Based on Supreme Court case Scott vs. McNeal do probate courts have jurisdiction over living people?
No, based on Scott v. McNeal (1894), probate courts do not have jurisdiction over living people. In this case, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that a probate court’s authority extends only to handling the estates of deceased individuals. The Court determined that a probate court’s decision to administer an estate while the person was still alive was invalid and unconstitutional because it deprived the individual of property without due process of law. This case reinforced the principle that probate courts cannot declare a person legally dead or distribute their estate while they are still alive.