P.O. Box 1402
Columbia, SC 29202

Officers

President
Kay D. West
Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP
Meridian, 17th Floor
1320 Main Street, Columbia, SC 29201
Tel: 803.255.9582
Fax: 803.255.9161
kay.west@nelsonmullins.com
President Elect
Christy Ford Allen
Wills & Massalon, LLC
P.O. Box 859
Charleston, SC 29402
Tel: 843.727.1144
callen@wills-massalon.com
Vice President
Hannah Rogers Metcalfe
Wyche Burgess Freeman & Parham, PA
P.O. Box 728
Greenville, SC 29602-0728
hrogers@wyche.com
Treasurer
Sam Sammataro
Turner Padget Graham & Laney, PA
P.O. Box 1473
Columbia, SC 29202
Tel: 803.227-4253
ssammataro@turnerpadget.com
Secretary
Mary Giorgi
Gallivan, White & Boyd, PA
P.O. Box 10589
Greenville, SC 29601
Tel: 864.271.5364
mgiorgi@gwblawfirm.com
Im. Past Pres. & National Delegate
Christie Companion Varnado
The Seibels Law Firm, PA
127 King Street, Suite 100
Charleston, SC 29401
Tel: 843.722.6777
cvarnado@seibelsfirm.com
Fourth Circuit VP
Thomas P. Gressette, Jr.
Richardson, Patrick, Westbrook & Brickman, LLC
P.O. Box 1007
Mt. Pleasant, SC 29465
Tel: 843.727.6595
Fax: 843.216.6509
tgressette@rpwb.com
Board Members
The Honorable Joseph F. Anderson, Jr.
U.S. District Court
901 Richland St.
Columbia, SC 29201
Tel: 803.765.5136
Fax: 803.253.3246
 
The Honorable Bruce Howe Hendricks
U.S. Magistrate Judge
P.O. Box 10823
Greenville, SC  29063
Tel: 864.239.5710
Fax: 864.239.5714

E. Jean Howard
U.S. Attorney's Office, Greenville Branch
P.O. Box 10067
Greenville, SC 29603
Tel: 864.282.2100
Jeanne.howard@usdoj.gov
                                    
 
Zandra L. Johnson
Leatherwood Walker Todd & Mann, PC
P.O. Box 87
Greenville, SC 29601
Tel: 864.552.4504
Fax: 864.240.2498
Zjohnson@lwtm.com
R. Bruce Wallace
Nexsen Pruet, LLC
P.O. Box 486
Charleston, SC 29402
Tel: 843.720.1760
Fax: 843.720.1777
bwallace@nexsenpruet.com
Courtney Crook Shytle
Meridian, 17th Floor
Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP
1320 Main Street
Columbia, SC 29201
Tel: 803.255.9453
Fax: 803.255.9015
Courtney.shytle@nelsonmullins.com
Brian L. Quisenberry
Young Clement Rivers, LLP
28 Broad Street
Charleston, SC 29401
Tel: 843.724.6641
Fax: 843.579.1325
bquisenberry@ycrlaw.com

 

A Message from the Chapter President

The South Carolina Chapter was originally formed in 1964, but fell dormant for years.  In 2001, a group of lawyers, led by Amie Clifford, worked to reactivate the state chapter.  The chapter was reissued a charter in September of 2001 with 30 members. In the years since, the chapter has grown to over 300 members from private practice, government agencies, military branches, local law schools, and the courts.  The chapter is committed to serving as the liaison among federal lawyers and judges.  If you have not already done so, I invite you to join the Federal Bar Association and the South Carolina Chapter.
 
This year, the South Carolina Chapter will continue to host its annual summer law clerk seminars in the Charleston, Greenville and Columbia courthouses, which are designed to introduce law students to the local federal courthouse and to federal practice.  Throughout the Spring and Summer, the Chapter will host small “Meet & Greet” luncheons for members around the state.  At each site, members will have the opportunity to sit down with a federal district court or magistrate judge and discuss topics applicable to federal practice in a relaxed and casual setting.
 
Following the success of last year’s meeting in Charleston, the 2009 Annual Meeting and Judicial Reception will be held in Greenville in August or September.  The meeting and reception will follow a half-day ethics CLE.  We plan to schedule the CLE to begin after lunch on a Thursday, with the reception to follow that evening.  We will let you know as soon as we have secured a date.
 
The Chapter is in year two of a three-year chapter membership initiative, which will include the formation of an associate student chapter at the Charleston School of Law.  We are also exploring other long term projects designed to make membership in our Chapter the most valuable bar association membership for South Carolina’s federal practitioners.
 
In order for us to make all of this happen, we need your help.  If you are not yet a member, please join and get involved.  If you are already a member, please plan to attend an event in your area, sign up for a committee or offer your office to host an event.

Kay D. West
South Carolina Chapter President

Volunteers Needed

The South Carolina Chapter has a number of projects planned for during the coming year.  If you would like to become actively involved in the Chapter, please contact Chapter President Christie Varnado at cvarnado@kernodlelaw.com or one of the other officers listed on this page.  We will find a way to get you involved.

