South Carolina 2025-2026 Regular Session Status: In Committee

S 251 — Civil jurisdiction of magistrates

Last action — Referred to Committee on Judiciary

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  1. ✓
    Introduced
  2. 2
    In Committee
  3. 3
    Passed Senate
  4. 4
    Passed House
  5. 5
    To Executive
  6. 6
    Enacted

This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced January 21, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.

Next likely step: a committee vote, then a floor vote in the Senate.

Prognosis

Stalled 14% · moderate confidence

Where this bill stands today.

Odds of enactment

Low

How often bills like it became law.

  • In Committee

    Current position in the legislative process.

  • 1 sponsor

    1 primary, 0 co-sponsors signed on.

Prognosis reads this bill's own signals — stage, sponsorship breadth, committee status, recorded votes and cross-state momentum. Odds come from a model trained on which bills have become law.

Summary

A BILL TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING SECTION 22-3-10, RELATING TO CIVIL JURISDICTION OF MAGISTRATES COURT, SO AS TO INCREASE THE CIVIL JURISDICTION FROM SEVEN THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS TO FIFTEEN THOUSAND DOLLARS.

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

90 added · 17 removed

90 line(s) added, 17 removed.

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2025-2026 Bill 251 Text of Previous Version (Jan.
wZ$ޙɲ…´]ÃY^Á×wOÇyÔߚ¿ôMúe¿®FÌcŽÙ5œ4©wv~þU£Qˆé¯&Rµz[71ºŠÿ]£¦xšì˯ÌèòjÓwÎþªià÷Ÿ±]ÎÏ£„^pÇ0_­©_ˆ~³Û#C”EaN;‰Ïº%>£ ø#e·Ùíd €Á•KD¶xnÚV.?+3(Štºx-­êí¾[¥©ð¯aš¯·ó¢µ~3.*©ˆ7âϓt ºŠ¯Hü˜±"ˆS ý>– ud ZíÒþµŽ¡¡›®~P=d4U!jýè#{Ôï®êÖ­ú4ôæqÑjL´Ó™—yg`IÍ44űmñE„{*›ƒ>Ñmõ ÀY‹5sŸNgx€õˆ-ëH›qš~f†£¥‰è”xSì+ݺÁnÜLhƒ¯Ë«„yÙ[×z³f7z=ÙTÚ»á˜ê`èl¹uãÆn˜=Sш
21, 2025) - South Carolina Legislature Online South Carolina General Assembly126th Session, 2025-2026Bill 251Indicates Matter StrickenIndicates New Matter(Text matches printed bills.
Document has been reformatted to meet World Wide Web specifications.)                 A bill   TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING SECTION 22-3-10, RELATING TO CIVIL JURISDICTION OF MAGISTRATES COURT, SO AS TO INCREASE THE CIVIL JURISDICTION FROM SEVEN THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS TO FIFTEEN THOUSAND DOLLARS.
  Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
  SECTION 1.  Section 22-3-10 of the S.C.
Code is amended to read:
      Section 22-3-10.
Magistrates have concurrent civil jurisdiction in the following cases:
    (1) in actions arising on contracts for the recovery of money only, if the sum claimed does not exceed seven fifteen thousand five hundred dollars;
    (2) in actions for damages for injury to rights pertaining to the person or personal or real property, if the damages claimed do not exceed seven fifteen thousand five hundred dollars;
    (3) in actions for a penalty, fine, or forfeiture, when the amount claimed or forfeited does not exceed seven fifteen thousand five hundred dollars;
    (4) in actions commenced by attachment of property, as provided by statute, if the debt or damages claimed do not exceed sevenfifteen thousand five hundred dollars;
    (5) in actions upon a bond conditioned for the payment of money, not exceeding seven fifteen thousand five hundred dollars, though the penalty exceeds that sum, the judgment to be given for the sum actually due, and when the payments are to be made by installments an action may be brought for each installment as it becomes due;
    (6) in any action upon a surety bond taken by them, when the penalty or amount claimed does not exceed seven fifteen thousand five hundred dollars;
    (7) in any action upon a judgment rendered in a court of a magistrate or an inferior court when it is not prohibited by the South Carolina Rules of Civil Procedure;
    (8) to take and enter judgment on the confession of a defendant in the manner prescribed by law when the amount confessed does not exceed seven fifteen thousand five hundred dollars;
    (9) in any action for damages or for fraud in the sale, purchase, or exchange of personal property, if the damages claimed do not exceed seven fifteen thousand five hundred dollars;
    (10) in all matters between landlord and tenant and the possession of land as provided in Chapters 33 through 41 of Title 27;
    (11) in any action to recover the possession of personal property claimed, the value of which, as stated in the affidavit of the plaintiff, his agent, or attorney, does not exceed the sum of seven fifteen thousand five hundred dollars;
    (12) in all actions provided for in this section when a filed counterclaim involves a sum not to exceed seven fifteen thousand five hundred dollars, except that this limitation does not apply to counterclaims filed in matters between landlord and tenant and the possession of land;
    (13) in interpleader actions arising from real estate contracts for the recovery of earnest money, only if the sum claimed does not exceed seven fifteen thousand five hundred dollars;
and     (14) in actions for damages arising from a person's failure to return leased or rented personal property within seventy-two hours after the expiration of the lease or rental agreement, such damages to be based on the loss of revenue or replacement value of the property, whichever is less, if the damages claimed do not exceed seven fifteen thousand five hundred dollars;
however, the lease or rental agreement must set forth the manner in which the amount of the loss of revenue or replacement value of the item leased or rented is calculated.
  SECTION 2.  The repeal or amendment by this act of any law, whether temporary or permanent or civil or criminal, does not affect pending actions, rights, duties, or liabilities founded thereon, or alter, discharge, release or extinguish any penalty, forfeiture, or liability incurred under the repealed or amended law, unless the repealed or amended provision shall so expressly provide.  After the effective date of this act, all laws repealed or amended by this act must be taken and treated as remaining in full force and effect for the purpose of sustaining any pending or vested right, civil action, special proceeding, criminal prosecution, or appeal existing as of the effective date of this act, and for the enforcement of rights, duties, penalties, forfeitures, and liabilities as they stood under the repealed or amended laws.
  SECTION 3.  This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
----XX---- This web page was last updated on January 21, 2025 at 11:26 AM
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Action History

  1. Referred to Committee on Judiciary

  2. Introduced and read first time

Sponsors

Sponsorship breakdown

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1 sponsors · 0 co-sponsors · 169 not signed on

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (169)

169 members have not signed on to this bill.

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"Not signed on" means a member has not sponsored or co-sponsored this bill — it does not imply opposition. Members flagged Voted No have a recorded No vote on this bill.

Whip count is in markup. Polling the chamber and every recorded vote this session. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Calling the roll · Tallying · Engrossing

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Frequently asked questions

What does S 251 do?
A BILL TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING SECTION 22-3-10, RELATING TO CIVIL JURISDICTION OF MAGISTRATES COURT, SO AS TO INCREASE THE CIVIL JURISDICTION FROM SEVEN THOUSAND FIVE HUNDRED DOLLARS TO FIFTEEN THOUSAND DOLLARS.
Who sponsors S 251?
S 251 is sponsored by Senator George E. "Chip" Campsen III.
What is the current status of S 251?
This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced January 21, 2025. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track S 251?
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