|
2003 Compleat Lawyer Award Recipients Honored |
When the journey through law school is complete, the education of the South Carolina lawyer has only just begun. The School of Law provides the tools for the complex and challenging practice of law; but it is the lawyer who must take what they have learned and, in their subsequent careers, attempt to live up to the high standards of the institution which set them on their course. Every year since 1992, the University of South Carolina School of Law has recognized those graduates who, as a result of their outstanding professional and civic achievements, are honored with the Compleat Lawyer Awards. The recipients are selected by a committee that includes the chief justice of the South Carolina Supreme Court, the chief judge of the South Carolina Court of Appeals, the president of the South Carolina Bar, the president of the Alumni Association, and the dean of the School of Law.
The recipients for the 2003 Platinum Compleat Lawyer Awards are Wilburn Brewer Jr., William B. Regan, and Robert J. Sheheen. William Brewer Jr. is a member of the firm of Nexsen Pruet Jacobs & Pollard, L.L.C., in the Columbia, S.C., office and chairs the litigation section and heads one of the firm’s litigation teams. Brewer has extensive experience in securities, business, legal malpractice, and civil rights. A past president of the Richland County Bar Association, Brewer is also a past president of the South Carolina Bar, as well as past chair of the Trial and Appellate Advocacy Section. He is a member of the Trial Evidence Committee of the American Bar Association and is active in the South Carolina Defense Trial Attorneys Association, the International Association of Insurance Counsel, and the American College of Trial Lawyers. He is also a charter member of the Electric Cooperative Bar Association. A native of Charleston, Brewer graduated from the University of South Carolina, where he also received his law degree magna cum laude and was a member of the Order of Wig and Robe and the South Carolina Law Review. Brewer has been listed in two categories in all four editions of The Best Lawyers in America. He has also been appointed to the chief justice’s Commission on the Profession to represent the South Carolina Bar. William B. Regan is a member of Regan and Cantwell, L.L.C., located in Charleston, S.C. He graduated from the College of Charleston in 1963 and from the School of Law in 1966. While in law school, he received the Claude M. Sapp Award. He has been in private practice for 37 years and has served as corporate counsel for the city of Charleston for 27 years. During his tenure as corporate counsel, he was lead counsel in groundbreaking litigation pertaining to municipal annexation, zoning, and finance. Regan has addressed the topic of municipal law at numerous seminars. Regan is a passionate historian and is a much-sought-after master of ceremonies at Charleston-area events, dubbed by many as “ the raconteur of the Charleston Bar.” Robert J. Sheheen is a member of the firm of Savage Royall & Sheheen, L.L.P., in Camden, S.C., practicing in the areas of general civil litigation, estate planning, and probate law. Sheheen graduated from Duke University in 1965 before attending law school, where he finished in 1968. He was a member of the South Carolina House of Representatives from 1977–2000, where he served as speaker from 1986–1994. He currently holds the title of speaker emeritus. Sheheen is a member of the Kershaw County Bar Association and the South Carolina Bar. He was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Laws from The Citadel in 1986, an Honorary Doctor of Humane Letters from Winthrop University, and the Order of the Palmetto in 2000. Sheheen’s community activities include past president of the Kershaw Chamber of Commerce, sponsor for the Camden High School Key Club for 30 years, and a volunteer football coach at Camden High School for 10 years.
This year’s Gold Award recipients are Barbara George Barton, John P. Linton, and Terry E. Richardson Jr. Barbara George Barton is a shareholder in the firm of Robinson, Barton, McCarthy, Calloway & Johnson, P.A. She is a certified specialist in the field of bankruptcy law and is certified by both the South Carolina Supreme Court and the American Bankruptcy Institute. Her practice consists almost entirely of bankruptcy and related matters. She has represented debtors, creditors, and creditors’ committees in Bankruptcy Court; various parties in adversary proceedings in bankruptcy court; and handled other litigation related to bankruptcy. She obtained her J.D. in 1977 and has been with her current firm since 1986. She is the immediate past president of the South Carolina Women Lawyers Association and has served on the board of that organization and as an officer for a number of years. She has held various offices with the South Carolina Bankruptcy Law Association and was president from 1994–1995. In 2000, she received the Billy Robinson Public Service Award in recognition of her contributions to the field of bankruptcy law. In 1998, she was appointed by the South Carolina Supreme Court as an attorney to protect client’s interests. She participates in the South Carolina pro bono program and writes and lectures extensively on bankruptcy topics, which includes presentations for the South Carolina Bar Association, the South Carolina Bankruptcy Law Association, the National Business Institute, the American Bankruptcy Institute, the School of Law, Bridge the Gap, and the National Association of Bankruptcy Trustees. She served on the Board of Directors for Sistercare, Inc., the Board of Directors for Town Theatre, Friends of the Library Board for the Richland County Public Library, and on the City of Columbia Advisory Board. As a young lawyer, she chaired a committee, which produced a booklet for victims of spousal abuse, which won a national award from the American Bar Association and has been used as a model for other states. She is a