hub article
South Carolina recognizes one no-fault ground (one-year separation) and four fault grounds. Which applies to your situation, and why it matters.
Read article →Hub article
The 9th Judicial Circuit filing process, fees, SCCA forms, and what to bring to the family court clerk.
Read article →Hub article
The pre-filing steps that protect your finances, your records, and your access to funds during proceedings.
Read article →Get in touch
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Phone
Office
1816 Belgrade Avenue, Ste. 101
Charleston, SC 29407
Hours
Monday – Friday, 9:00 AM – 5:00 PM
