Public hearings for Judicial Merit Selection Commission
The public hearings for the Judicial Merit Selection Commission have been scheduled to begin at 9 a.m. Monday, November 15, 2021, regarding the qualifications ofthese candidates for judicial positions.
The Judicial Merit Selection Commission will send out a BallotBox/electronic survey to all members of the Bench and Bar on Friday, July 23 regarding judicial candidates for its fall screening.
Check your spam/junk for a message from "noreply@ballotboxonline.com." All information submitted via the BallotBox survey is secure and confidential.
See the full screening schedulehereor visit the Commission’spagefor further information.
Through the end of the month, the SC Bar’s Wellness Committee invites you to liveabove the bar by increasing the number of plants you eat. Keep track of your progress by downloading the Taste a Rainbow calendar.
We also encourage members to share tips or photos of your gardens, trips to farmers’ markets, enjoyment of summer produce with your family and friends, or recipes, using the hashtag #livingabovethebar and tagging @scbar on Twitter, @scbaryld on Instagram, or the South Carolina Bar on Facebook! If you don’t use social media, but you would like to submit tips or photos for posting, please send them to Jamie Metz.
House of Delegates, Assembly to meet
The SC Bar House of Delegates and Assembly will meet in person Friday, July 30 at Tabby Place on the Beaufort Inn property in Beaufort. The business meeting will begin shortly after 11:30 a.m. Materials have been sent to all House members and are also availableonline. All attendees are cordially invited to a reception in honor of new SC Bar President Mary Sharp beginning at 4 p.m. in the courtyard just outside of the meeting space.
Summer Side Bar Series: Lawyer turns to the hives in pandemic
This season, the SC Bar is highlighting some of our members and their interesting activities outside the practice of law as part of an occasional “Summer Side Bar Series” on social media and online.
This week, get to know more about Pam Robinson, Pro Bono director at the University of South Carolina School of Law, who took up beekeeping as a hobby during the COVID-19 pandemic.
With her go-getter spirit, Robinson jumped into the beekeeping process full force. Like any good attorney, she started with research by reading books and attending virtual meetings of the Mid-state Beekeepers Association. Though there is still much to learn, Robinson continues to be amazed by the organization, skills and ingenuity of bees.
Learn more about Robinson's beekeeping journey in this Bar News.
Back to school drive
The SC Bar Young Lawyers Division is holding a backpack drive for students in need for the upcoming school year. All Bar members are invited to join the cause by making a monetary donation or a physical donation of school supplies.
A $100 donation could help purchase a backpack and fill it with 10 folders, 12 boxes of pencils, six boxes of markers, 12 highlighters, 30 boxes of crayons, six scissors, 10 bottles of glue, 10 boxes of colored pencils, six bottles of hand sanitizer, 30 spiral notebooks, and 20 packets of notebook paper.
Supplies can be dropped off at the following locations:
Columbia:SC Bar, 950 Taylor St., 29201 & Cavanaugh Thickens, 1717 Marion St., 29201
Greenville:Gallivan, White & Boyd, 55 Beattie Place, Suite 1200, 29601
Charleston:Parker Poe, 200 Meeting St., Suite 301, 29401
Lancaster:Lancaster County Courthouse, 104 N Main St., Lancaster, 29720
Monetary donations can be submitted via PayPal atkimberlypfulton@yahoo.comor Venmo at @KimberlyPSnipes.
*Photos courtesy of Aliyah Scott, UofSC School of Law + Lindsay Joyner, Gallivan White Boyd
Last week, Bar members gathered at the University of South Carolina School of Law for the The Complex & Courageous Campaign for Women's Suffrage & Parity: 100th Anniversary of 19th Amendment program. Guests got to hear from a line up of outstanding speakers including Judge J. Michelle Childs, retired Chief Justice Jean Toal, Tina Cassidy, Majorie J. Spruill, and more.
Thank you to everyone who attended and to the speakers and sponsors (including the American Bar Association Judicial Division; Solo, Small Firm and General Practice Division and UofSC Law school) who made this event possible!
We'll SEE you in September
Some of the SC Bar's most popular fall programs return in-person. Mark your calendars now for these upcoming CLEs.
It's not too late to join us Thursday, August 19 forJustice Deferred: Race and the Supreme Court. Listen to an engaging discussion between legendary South Carolina civil rights attorney Armand Derfner and Clemson University Professor Orville Vernon Burton who teamed up to write this book. The program also features a distinguished panel of South Carolina civil rights law practitioners speaking about current civil rights cases of interest in the areas of police misconduct, voting and election law, reproductive rights, and more. A book signing and refreshments will follow the program.
