The SCCA 467 family court coversheet is a one-page form that must accompany every new case filed in a South Carolina family court. The current fillable PDF, revised November 2024, is free to download from the South Carolina Judicial Branch website. The clerk uses it to docket your case, so an incomplete or missing coversheet will stop your filing at the counter. The form itself costs nothing; the case you are opening almost always carries a filing fee.
When You Need the Coversheet
Any new action in family court requires an SCCA 467. That covers divorce, annulment, separate support and maintenance, child custody and visitation, child and spousal support, adoption, termination of parental rights, name changes, correction of birth records, paternity, and protection from domestic abuse.1South Carolina Legislature. South Carolina Code 63-3-530 – Jurisdiction in Domestic and Family Matters It also applies to motions that open a new docket entry, such as a modification of an existing custody or support order; each modification gets its own Nature of Action code so the clerk can distinguish it from the original case.
The coversheet is purely an administrative routing tool. Its own instructions state that it “neither replaces nor supplements the filing and service of pleadings or other papers as required by law.”2South Carolina Judicial Department. SCCA 467 South Carolina Family Court Coversheet You still need your Summons, Complaint, and any supporting documents.
Filling Out the Form
Before the clerk will accept it, the coversheet must be “signed and dated, and filled out completely.”3South Carolina Judicial Department. SCCA 467 South Carolina Family Court Coversheet Work through it top to bottom.
Caption and Parties
Enter the county where you are filing and the judicial circuit number. South Carolina has sixteen judicial circuits, and several counties share a circuit; the Judicial Branch website lists them. Leave the Docket Number blank. The clerk assigns that when the filing is accepted.
Write the full legal name of the Petitioner (the person bringing the action) and the Respondent (the other party). If a custodial parent is involved and is someone other than the petitioner or respondent, use the separate line provided for that name.3South Carolina Judicial Department. SCCA 467 South Carolina Family Court Coversheet
Submitting Party
The “Submitted by” block asks for the name, South Carolina Bar number, address, phone, fax, and email of whoever is filing. If you are representing yourself, put your own name and contact information and leave the Bar number blank. The court and the other side will send every future notice to the address and email you list here, so get it right.
Mediation Status
Two checkboxes address alternative dispute resolution. Check the first if the case is subject to mediation under the Family Court ADR Rules. Check the second if the case is exempt, and attach the required exemption certificate. Most contested custody, visitation, and divorce cases are subject to mediation, so read the ADR rules before you claim an exemption.3South Carolina Judicial Department. SCCA 467 South Carolina Family Court Coversheet
Nature of Action Code
This is the section the clerk relies on to index your case, and you must check exactly one code. The codes are grouped into seven categories, each with a three-digit number. The wrong pick can delay processing or route your file to the wrong judge.
- Marital Dissolution: Divorce (110), Annulment (120), Separate Support and Maintenance (130), Registration of Foreign Divorce Decree without support or custody (190), with support or custody (191).
- Support: Child Support – Private (501), Modification of Child Support – Private (507), Modification of Alimony (525), College Expenses (530), and others.
- Custody/Visitation: Child Custody/Visitation (610), Modification of Custody/Visitation (615), Temporary Custody – Nonparent (616), Registration of Foreign Child Custody Order (690).
- Abuse and Neglect: Child (210), Adult (220).
- Juvenile Delinquency: Truancy (311), Incorrigible (312), Runaway (313), plus criminal-offense subcategories.
- Miscellaneous Actions: Name Change (710), Correction of Birth Record (720), Adoption (740), Paternity – Private (761), Termination of Parental Rights – Private (771).
- Protection from Domestic Abuse: Intimate Partner (410), Minor (420), Registration of Foreign Order of Protection (490).
Each category also has an “Other” code ending in 99. If nothing on the list truly fits, use the “Other” code for the closest category rather than forcing a wrong one.3South Carolina Judicial Department. SCCA 467 South Carolina Family Court Coversheet
Signature and Date
Sign and date the bottom. An unsigned coversheet is rejected. If a custodial parent is applicable, that person signs on the separate custodial-parent line.
Filing Fee
The coversheet is free, but the Clerk of Court collects a filing fee on the underlying case. Most family court actions carry a $150 fee, including divorce, annulment, and separate support and maintenance; child and spousal support actions and their modifications; custody and visitation actions; name changes and birth record corrections; adoptions, both domestic and foreign; paternity actions; and non-DSS termination of parental rights.
Registration of a foreign divorce decree that does not address custody or support costs $100. Several categories carry no filing fee: DSS abuse and neglect actions, juvenile delinquency cases, protection from domestic abuse petitions, UIFSA actions, and registration of foreign custody or support orders.4South Carolina Judicial Branch. Family Court Fees
If you cannot afford the fee, file SCCA 405, the Motion and Affidavit to Proceed In Forma Pauperis, with a sworn financial declaration. If the judge grants it, you file without paying.5South Carolina Judicial Department. SCCA 405 FC Motion and Affidavit to Proceed In Forma Pauperis
Where to File
A South Carolina civil action commences when the Summons and Complaint are filed with the Clerk of Court.6South Carolina Judicial Branch. Rule 3 – Commencement of Civil Action The SCCA 467 goes in that same packet.
Venue depends on the type of case. For divorce and separate support and maintenance, you typically file in the county where the defendant resides. If the defendant is a nonresident or cannot be found, you file in the county where you live. Filing is also proper in the county where you and your spouse last lived together, unless you are the nonresident. Adoption venue follows different rules, generally tied to the county where the petitioner resides or the child was born. Modifications of custody, support, or alimony normally stay in the county that issued the original order, though either party can request a transfer.
Deliver the completed coversheet, Summons, Complaint, and filing fee to the Clerk of Court at the appropriate county courthouse, in person or by certified mail. When the clerk accepts the filing, you receive a case number and a filing stamp. That number tracks every future filing and hearing in the case.
Serving the Coversheet
The form’s instructions require that “a copy of this coversheet must be served on the defendant(s) along with the Summons and Complaint.”2South Carolina Judicial Department. SCCA 467 South Carolina Family Court Coversheet After the clerk stamps your originals, serve the other party with copies using any method allowed under South Carolina law. Personal service by a process server or sheriff’s deputy is the most common on initial filings. Keep the proof-of-service documents; the court needs them before the case can move forward.
Service must happen within the statute of limitations for the action. If you miss that window, Rule 3 gives you up to 120 days after filing to accomplish actual service.6South Carolina Judicial Branch. Rule 3 – Commencement of Civil Action Missing both puts the case at risk.
Mistakes That Get Filings Rejected
A few errors account for most of the rejected coversheets at the clerk’s counter.
- No signature or no date. The easiest mistake to catch before you walk out the door.
- Wrong Nature of Action code. Checking “Divorce (110)” when you actually need “Modification of Custody/Visitation (615)” creates a docketing problem. Match the code to the relief you are asking for, not the general subject.
- Wrong county. Improper venue does not kill the case, but it triggers a transfer and adds weeks.
- No filing fee. The clerk will not open a case file without the fee or a granted fee-waiver order. If you are mailing in, include a check or money order payable to the Clerk of Court.
- Serving the pleadings without the coversheet. The form explicitly requires service on the defendant along with the Summons and Complaint.
Proofread every field. A rejected filing that pushes you past a statute-of-limitations deadline is a much larger problem than the few minutes it takes to double-check the page.