Over the past decade Lynn Seithel has litigated against some of the largest pharmaceutical companies in the world including American Home Products, Wyeth, and Glaxosmithkline to name a few. She was one of the first to pursue lawsuits against the makers of Avandia®, Advair®, Paxil®, Serevent®, Vioxx®, Yaz®, and Trasylol®. Over the years, a large portion of her practice centered on representing parents and children in birth defect litigation as a result of mothers taking potentially dangerous drugs during pregnancy that lacked adequate safety warnings. Some of the potentially dangerous drugs during pregnancy include Paxil®, Zoloft®, Prozac®, Wellbutrin®, Depakote®, Diflucan®, Topomax® and Serequel®. Although she primarily concentrates on pharmaceutical litigation, her past experience includes work in tobacco and auto defect litigation as well.

Kevin Phillips is originally from Snellville, GA. He attended the College of Charleston, graduating cum laude with a B.A. in Communication. From College of Charleston, he attended The Charleston School of Law under taking an active academic schedule. Kevin was appointed President of the Charleston County Bar Association Student Division. As a Board Member of the School’s Trial Advocacy program he represented the Charleston School of Law in multiple competitions across the Country. He competed for the Moot Court Team, and upon graduation was honored for his Pro Bono work; completing over 150 hours before graduation. During his time in Charleston, Kevin fell in love with the Low County and knew it would be his home. He moved to Beaufort shortly after graduation, and was admitted to the South Carolina Bar in 2017.

Charlie is originally from Columbia, South Carolina. He attended The Citadel, graduating with a B.A. in English. After graduating from The Citadel, he attended University of South Carolina School of law, where he was named to the dean’s list. During law school, Charlie worked as a law clerk at several different litigation firms in preparation to be a trial attorney in the future. After graduation from law school, he served as the judicial law clerk for Circuit Court Judge D. Craig Brown, where he further gained insight into trial advocacy and civil litigation. After completing this judicial clerkship, he joined Schiller and Hamilton out of a desire to represent members of the South Carolina community who are injured and need a zealous advocate to help them be made whole.

Jarrunis L. Yates (J.R.) grew up in Rock Hill, SC and graduated from Westminster Catawba. He earned a Bachelor of Arts degree in secondary education from Clemson University. He received his Juris Doctorate from Howard University School of Law. While attending Howard University, J.R. was selected for the criminal justice clinic, which was tasked with representing indigent defendants in Washington, DC charged with felonies and misdemeanors. J.R. received a direct commission as a Judge Advocate in the United States Air Force Reserve in March 2011. In his reserve capacity, Major Yates is a Staff Judge Advocate. J.R. is admitted to practice law before the Supreme Courts of South Carolina and Alabama, the United States District Courts of South Carolina and Middle District of Alabama, the Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces and the Air Force Court of Appeals. He has been a social security disability lawyer for over 10 years. J.R.’s experience as both a civilian and reserve attorney gives him a unique perspective on addressing various legal issues facing families today.

Ask J. Taylor Bell what he most enjoys about his criminal defense law practice and his response is unequivocal: “Fighting the power.” “Criminal defense attorneys are the shield that protects the individual from the almighty government machine,” he says. “It doesn’t care about feelings or individual circumstances. It’s a machine, and it wants to roll. If you get caught in it, you just get run over unless you have somebody who’s going to stand up for you.” A North Carolina native who grew up near Charlotte, Bell received a Bachelor of Science degree in business administration from the University of North Carolina at Wilmington in 2007. After working in the financial services industry for a year, Bell decided to go to law school after realizing he wanted a direct hand in helping people. Bell has focused on representing criminal defendants ever since his student days at the University of South Carolina School of Law, where he received his Juris Doctor degree in 2011. During law school, he clerked at the Richland County Public Defender’s office in Columbia and continued to work there as an attorney after earning his law license. He remained at the public defender’s office for six years, handling the full spectrum of criminal defense cases, ranging from the most serious felonies to misdemeanors. He tried numerous jury trials in both general sessions court and magistrates’ court, and was one of the lead defense attorneys in the first human-trafficking case ever brought before the South Carolina Grand Jury. In 2015, Bell received intensive additional training in the art of jury persuasion at the National Criminal Defense College Trial Practice Institute.

Luke was born and raised in Lancaster, SC. He graduated from the University of South Carolina with a B.A. in Political Science, and the Florida Coastal School of Law with a J.D. He became a member of the South Carolina Bar in 2011. Luke has previously served as Assistant Solicitor for the Sixth Judicial Circuit of South Carolina, as General Counsel for the Lancaster County Sheriff’s Office, and has worked as a civil and criminal litigator. Luke will be practicing in the Lancaster and Rock Hill Offices, focusing on probate, criminal, and general civil litigation. Luke enjoys spending time with his family.

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.

Paul Owen is a practicing lawyer in the state of South Carolina handling family law matters.

Proudly serving Charleston taking divorce and family law cases.

James Verner is a practicing lawyer in the state of South Carolina.