Civil Rights lawyers within 300 miles of Greenville South Carolina

A native of Greenville, South Carolina, Mr. Haskins graduated from the University of South Carolina in Columbia, where he obtained a Bachelor of Arts (B.A.) degree in Political Science and interned with the South Carolina House of Representatives, the South Carolina Senate, and worked as a Special Assistant in the Public Affairs Division for the South Carolina Office of the Attorney General. Mr. Haskins then attended Florida Coastal School of Law in Jacksonville, where he obtained his Juris Doctor (J.D.) degree. At Florida Coastal, he was Parliamentarian of the Student Bar Association Legislature and Chief Justice of the Honor Court. Having graduated Florida Coastal in two and one-half years, Mr. Haskins passed the Alaska Bar Examination and became a Member of the Alaska Bar Association. After Florida Coastal, he attended American University Washington College of Law in Washington, D.C., where he obtained his Master of Law (LL.M.) degree in Law & Government, specializing in Law, Politics, and Legislation, with a concentration on Civil & Constitutional Rights. While at American, he interned in the United States Senate and was a Legal Fellow for United States Senator Lindsey Graham (R-SC). Mr. Haskins also helped found the Alaska Bar Association Federal Regulatory Practice Section in Washington, D.C. Returning to South Carolina, Mr. Haskins passed the South Carolina Bar Examination and became a Member of the South Carolina Bar. Mr. Haskins worked in firms in Greenville and Charleston, gaining valuable experience in handling family law, estate planning, and real estate legal issues. In addition to his law practice, Mr. Haskins is a Realtor, Notary Public in South Carolina, and President of the Charleston Chapter of the University of South Carolina Alumni Association.

Chris Edwards is the managing attorney for the Upstate of South Carolina office of Moss & Associates Attorneys, PA. Chris served in the military before attending the University of South Carolina where he obtained his A.S. and B.A. degrees. After his undergraduate studies, Chris worked in public safety in Charleston, SC before receiving his Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina School of Law. His first job as an attorney was for Moore, Taylor & Thomas in West Columbia, SC where he practiced criminal, civil, and family law. Now, Chris' practice involves filing Chapter 13 and Chapter 7 Bankruptcies for individuals and businesses. His focus is on getting people the fresh start they need, saving people's homes from foreclosure, and assisting with tax debts. His office is located near downtown Greenville, SC on Laurens Road near I-385.

Gene M. Connell, Jr. has been a member of the law firm since 1983. With his vast experience in many legal areas, he has received an “AV” rating with Martindale Hubbell, the most prestigious lawyer rating service in the country. He has been involved in some of the largest class-action suits ever brought in South Carolina, one of which (Bass v. State of South Carolina) went all the way to the United States Supreme Court before it was successfully settled. He has also argued numerous appeals before the South Carolina Supreme Court, the South Carolina Court of Appeals, the South Carolina Workers’ Compensation Commission Appellate Division, the United States District Court, the United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Additionally, he has served as an expert witness in class actions on the issue of attorneys’ fees in both state and federal courts. Mr. Connell’s trial practice has included being a Mediator for other lawyers and being appointed by the Circuit Court as a Special Referee (Special Judge) to hear cases. He was also selected as the “National Trial Lawyers Top 100” in 2014 and chosen ” Best of The Beach” Lawyer.

Our firm’s founder and principal, Jody McKnight is a Personal Injury Attorney and a native of Charleston, S.C. He attended the University of South Carolina, and earned his B.A. in Political Science in 1987; as well as his law degree, Juris Doctorate in 1993. Jody McKnight as well as his entire team at McKnight Law Firm works hard for the people of the State of South Carolina every day to above all, “balance the scales of justice.”

Joel Hamilton is a co-founder of the Schiller and Hamilton law firm and manages the operations of the statewide firm’s office in Rock Hill, SC. With 12 years of experience representing injured parties, Joel has recovered tens of millions of dollars on behalf of his clients in a range of cases including auto accidents, trucking accidents, mass transit accidents, civil rights violations, premises liability and medical malpractice. Joel is always in service to his community and formerly served as a York County Councilman representing District 7. In that role, he was the chair of the County’s Economic Development Committee and enjoyed working to recruit and encourage new economic opportunities in the area. Additionally, Joel is active on several boards and commissions. He is currently the Chair of the Historic Rock Hill Foundation, as well as serving on the boards of the Rock Hill Economic Development Corporation, York County Regional Chamber, Winthrop University Board of Trustees, and the Gravity Center Foundation. He also formerly served on the boards of the Charlotte Regional Business Alliance, Fort Mill Economic Partners, and Christmasville in Rock Hill. However, Joel’s favorite time is the time he gets to spend with his wife of 13 years and two young daughters and enjoys taking in their Charlotte Independence Soccer games and listening to their violin lessons.

