1968

The 2010 edition of The Best Lawyers in America has selected Richardson Plowden attorney Frank E. Robinson, II, real estate law.

1971

Ambassador David Wilkins will be honored with the 2009 Global Vision Award presented by the Columbia World Affairs Council during a black-tie gala on October 27, 2009 at the Columbia Marriott Hotel. The award is given by the Columbia World Affairs Council to individuals who have helped create and have implemented a global vision for our state and who have been leaders in helping build South Carolina's global presence. Ambassador David H. Wilkins is a partner at Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP and chairs the Public Policy and International Law practice group, which focuses primarily on representing businesses on both sides of the U.S.-Canadian border and offers experience on a wide range of strategic bilateral issues. On April 27, 2005, Mr. Wilkins was nominated by President George W. Bush to become the United States Ambassador to Canada and was confirmed unanimously by the United States Senate on May 26, 2005. On June 29, 2005, he became the 21st United States Ambassador to Canada.

1972

Fayssoux Law Firm, PA announces its opening at 209 E. Washington St., Greenville 29601. James W. "Jim" Fayssoux Sr. and James W. "Wally" Fayssoux Jr. ('99) are partners in the firm, and Paul S. Landis ('07) has joined the firm as associate.

1974

Nexsen Pruet is pleased to announce that Victoria L. Eslinger has been named the 2009 Advocate of the Year by the South Carolina Appleseed Legal Justice Center. Eslinger is a member (partner) of the firm and practices in the Employment and Labor Law and Business Litigation Groups in Columbia. The Advocate of the Year award is given each year to a member of the Palmetto state who exemplifies Appleseed's role as "a voice for low-income children and families." Ms. Eslinger's selection marks the first time a woman has been honored as Advocate of the Year. She began her legal career as an attorney with Palmetto Legal Aid Service Agency in the early 1970s and has maintained her interest in justice for those whose economic circumstances inhibit their ability to have their ability to have their voices heard.

1976

Sowell Gray Stepp & Laffitte announces that Elizabeth Van Doren Gray (workers' compensation law) and Thornwell F. Sowell (litigation and commercial litigation) have been named to the 2010 edition of Best Lawyers®.

Hugh McAngus from McAngus Goudelock & Courie's Columbia office has been selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® 2010 edition.

1977

Sowell Gray Stepp & Laffitte announces that Robert E. Stepp (commercial litigation) has been named to the 2010 edition of Best Lawyers®.

1979

The 2010 edition of The Best Lawyers in America has selected Richardson Plowden attorney Frederick A. Crawford for healthcare law.

1982

The 2010 edition of The Best Lawyers in America has selected Richardson Plowden attorney Francis M. Mack, commercial litigation and construction law.

Sowell Gray Stepp & Laffitte announces that Monteith P. Todd (personal injury litigation) has been named to the 2010 edition of Best Lawyers®.

1983

Sowell Gray Stepp & Laffitte announces that Rebecca Laffitte (personal injury litigation) has been named to the 2010 edition of Best Lawyers®.

The South Carolina Association for Justice (SCAJ) today announced that Columbia attorney Kirk Morgan will be sworn in as the organization's next president at the upcoming 2009 Annual Convention in Hilton Head. Morgan has practiced with the firm of Walker and Morgan in Lexington for 25 years. His area of specialty is representing individuals throughout the Southeast who have sustained serious burns. Founded in 1958, the group was previously known as the South Carolina Trial Lawyers Association but changed its name last year to reflect a broader mission.

1984

The 2010 edition of The Best Lawyers in America has selected Richardson Plowden attorney Franklin J. Smith, Jr., construction law.

1985

Fifteenth Circuit Solicitor Greg Hembree has been honored for his work on death penalty cases. The prosecutor recently received an award from the Association of Government Attorneys in Capital Litigation at the group's annual meeting in Miami.

G.D. "Doc" Morgan, Jr. from McAngus Goudelock & Courie's Greenville office has been selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® 2010 edition.

1986

Rusty Goudelock from McAngus Goudelock & Courie's Columbia office has been selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® 2010 edition.

1987

Thomas Lydon from McAngus Goudelock & Courie's Columbia office has been selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® 2010 edition.

Sowell Gray Stepp & Laffitte announces that J. Calhoun Watson (commercial litigation and professional malpractice) has been named to the 2010 edition of Best Lawyers®.

1988

The Greenville office of Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. (Ogletree Deakins) is pleased to announce that one of its attorneys, Mark M. Stubley has been named among The Labor Relations Institute's "Top 100 Labor Attorneys" in the U.S. for 2009. Stubley also is included in this year's prestigious annual edition of The Best Lawyers in America for labor and employment law.

1992

The National Center for State Courts, a nonprofit that aims to improve the administration of justice through leadership and service to the nation's courts, has named five new members to its board of directors. One of the new board members is Rosalyn W. Frierson, director of South Carolina Court Administration since 1998. Frierson served as a law clerk to former S.C. Chief Justice Ernest A. Finney Jr. from 1993-1998 and as a staff attorney for the S.C. Supreme Court from 1992-1993. She will serve a three-year term.

1994

Stephen Benjamin and Scott Garrett from McAngus Goudelock & Courie's Columbia office have been selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® 2010 edition.

Edwin Givens, South Carolina State University special assistant to the president and general counsel, has been selected to participate in the 2011 Liberty Fellowship class. The fellowship, a statewide leadership initiative, is sponsored by Hayne Hipp, Wofford College and the Aspen Institute. It seeks to empower the state's emerging young leaders to reach their utmost potential. Prior to joining SC State, Givens was a shareholder in the McNair Law Firm, where he specialized in administrative and governmental law. His prior legal experience includes general counsel for the South Carolina Commission for the Blind; associate attorney at Newman and Sabb; and law clerk judiciary committee for the South Carolina House of Representatives. Givens is a 2007 graduate of Leadership South Carolina.

