News Article

GREENVILLE, S.C.—Womble Carlyle’s Greenville Office hosted a reception honoring U.S. District Court Judge Matthew J. Perry Jr. as part of the National Bar Association’s Region IV Conference.

The reception was held Friday, December 5th at Womble Carlyle’s Greenville office. Judge Perry is South Carolina’s first African-American District Court Judge, having been appointed in 1979 by President Jimmy Carter.

Judge Perry grew up in humble circumstances just a few miles from the courthouse in Columbia, S.C. that now bears his name. After serving in the Army during World War II, he returned to South Carolina and attended the South Carolina State College Law School. He began practicing law in Spartanburg and was at the forefront of many of South Carolina’s most important integration cases in the 1960s, including the 1963 case that integrated Clemson University. In 1972, he won a reapportionment case that created single-member legislative districts in South Carolina. Judge Perry was elected to the South Carolina Hall of Fame in 2007.

“Judge Perry is a titan of the legal profession, and the State of South Carolina is a far better place because of his contributions,” said Brent Clinkscale, the Chairman of Womble Carlyle’s Diversity Committee and a member in the firm’s Greenville office. “We are proud and honored to join in the celebration of his outstanding career.”

South Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice Jean H. Toal served as the keynote speaker for the Saturday, December 6th, luncheon at the Region IV Conference. Womble Carlyle also sponsored this luncheon and the conference, which were held at the Hyatt Regency. National Bar Association President Rodney Moore participated in the weekend activities as well.

Attending from Womble Carlyle were Brent Clinkscale, Allen Grumbine, Catherine Atwood, Jermaine Johnson, Sterling Laney, Jacquelyn Austin, Daryle and Alison Bost, Rory Whelehan, Keith Munson, Clay Custer, Larry Estridge, Laurel Blair, Kenny Tatum, Ashley James and Barbara Fountain. Also in attendance were:

• The Honorable Margaret B. Seymour (U.S. District Court, District of South Carolina)
• The Honorable Gerald Bruce Lee (U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia)
• The Honorable Jasper M. Cureton (Former Judge, South Carolina Court of Appeals)
• The Honorable Henry J. Mims (Greer Municipal Court)
• The Honorable Pandora Jones-Glover (Orangeburg County Probate Court)
• The Honorable Robert N. Jenkins, Sr. (Greenville County Family Court)

The National Bar Association’s Region IV is comprised of affiliates in South Carolina, North Carolina, Virginia, Maryland and West Virginia.