Stutts appointed by McMaster to serve as Aiken County’s Register of Deeds | Aiken Area Government

Julie Stutts will replace Aiken County’s register of mesne conveyance, Judith Warner, who is retiring at the end of the year.

An appointee by S.C. Gov. Henry McMaster, Stutts will have a different title, register of deeds, and will serve for the rest of Warner’s unexpired term.

Stutts currently is Warner’s deputy.

Warner told the Aiken Standard on Dec. 12 that she had written a letter to McMaster asking him to appoint Stutts.

The paperwork making McMaster’s selection of Stutts official was filed with S.C. Secretary of State Mark Hammond’s office Thursday.

Warner has held the elected position of register of mesne conveyance for 27 years.

She most recently was reelected to a four-year term in November 2020.

“I figured it was time for me to have a little free time, but it’s also time for somebody to step forward,” said Warner about why she decided to retire.

She praised her staff for its expertise and described Stutts as “a great assistant.”

In the 1970s, Warner helped organize the Aiken County Republican Party, and she represented District 1 on Aiken County Council in the 1990s.

She also served at the state and regional level in other roles and has been active in various professional organizations.

Warner is the widow of a former Aiken County Council chairman, Carrol H. Warner.

Because of action taken by South Carolina’s legislature, the office held by Warner has been known as register of deeds since January 2018. But those who were serving at the time of the change were authorized to keep the register of mesne conveyance title during their tenures.

Warner is the only remaining register of mesne conveyance in the Palmetto State.

The position also is known as registrar of mesne conveyance, registrar mesne conveyance and RMC.