1998

Mark Davis and Mundi George from McAngus Goudelock & Courie's Charleston and Columbia office, respectively, have been selected by their peers for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® 2010 edition.

1999

Collins & Lacy, P.C. is pleased to announce that Brian A. Comer has joined the firm Of Counsel in the practice areas of Catastrophic Injuries, Class Action, Commercial Litigation, Financial Institutions, Products Liability and Professional Liability. While in law school, Brian was a member of the South Carolina Law Review and the Order of the Wig and Robe. He was the recipient of the Carolina Petigru Scholarship as well as the Mortar Board Graduate Fellowship.

Fayssoux Law Firm, PA announces its opening at 209 E. Washington St., Greenville 29601. James W. "Jim" Fayssoux Sr. ('72) and James W. "Wally" Fayssoux Jr. are partners in the firm, and Paul S. Landis ('07) has joined the firm as associate.

The Eastern Carolina Community Foundation has announced its five newest Board of Trustees members. Among them is John M. Scott III, a 1999 alumnus and attorney at Turner, Padget, Graham & Laney PA in Florence. He serves as vice chairman of the Florence Downtown Design Review Board, is a member of the McLeod Health Foundation Professional Advisory Council and the Florence Kiwanis Club Board of Directors. He is a graduate of the Leadership Florence program and a former member of the S.C. Uniform Trust Code Reporter Committee. John and his wife, Ashley, have a son.

2003

J. Derham Cole Jr. announces the opening of Cole Law Firm, LLC located at 324 E. St. John St., Spartanburg 29302.

2004

Reyburn W. Lominack III, an attorney with Fisher & Phillips in Columbia, has been selected for the 2009-2010 Leadership Columbia Class.

Nosizi Ralephata of Turner Padget Graham & Laney was appointed to serve on the ABA/TIPS Diversity in the Profession Special Standing Committee. She serves as vice chair on the ABA Business Litigation Committee. Ralephata has been a resident in the firm's Charleston office since 2004. Her practice focuses primarily on serving international, national and regional clients on complex commercial and business litigation issues. She also counsels international clients with regard to a variety of transnational issues, including business visas and immigration issues.

2006

Emily Ann Langstaff and John Timothy Merrell were married August 8, 2009 at Fourth Presbyterian Church in Greenville, SC. John is a graduate of Clemson University and the University of South Carolina School of Law, and is employed as an attorney with Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak, and Stewart.

2007

S. Kyle Agee has become an associate of James C. Hardin III, PLLC. He practices in the areas of taxation, estate planning and tax-exempt organizations and is admitted to the bar in both Carolinas.

Fayssoux Law Firm, PA announces its opening at 209 E. Washington St., Greenville 29601. James W. "Jim" Fayssoux Sr. ('72) and James W. "Wally" Fayssoux Jr. ('99) are partners in the firm, and Paul S. Landis has joined the firm as associate.

2008

Bruner, Powell, Robbins, Wall & Mullins, LLC announces that Benjamin C. Bruner has joined the firm located at 1735 St. Julian Place, Ste. 200, P.O. Box 61110, Columbia 29260.

IN MEMORIAM

Robert Morrall Bell entered into eternal rest after a long and brave battle with cancer Thursday, August 20, 2009, at his home in Aiken, S.C. He was a retired lawyer and had served as Aiken County Attorney for 25 years. He graduated from Leavelle McCampbell High School in Graniteville, S.C., and the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1965. He had worked with Watkins, Vandiver, Kirven & Long Law Firm in Anderson, S.C.; Senior Law Clerk to Chief Judge in the U.S. Disctirct Court of S.C. in Greenville; member of Abram, Bowen & Townes in Greenville; Bell, Surasky & Brown in Langley; Senior Partner l976-2003; and from 2004-2007, had his own privated practice in Graniteville, S.C. He had been a member of the S.C. Highway Commission, which honored him by naming a portion of Road 118 "Robert M. Bell Parkway" the S.C. Democratic State Executive Committee; the S.C. Board of Chiropractic Examiners; the Aiken County Planning Commission; the Aiken County Transportaton Committee; the Board of Directors of Aiken County Cripple Children Society; and Past President and member of the Gregg/Graniteville Foundation. He had also served as a delegate to the General and Jurisdictional Conferences of the United Methodist Church. He was a member of ABA, TLA, Aiken County Bar Association, S.C. Bar Association, S.C. Trial Lawyers Association, Masons, Shriners, American Legion, Beech Island Agriculture Club, Kappa Sigma Kappa, Tau Kappa Alpha and Phi Delta Phi Chi Psi, and also served with the USAR.

Grover S. "Buddy" Parnell, Jr. formerly of Greenville, SC, died Saturday, August 1, 2009, in Boston from complications with cancer. He was a 1964 graduate of Wofford College, where he was a member of the SAE Fraternity and received his ROTC commission in the U.S. Army. Parnell earned his Juris Doctorate degree at the University of South Carolina School of Law, Class of 1968, and was a member of the Phi Delta Phi Legal Fraternity. He served on active duty as a Captain of the Artillery Corps from 1968 to 1970 with a tour in Vietnam. At the conclusion of his active duty tour Parnell returned to Greenville and served as one of Greenville County's earliest public defenders. In 1976 he and his wife, the former Mary Jane Zimmerman of Greenville, relocated with their son to Boston, MA. He practiced securities litigation with the Securities and Exchange Commission, Davis, Malm & D'Augustine, and most recently Finneran & Nicholson, PC. He was a member of the SC Bar, the Massachusetts Bar, and practiced in all levels of the federal court system.