South Carolina 2025-2026 Regular Session Status: In Committee

S 855 — Torts

Last action — Referred to Committee on Judiciary

  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 28, 2026. 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 15-7-30, RELATING TO DEFINITIONS CONCERNING VENUES FOR CIVIL ACTIONS, SO AS TO INCLUDE JOHN DOE OR UNKNOWN DEFENDANT IN THE DEFINITION OF "NONRESIDENT INDIVIDUAL."

Bill Text

What changed in the latest version

18 added · 11 removed

Plain-language change summary

The recent amendment to Bill S 855 adds the terms "John Doe" and "unknown defendant" to the definition of "nonresident individual" in South Carolina's civil action venue laws. This change is significant because it clarifies that cases involving unidentified parties or those not residing in South Carolina can still be handled properly under state law. By including these definitions, the bill aims to improve the legal process for addressing such cases, which can often create complications if not explicitly defined.

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2025-2026 Bill 855 Text of Previous Version (Jan.
28, 2026) - South Carolina Legislature Online South Carolina General Assembly126th Session, 2025-2026Bill 855Indicates 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 15-7-30, RELATING TO DEFINITIONS CONCERNING VENUES FOR CIVIL ACTIONS, SO AS TO INCLUDE JOHN DOE OR UNKNOWN DEFENDANT IN THE DEFINITION OF "NONRESIDENT INDIVIDUAL."   Be it enacted by the General Assembly of the State of South Carolina:
  SECTION 1.  Section 15-7-30(A)(9) of the S.C.
Code is amended to read:
      (9) "Nonresident individual" means a person who is not domiciled in this State, John Doe, or an unknown defendant as provided in Section 38-77-180.
  SECTION 2.  This act takes effect upon approval by the Governor.
----XX---- This web page was last updated on January 28, 2026 at 01:48 PM
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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

Sponsors (1)

Co-sponsors (0)

None.

Not signed on (169)

169 members have not signed on to this bill.

Show all 169 →

"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

Subjects

civil-rights
Cross-referencing the record. Reading this bill against every other bill in the corpus by meaning, not keywords. Only the first open is slow. It’s instant for you after this. Matching · Ranking · Engrossing

Frequently asked questions

What does S 855 do?
A BILL TO AMEND THE SOUTH CAROLINA CODE OF LAWS BY AMENDING SECTION 15-7-30, RELATING TO DEFINITIONS CONCERNING VENUES FOR CIVIL ACTIONS, SO AS TO INCLUDE JOHN DOE OR UNKNOWN DEFENDANT IN THE DEFINITION OF "NONRESIDENT INDIVIDUAL."
Who sponsors S 855?
S 855 is sponsored by Senator A. Shane Massey.
What is the current status of S 855?
This bill is in committee in the Senate. Introduced January 28, 2026. It must pass committee before a floor vote.
Where can I track S 855?
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