Services & Experience

Alan King served for over 19 years as a Jefferson County Probate Judge. He conducted approximately 35,000 hearings in the following areas: estate and estate litigation; trust litigation; will contests; guardianship and conservatorships; adoptions and adoption contests; condemnations; real estate designator; and serious mental illness.

Prior to being elected in 2000, Alan handled cases for over 18 years in the following areas: probate, motor vehicle accidents, work accidents, workers compensation, business disputes, contracts, divorce and child custody, real estate, social security, banking, bankruptcy, and mortgage foreclosure.

Since his retirement from the bench in May 2000, Judge King has assisted in resolving disputes in mediations and has handled miscellaneous legal cases.

Alan L. King graduated from the University of Alabama, Cumberland School of Law at Samford University, and from Birmingham Southern College with a Master’s in Public and Private Management.  Judge King practiced law in Jefferson County, Alabama for 18 years prior to his election as Jefferson County Probate Judge Place 2 in November 2000, election as Probate Judge, Place 1 (Presiding Judge) in November 2006, and re-election in 2012 and 2018. He retired in May 31, 2020.

Judge King is a member of the Alabama Bar Association, Birmingham Bar Association, Bessemer Bar Association, Alabama Probate Judges Association, where he has served as President, Vice President, Secretary and Treasurer, and as Chairperson of the Continuing Education and Mental Health committees, the National College of Probate Judges, the National Academy of Elder Law Attorneys, The National Guardianship Association and The Election Center. Judge King received the State of Alabama NAMI (National Alliance on Mental Illness) Judicial Award in 2006.  He completed the General Jurisdiction Course at the National Judicial College in Reno, Nevada, and completed the Law for the Probate Judges course in 2006, 2010, and 2016 at The University of Alabama Law Center through the Alabama Law Institute. Judge King is a Certified Election/Registration Administrator through The Election Center, which is the premier election education training organization in the United States. He is a Fellow in the Alabama Law Foundation, and in the Birmingham Bar Foundation.

During his tenure as Presiding Judge, Probate Court acquired the Pioneer Technology Group Benchmark judicial case management system, the Pioneer Technology Group Landmark land records system and Landmark Web system, which has made it possible to search Jefferson County Land and other records on-line.  He also brought e-filing to the Judicial side of Probate Court, making it possible for attorneys to file cases and motions electronically.  He began a long-range project to archive to preserve Jefferson County records dating back to the 1800’s and make them available on-line and implemented an improved and expanded Jefferson County Probate Court and Elections website.  He was instrumental in 2011 in founding the Probate Section of the Birmingham Bar Association, which is now one of the largest sections of the Birmingham Bar.