member of Ebenezer Lutheran Church and serves on various boards and committees for the church, including current membership on the church council. John P. Linton received his undergraduate degree from Wofford College in 1970 and after serving in the Army, he attended law school. Upon graduation in 1975, where he was a member of the Order of Wig and Robe, Linton clerked for the South Carolina Supreme Court before joining Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd in Charleston, S.C. His areas of practice include business and commercial litigation, arbitration and mediation, and complex litigation. Linton is a permanent member of the Judicial Conference of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and has served as treasurer for the American Board of Trial Advocates. On the local level, he has served as president of the Charleston County Bar Association, was appointed by the South Carolina Supreme Court to the South Carolina Board of Bar Examiners and the Executive Committee for the State Board of Commissioners, Grievances, and Discipline. His community involvement includes serving on the Board of Directors for Trident United Way; he also serves as vice chair on the Board of Trustees at Pinewood Preparatory School, the Board of Directors for Yeamans Hall Club, Inc. and is on the Alumni Advisory Board of Directors for his alma mater, Wofford College. Terry E. Richardson Jr. is managing partner at Richardson, Patrick, Westbrook & Brickman, L.L.C., and concentrates his area of practice on class action, general litigation, nursing home neglect, securities fraud, silicosis, toxic torts, and truck accidents. Richardson graduated from Clemson University in 1967 with a BA in economics and a MA in business. Prior to attending law school, where he graduated in 1974, he worked for Wilbur Smith & Associates as an economic consultant. While in law school, Richardson was editor-in-chief of the South Carolina Law Review and a member of the Order of Wig and Robe. After law school he worked for Ness, Motley, Loadholt, Richardson & Poole, P.A., until the recent establishment of his firm. Richardson continues his involvement in the legal community by serving as chair of the Law School Alumni Association Board, on the executive committee of the South Carolina Trial Lawyers Association, the judiciary committee of the South Carolina Bar, and on the Civil Justice Reform Act Advisory Group for the District of South Carolina, among others. He received the President’s Award for service to the South Carolina Trial Lawyers and the Fritz Hollings Public Service Award from the Student Chapter of the South Carolina Trial Lawyers Association. He has served his community in a number of ways, including the Board of Trustees for the Barnwell School District, Director of the Hugh O’Brian Youth Leadership Foundation, the Board of Directors for the Alliance for South Carolina’s Children, and was recognized by the South Carolina Department of Education for his contributions to public education.
This year’s Silver Award recipients are Joab M. Lesesne III, Angus H. Maccaulay Jr., and Matthew Terry Richardson. Joab M. Lesesne III (Joey) is chief of staff for Senator Ernest F. Hollings. A native of Spartanburg, S.C., who now resides in Washington, D.C., Lesesne received a B.A. in history from Birmingham-Southern College in Birmingham Ala., and a J.D. in 1991. He has spent 11 years on Senator Hollings’ staff. Prior to that he was an associate specializing in civil litigation at the firm of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough in Columbia, S.C. Lesesne was named chief of staff in February 1999. In that capacity, he serves as primary policy and political advisor and supervises all aspects of office operations (approximately 40 staff members are located in Washington, D.C., and in three state offices). Prior to assuming his current position, he served as Senator Hollings’ legislative counsel and legislative director. He is a member of the South Carolina and District of Columbia Bar Associations. Angus M. Macaulay Jr. is a member of Nexsen Pruet Jacobs & Pollard, L.L.C., in the Columbia, S.C., office. He is certified by the South Carolina Supreme Court as a specialist in labor and employment law and practices with the labor and employment team and with the litigation team. A native of Richmond, Va., Macaulay holds a BA from the University of the South and a JD from the University of South Carolina. He is a member of the South Carolina Bar, the American Bar Association, and the Defense Research Institute. In 2002, Macaulay led Nexsen Pruet’s ‘Wills for Heroes’ pro bono initiative. He recruited 28 Nexsen Pruet volunteers who provided free wills to Columbia Police officers. The initiative required unusual scheduling to accommodate every patrol shift. Over a three-day period, the Nexsen Pruet team provided 50 officers with free wills. Macaulay is the past president of the Young Lawyers Division of the South Carolina Bar and is a former member of the bar’s Board of Governors. He also serves on numerous boards of directors of local civic organizations. Matthew Terry Richardson practices with the firm of Wyche Burgess Freeman & Parham, P.A., in its Columbia office and practices in the areas of litigation and governmental relations. He attended Duke University as an undergraduate, finishing in 1995. He then obtained his JD in 1998 and was editor-in-chief of the South Carolina Law Review and a member of the Order of Wig and Robe. After graduation, he was a judicial clerk to The Honorable Kaye G. Hearn of the South Carolina Court of Appeals and then clerked for The Honorable P. Michael Duffy of the United States District of South Carolina. Richardson serves as chair of the South Carolina Trial Lawyers Young Lawyers Committee, is on the South Carolina Appleseed Legal Justice Center Board, is vice president of the Federal Bar Association’s South Carolina Chapter, and served as South Carolina Bar Young Lawyers Division committee chair. |