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CLE Accreditation

As of October 3, 2008, the Supreme Court of South Carolina's Commission on CLE & Specialization has approved accreditation of 3.00 hours (LEPR) for the 2008 SC Federal Bar Association Ethics CLE Seminar held in Charleston on September 11, 2008.  The course number was 284818.

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Calendar of Events

January 4, 2010
Luncheon to Honor the Service of  the  U.S. Marshalls and Court Security Officers (CSOs)
Location:  Each of the South Carolina federal courthouses.   


September, 2010
Annual Meeting and Judicial Reception
Location: Columbia, SC                                                                      

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Recent Events

October 15–16, 2009
USC Law Review's Symposium on the Fourth Circuit
Sponsored by the South Carolina Chapter of the Federal Bar Association
Location: USC School of Law Auditorium, 701 S. Main St, Columbia, SC 29208
Keynote address by Hon. J. Harvey Wilkinson, III, Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals
Registration: Reception to follow. Please see brochure for more information.

September 17, 2009
Eighth Annual CLE and Judicial Reception
Time: 1:30 p.m.
Location: Westin Poinsett, Greenville, SC
Like last year, the seminar will be a three (3) hour presentation on ethics for the federal practitioner. The Annual Meeting, including the election of officers, will immediately follow the seminar, and the evening will culminate with a Judicial Reception starting at 5:30 p.m.with cocktails and heavy hors d'oeuvre.
Cost: The event is free to all current FBA members and is $150 for non-members, which includes a one-year membership to the organization.
Registration: Please contact Kathy Garvin at (843) 795-7800 or kgarvin@kernodlelaw.com to register for the CLE and Reception. The Westin Poinsett is holding a block of rooms at a special reduced rate for the event. Reservations

August 26, 2009
Meet and Greet Luncheon featuring Hon. Joseph F. Anderson Jr.
Hosted by the South Carolina Chapter of the FBA
Time: 12:00 p.m.
Location: Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP, Meridian Building, 1320 Main Street, 17th Floor, Columbia, SC
Cost:  $10.00 (includes box lunch)
Registration: RSVP by August 24 to charlene.ruff@nelsonmullins.com or Charlene Ruff at 803.255.9219.

August 5, 2009
Summer Law Clerks Seminar
Location: Greenville, SC
Registration: Contact Hannah Metcalfe (864.242.8212) for further information.

January 21, 2009
Meet & Greet Luncheon featuring Hon. Bristow Marchant
Location: 28 Broad Street, Charleston
Time: 12:30 p.m.
Cost: $10
Registration: RSVP to cvarnado@kernodlelaw.com by January 19th.

United States Magistrate Judge Paige J. Gossett has extended an invitation to the members of the South Carolina Chapter of the Federal Bar Association to attend her Investiture ceremony on Friday, January 30, 2009, at 2:00 p.m. in Courtroom 1 of the Matthew J. Perry, Jr. Courthouse (901 Richland St., Columbia), as well as the reception immediately following the ceremony, to be held at the Greater Columbia Chamber of Commerce Building (930 Richland St., Columbia).
 
Please direct any questions to FBA President Christie Varnado at cvarnado@kernodlelaw.com or 843.795.7800.
   
March 27, 2009
Meet and Greet Luncheon featuring Hon. Paige J. Gossett, U.S. District Court Magistrate Judge
Presented by the South Carolina Chapter
Time: Noon
Location: Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough
1320 Main St., 17th Floor, Columbia
Cost: $10 (includes box lunch)
Registration: RSVP by March 25, 2009 and send check payable to S.C. Chapter Federal Bar Association, Attn: Kay West, Nelson Mullins Law Firm
1320 Main Street, 17th Floor, Columbia, SC 29201On September 11, 2008, the Chapter hosted a 3 hour ethics CLE, followed by the Annual Meeting and Judicial Reception. This year, the reception celebrated Hon. David C. Norton’s first year as chief administrative judge. The event was held at the newly restored Historic Federal Courtroom at 23 Chalmers Street in Charleston, South Carolina.  This site was home to the Eastern District of South Carolina from January 1845 until November of 1860 and was witness to some of the dramatic events that led up to South Carolina’s succession from the Union.


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Awards

At its Annual Meeting and Judicial Reception on September 11, 2008, the Chapter awarded the Inaugural Presidential Award for Outstanding Service to the South Carolina Chapter to former Chapter President Nancy Bloodgood.  Bloodgood currently serves as the Chapter’s National Delegate to the Federal Bar Association and as chair of the FBA’s Labor and Employment Section. The Chapter also recognized Hon.  Margaret B. Seymour with award in recognition of her long service on the South Carolina Chapter’s Board of Directors.

At the National Annual Meeting and Convention of the Federal Bar Association in September of 2008, the South Carolina Chapter was awarded the Presidential Citation Award for its work in conjunction with the Federal Magistrate Judges Association and the Federal Courts Law Review at the Charleston School of Law in presenting a symposium on “Privacy in the Federal Courts.” The keynote speakers at the symposium was Arthur R. Miller, senior co-author of Federal Practice & Procedure and professor at the New York University School of Law.

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