(a) No person elected judge of the probate court in any county provided for in this Code section shall engage in the private practice of law.

(b) Except as otherwise provided by subsection (c) of this Code section, in any county of this state having a population of more than 96,000 persons according to the United States decennial census of 1990 or any future such census and in which the probate court of such county meets the definition of a probate court as provided by Article 6 of this chapter, no person shall be judge of the probate court unless at the time of election, in addition to the qualifications required by law, he or she has attained the age of 30 years and has been admitted to practice law for seven years preceding election.

(c) A judge of the probate court holding such office on July 1, 1994, shall continue to hold such office and shall be allowed to seek reelection for such office.