The program is sponsored by the South Carolina Bar-CLE Division and South Carolina Bar Civil Rights Task Force.Register here. A copy of book is included with registration.
Save the date
Join us at the Francis Marion Hotel in Charleston for the37th Annual NC/SC Labor & Employment Law Conference, October 29-30. Hotel reservations can bemade online now, with the online code: SC BAR21. If you need additional assistance in making your hotel reservation, please call 1-877-756-2121. Reservations must be made by Sept. 30. Stay tuned to your CLE Seminars email for program registration information.
On-demand at your fingertips
Looking for more CLE? Browse these programs now available on-demand.
ADVANCE SHEET UPDATES July 21, 2021 Court of Appeals Opinions
In this appeal arising from the trial court's orders entering an entry of default on Peek Performance, Inc.'s counterclaims for breach of contract and defamation and ordering it to respond to discovery, the court dismissed the appeal as interlocutory and remanded to allow for discovery and a damages hearing.
5Star Life Insurance Co. v. Peek Performance, Inc., Op. No. 5837 (S.C. Ct. App. filed July 21, 2021) (Howard Adv. Sh. No. 25 at 9) is available online.
In this appeal arising from a circuit court order granting summary judgment to DSS, the court reversed in part, vacated in part, and remanded to the circuit court for further proceedings. Because the evidence in this case supports the reasonable inference that DSS failed to exercise slight care from the outset of its investigation regarding Child's injuries, the court found the circuit court erred in granting summary judgment. In basing its proximate cause ruling on a finding that "[l]aw enforcement took no action on the case prior to the severe injury of Owen by his father," the special circuit court failed to consider evidence that DSS conveyed conflicting information to Lt. Miller in response to his effort to investigate the cause of Child's injuries. Accordingly, the court vacated the special circuit court's proximate cause finding.
Rainey v. SCDSS, Op. No. 5838 (S.C. Ct. App. filed July 21, 2021) (Howard Adv. Sh. No. 25 at 13) is available online.
In this appeal arising from Appellant’s commitment to the South Carolina Department of Mental Health as a sexually violent predator, the court affirmed his commitment. The court found a prisoner is not entitled to be competent to stand trial under the Sexually Violent Predator Act. Accordingly, the court held the trial court did not err in denying Appellant’s pretrial motion for a competency evaluation.
In the Matter of the Care and Treatment of Thomas Griffin, Op. No. 5839 (S.C. Ct. App. filed July 21, 2021) (Howard Adv. Sh. No. 25 at 27) is available online.
Announcements
Firm & hiring announcements
Gallivan White Boyd announces that Matthew R. Sanford has joined the Charleston office as an associate located at 40 Calhoun St., Suite 315, Charleston, 29401.
Holliday Ingram announces the opening of their Anderson office located at 608 N. McDuffie St., Anderson, 29621.
Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick, LLP announces that Cynthia Spieth Morton has joined the Charleston office located at 176 Croghan Spur Rd., Suite 400, Charleston, 29407.
South Carolina Legal Services announces that Julie-Anne Castro has joined the firm's Columbia office as a staff attorney located at 2109 Bull St., Columbia, 29202, and Caroline Witz has joined the firm's Charleston location as a staff attorney at 2803 Carner Ave., Charleston, 29405.
The U.S. Department of Transportation announces that Hazel A. Bridges has joined the Federal Highway Administration as an attorney advisor in the Atlanta Regional Office.
Willson Jones Carter & Baxley, P.A. announces that Langdon Cheves and Lydia Davis have joined the liability litigation team in the Greenville office located at 325 Rocky Slope Rd., Suite 201, Greenville, 29607.
In memoriam
James "Jim" Hills Sr., 72, of Myrtle Beach, died June 14. His obituary is available online.
John M. Hilliard III, 68, of Georgetown, died July 16. His obituary is available online.
William McBee Smith, 64, of Spartanburg, died June 8. His obituary is available online.
Upcoming Events
July 30
House of Delegates and Assembly Meeting, in person August 3
Corporate Banking and Securities Law Section Council August 5
Health Care Law Section Council *All meetings are virtual. unless noted otherwise
Got an Announcement? Email Jamie Metz at jamie.metz@scbar.org
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