Judge Francis M. (“Frank”) Simon, Beaufort County Probate Court Judge, is a native of New Jersey, born and raised in Secaucus, when it was a small farming community of some 9,000 hard-working, depression-era souls.  His mother, Elizabeth, grew up in Charleston, SC, and married his father, Frank, soon after she and her family relocated to the Northeast.

Judge Simon holds the Juris Doctor degree from Rutgers University School of Law (1952), and the Master of Laws degree from New York University Graduate Law School (1957).  At the undergraduate level, he served as Class President, was a Dean’s List scholar, and won various honors in athletics, debating and other areas.

Although he held a variety of blue-collar jobs in his “younger years,” his professional career focused on corporate positions in the publishing and financial services industries, and private law practice, with an emphasis on tax and estate planning.  He is a member of the New York and Federal Bars.  He was one of the first by-line columnists for the New York Law Journal, and has written and lectured extensively on legal/tax/estate matters.

In addition to his articles for trade and professional journals, Frank’s published books include Short-Term Trusts and The Keogh Act, the latter achieving national recognition as the first published book on retirement plans for the self-employed.  He has made many presentations at private and public seminars and conferences, throughout the United States and abroad, dealing with his areas of expertise.  He has participated in many television and radio talk shows.  He is listed in Who’s Who in the South and Who’s Who in America.

Frank has also served as an Arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association.  He is a member or former member of various organizations, e.g., Lawyers Square Club of New York;  American, New York State and County Bar Associations; U.S. Professional Tennis Registry; U.S. Power Squadrons; State Defense Force Association of the U.S.; Hilton Head Professional Tennis Umpires Association; HHI Jazz Society; SC Law Enforcement Officers Association; Board of Directors, Rape Crisis Center of The Lowcountry and Congregation Beth Yam; Chairman, HHI Crime Prevention Task Force; National College of Probate Judges; S.C. Association of Probate Judges (President, 2006).

In 1989, Frank relocated from New York to South Carolina, taking up residence on Hilton Head Island.  He found the usual accoutrements of retirement not to his liking, and quickly became active in community affairs:  He wrote an Estate Planning column for a local publication; became a certified tennis umpire and instructor; was a sworn Reserve Deputy Sheriff; a Public Service District Commissioner; a member of the Adjunct Faculty, Technical College of the Lowcountry; plus some other involvements, e.g., chairman of the local Crime Prevention Task Force, and Associate Judge, Bluffton Municipal Court.  In 1994, he was solicited to run for the Beaufort County Probate Court Judgeship.  A landslide victory placed him in that position and he was re-elected (unopposed) in 1998, 2002, and 2006. He was recently re-appointed by Chief Justice Toal to serve on the State Judicial Council.

On the military side, Judge Simon served overseas in the U.S. Army during the Korean War.  He joined the South Carolina Military Department in 1990 and continues to serve therein.  He holds the rank of Major General and is Command Advisor to the Adjutant General.  He is an Honor Graduate of the National Defense University, and was a 1998 seminarian at the U.S. Army War College.

Frank has two children, Laura and Eric, both practicing as Doctorate Psychologists, and each the parent of two children.  The Judge’s so-called “leisure-time” interests focus on family, outdoor recreation, water sports, tennis, reading, and sports cars.