Q&A

1. What inspired you to pursue a career in law?

My father was a lifetime DEA agent, and he knew a lot of attorneys. I had the opportunity to watch these people in action—see them in the courtroom, watch them sway a jury—and they commanded so much respect. It was awe-inspiring, mesmerizing. I said, I want that.

2. What sets you apart in your area of legal expertise?

One word comes to mind: experience.

I’m licensed in both Florida and South Carolina. I ran my own practice in Florida for ten years and worked for several high-volume attorneys in South Carolina for 23 years. I’ve handled and closed out over 5,500 injury cases in 33 years.

I also have an uncanny ability to process and summarize massive amounts of documentation, especially in nursing home cases. I’ll get 10,000 pages of records, go through them quickly, find what’s important, and condense it all onto one sheet of paper. That one sheet stays with me through trial—I know the entire case just by looking at it. It also saves clients money because our expert witnesses don’t have to sift through 10,000 pages at $750 an hour. They just look at my summary, and they know exactly where to go.

3. Could you describe the journey that brought you where you are today?

I come from a modest upbringing. Nobody gave me anything—I bought my own car, paid for my own gas and insurance, got my own phone, put myself through college, and paid for my own law school. I waited tables all the way through high school, college, and law school. I even waited tables while opening my first law practice.

That work ethic stuck with me. My boss says I’m the hardest-working employee he’s ever seen. I start my day at 7 a.m., checking emails and office messages. I work late nights, weekends, holidays—it’s just how I’m wired. I’ll wake up in the middle of the night with ideas, log in from home, and jot things down. I’ve been working since I was 14 years old—my first job was sweeping up hair and folding towels at a barbershop.

4. What do you consider your most significant achievement?

My three kids.

They’re 24, 22, and 20 years old. I was a hands-on dad from day one—took them to daycare, aftercare, activities, the gym. And I put them all through college with no student loans. Two Clemson Tigers, one USC Gamecock—no debt. That was important to me.

I also take pride in the referrals I get from other attorneys. I love getting cases that other lawyers couldn’t settle. When I take those cases and turn them into big settlements or jury verdicts, the client is amazed. That’s a great feeling. And because of that, attorneys keep sending cases my way.

5. Can you share a case or client experience that had a profound impact on you and/or your career?

It’s not just one case—it’s a series of cases.

Other attorneys often send me cases they can’t resolve—cases where the insurance company isn’t offering enough money. And I love those cases. I fight for the clients, and I turn them into big settlements or verdicts. It feels great when a client is stunned by the outcome. And it keeps happening—I’ve had hundreds of referrals over the past few years from attorneys who trust me to get results.

6. If you weren’t an attorney, what alternative career path might you have pursued?

Business, for sure.

When I was a senior in college, I wasn’t sure what I wanted to do. I figured I’d get my MBA—it was just two more years, no big deal. Then a friend of mine told me, You know, law school is only three years. That was the first time I realized it wasn’t that much longer. So I took the LSAT, got in, and here I am.

7. What advice would you give to aspiring attorneys who are going through law school right now?

Do it for the love of law.

Don’t do it for your dad, your granddad, or because people expect you to. Do it because you truly love the law. And be humble—just because you’re a lawyer doesn’t make you more important than anyone else. I treat the CEO of a company the same way I treat the janitor. We’re all people with different jobs.

8. What’s one thing about the legal profession that might surprise people?

It’s nothing like what you see on TV.

On TV, someone gets charged with a crime, and the next day they’re in trial. In reality, there’s years of work in between—negotiations, motions, hearings. Most lawyers never even see the inside of a courtroom. Maybe 1% to 5% of attorneys are actually trial lawyers. And there are so many different areas of law beyond what you see on legal dramas.

9. Outside of practicing law, what hobbies or activities do you enjoy in your free time?

The majority of my time is spent working—that’s what gets me up in the morning. But my one hobby is the gym.

I work out every single day—cardio, weights, everything. I’ve got three different gym memberships, depending on what I want to work on that day. My daughter is a gym rat too, and my son is into fitness as well. We’re really into health and nutrition. You are what you eat. People say, Oh, I just can’t lose weight—it’s how I was born. No. It’s caloric intake. It’s math.

10. What source of inspiration or motivation has been the most significant driving force in your professional career and in your personal life?

My mother.

She always had confidence in me. She never doubted me, even when I doubted myself.

I remember when I took the Florida Bar Exam in 1991. Back then, results came by mail. When I got the letter, it was thin—just one piece of paper. I thought, I don’t want to ruin my weekend if I failed, so I set it aside. My mother grabbed it, opened it, and came running back, screaming, You passed, you idiot! She was more confident in me than I was.

11. Do you have a favorite quote?

Two things have stuck with me my entire life:

• “Persistence and determination are the keys to success.” That’s what my dad always told me, and it’s how I live my life.
• “Luck is when preparation meets opportunity.” You don’t just get lucky—if you’re prepared when an opportunity arises, that’s what creates luck.