Bill Hopkins was born and raised in Bishopville, South Carolina. He attended North Carolina State University where he received his B.S. degree in Textile Chemistry in 1988. After graduation, Bill worked for nearly three years for Springs Industries, Inc., a large textile company, at a dyeing and finishing plant in Lancaster, South Carolina. Bill was working as a third shift superintendent at the time he was accepted into law school at the University of South Carolina. During law school, Bill served as the Research Editor for the South Carolina Environmental Law Journal. It was also during law school that he began clerking for the law firm of Whaley, McCutchen, Blanton & Rhodes, LLP, one of the oldest and most prestigious litigation firms in South Carolina, which had originally been founded in 1936. Bill continued to work at the firm after graduation and ultimately became a partner in the firm and then was elected Managing Partner in 2005. Bill and the firm were selected by South Carolina Attorney General Henry McMaster to represent the State of South Carolina in lawsuits brought against several pharmaceutical companies regarding their reporting of false and inflated prices for drugs which resulted in overpayments by the State Medicaid and State Health Plan programs, known as the AWP litigation. Bill remained as the Managing Partner until December 31, 2007 when the firm dissolved after 71 years of continuous practice. Bill founded and started a new law firm called McCutchen Blanton Hopkins & Campbell, LLP, where he continued to practice with Thomas McCutchen and Hoover Blanton, two of the most well known leaders and stewards of the South Carolina Bar. Bill ran this law firm until November 1, 2010, when he joined the national law firm Beasley Allen Crow Methvin Portis & Miles, P.C. in Mongomery, Alabama in the Consumer Fraud section with an emphasis and focus on class action litigation. Bill has been active in various bar associations and organizations, including the South Carolina Bar. At the time he joined Beasley Allen, Bill was serving on the Professional Responsibility Committee and the Conventions Committee of the South Carolina Bar. Bill is currently serving as the Co-Chairman of the Class Action Litigation Group of the American Association for Justice. Bill served as the Chairman of the Employment Rights Section of the South Carolina Association for Justice for three years. In 2010 Bill Hopkins was elected to the South Carolina Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), which is a distinct recognition and privilege. ABOTA is a national organization of both plaintiff and defense trial attorneys which is committed to the preservation of trial by jury. To be eligible for consideration, an attorney must have tried at least 20 civil jury trials to jury verdict as lead counsel. Bill has tried over 70 civil cases to jury verdict as sole or lead counsel, in areas such as personal injury, business torts, fraud, products liability, trade secrets, unfair trade practices, insurance matters and employment. Bill has also had an active appellate practice and has argued 8 cases before the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, including an en banc argument in the case of Ocheltree v. Scollon Productions, Inc., a seminal case regarding the law of sexual harassment, in which many organizations (including the EEOC) made appearances and submitted amicus briefs, and which case was the subject of numerous articles, including an article in the New York Times. Bill has also argued several cases before the South Carolina Court of Appeals and the South Carolina Supreme Court. Bill has also developed a successful class action practice, being appointed by several different courts as lead counsel or liaison counsel in many different class action cases.

Zachary Steven Naert was born in St. Louis, Missouri, on February 8, 1984. His father was in the Navy, and shortly after being born they were transferred to where he grew up – the Charleston, South Carolina area. Zach graduated from Fort Dorchester High School in North Charleston in 2002, with honors, and also earned an International Baccalaureate degree. Zach accepted academic scholarships to first attend Winthrop University and then Charleston School of Law. He earned two Bachelor of Science degrees from Winthrop, Modern Languages with a concentration in Spanish and Political Science from the honors college, also graduating with honors in 2006. It was also during college that Zach lived in Spain for a semester attending The University of Salamanca, one of the oldest universities in the world, earning outstanding marks. During his time at the Charleston School of Law, Zach was offered an internship for the United Stated Judge Advocates General’s (JAG) office and worked at the JAG office on Shaw Air Force Base, South Carolina, watching F-16 fighter jets all-lunch-long. He also worked extensively as an intern with the Migrant Farmworker Division of South Carolina Legal Services, a non-profit agency offering free civil legal services to indigent people. It was here that Zach got his first taste of advising and assisting people in standing up for their rights. In school, Zach earned a CALI Award of Excellence in Property and served as an Articles Editor on the Federal Courts Law Review. He graduated with honors in 2009 Following law school, Zach continued to work as a Migrant Farmworker attorney, which included traveling around the State of South Carolina to advise farmworkers about their rights and bringing lawsuits in the Federal Courts. It was during this time that Zach lived in Zacatecas, Mexico, studying at the FENIX Language Institute and volunteering at the Center for Migrant Rights. As a result of all of his studies and travels, Zach does speak, read, and write Spanish rather fluently. Zach has also worked for other private civil litigation law firms in Charleston and Hilton Head, South Carolina. In 2011, Naert Law Firm, LLC was founded. Zach has been to the South Carolina Supreme Court and prevailed. He has also practiced in Federal Court, the Court of Appeals, the Court of Common Pleas, Small Claims or Magistrate’s Court, Arbitration, and others. Zach maintains a balanced workload of workers’ compensation and car accident cases, along with timeshare disputes and less common personal injury matters like slip and falls, nursing home abuse and neglect, and premises liability. Zach prides himself on maintaining a high level of client-satisfaction through communication and education. All of Zach’s clients are offered his personal cell phone number. If he is playing the guitar, he should stop and answer your call. Zach enjoys playing and listening to music, and he is also a fan of sports and a collector of sports cards and memorabilia. However, he enjoys nothing more than being a family man with his better half, Stephanie, and two little boys, Paxton and Haddox.