FAMILY LAW AFTERNOON SESSION
South Carolina COURSE # 224579
1:15 - 1:45
Administrative Issues
(30 Minute CLE)
+ The Honorable Jessica A. Salvini
Jessica Ann Salvini was born in Upland, California in 1975. Her mother, Hazel L. Salvini, nee Shelly, is a former nurse and homemaker. Her father, John M. Salvini, is retired from the Burlington Northern Santa Fe Railway (BNSF) where he worked for 57 years. Her mother’s family has been in California over 100 years, and her father’s parents immigrated to California from Italy and Croatia.
Judge Salvini grew up in the Inland Empire of Southern California in San Bernardino Valley. She is the oldest of four sisters. She graduated from Fontana High School in 1993, earned her BA in Political Science with a Minor in History from the University of California Riverside in 1997. Inspired by her childhood dreams of becoming a judge, she began law school at Golden Gate University School of Law in San Francisco, California with a focus on trial advocacy. She received her JD in 2000 along with a certificate of distinction in litigation and recognition for her achievements in the art and science of advocacy.
Judge Salvini was admitted to the California Bar in 2000 and opened her own law firm where she was also admitted to practice in the US District Court for the Northern District of California and the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. ’She practiced in northern California for two years, focusing primarily on litigation in the civil, family, and criminal courts.
Admitted to the South Carolina Bar in 2001, Judge Salvini moved to South Carolina in 2002 where she was admitted to practice in the US District Court for the District of South Carolina as well as the US Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. She started a law firm, and was senior partner from its inception until her election to the Family Court Bench in 2019. Judge Salvini's practice continued to involve litigation in the civil, family, and criminal courts of South Carolina.
In addition to her practice, Judge Salvini was appointed to serve as an Associate Municipal Court Judge for the City of Mauldin in 2007, and became the Chief Trial Judge for the City of Mauldin in 2009. Judge Salvini's time as Chief Judge for the City of Mauldin reinforced her desire to contribute to society on the bench. She is devoted to providing a Court that is fair and civil to all who appear before the bar of justice.
1:45 - 2:00
How to Make Money in Family Law
(15 minute CLE)
+ Joseph M. Ramseur, Jr.
Joe is a partner with Mitchell Ramseur, LLC. Consistently named among the top family lawyers by Super Lawyers – South Carolina, Joe is also named by The Best Lawyers In America as one of the leading attorneys in Family Law.
His practice is focused on providing counsel in a broad range of matrimonial and family law matters including divorce, child custody and visitation, alimony and child support, paternity, prenuptial, and separation agreements. He has extensive trial and appellate experience in addition to settlement resolutions and mediation.
Joe’s affiliations include the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, the South Carolina State Bar Association and the Family Law Section of the American Bar Association.
2:00 - 2:15
Bankruptcy Issues
(15 minute CLE)
+ Lauren Maxwell
Since January 2015, Lauren Maxwell has served as the career law clerk to the Honorable Helen Elizabeth Burris, United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of South Carolina, stationed in
Spartanburg. Lauren previously worked in private practice at Gallivan, White & Boyd, P.A. and Turner Padget Graham & Laney P.A. in Greenville, with concentrations in business litigation as well as banking, bankruptcy, and creditors’ rights. Before entering private practice, Lauren served two years as the term law clerk for Judge Burris.
Lauren was born and raised in Northern Virginia, but found a second home in South Carolina after enrolling at Clemson University, where she earned her undergraduate degree, magna cum
laude, in Communication Studies and Political Science. While at Clemson, Lauren was a member of Phi Beta Kappa and the Calhoun Honors College. Lauren received her J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law at Chapel Hill in 2010. She graduated with honors and served as a staff member of the North Carolina Law Review.
Lauren, her husband Mills, and their twin boys, Griffith and Crayton, live in Greenville and enjoy boating on Lakes Keowee and Hartwell and cheering on the Tigers at home and away games football games.
+ Jason Ward
Jason, a native of Rock Hill, South Carolina, has been practicing law in Upstate South Carolina since 2012. He is currently a solo practitioner at Jason Ward Law, LLC. His main area of practice is bankruptcy and debt relief but he occasionally practices in family court as well. Prior to opening Jason Ward Law, LLC, Jason was employed as a term law clerk for the Honorable Helen Burris in the United States Bankruptcy Court. Jason also has also worked for a chapter 11 debtor’s firm and a chapter 7 bankruptcy trustee.
Jason earned his law degree from the University of South Carolina in 2012. He also earned his undergraduate degree in Sport and Entertainment Management from the University of South Carolina in 2009. Jason resides in Simpsonville with his wife, Eileen, and their three boys, Edin, Milo, and Hayes.
2:15 - 2:45
Not an Afterthought: The Importance of Details in Financial Declarations
(30 Minute CLE)
+ The Honorable Timothy E. Madden
Judge Madden is a native of Laurens where he graduated from the public schools. He obtained a finance degree from Wofford College in 1985, and a law degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1988. After law school he settled in Greenville with the “Wilkins” firm where he later became a partner. In 2006 Judge Madden and the other partners of Wilkins & Madden, P.A. joined the Greenville office of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP. While at Nelson Mullins Judge Madden served as managing partner of the Greenville office.
When in private practice Judge Madden was primarily a litigator. He represented people and companies in a wide range of types of cases. Most of his professional time involved representing husbands, wives, mothers and fathers in family law matters in Family Court across South Carolina. He also gave freely of his time to those who could not afford to pay including service as a volunteer prosecutor for domestic violence cases. Judge Madden’s practice included more than 25 appeals to the South Carolina Supreme Court and Court of Appeals. He was a Fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers where he served in leadership positions. Colleagues in the bar honored Judge Madden for several years by voting for his inclusion in Best Lawyers in America, Super Lawyers, and other publications. He also served multiple terms in the House of Delegates of the South Carolina Bar.
Judge Madden is part of the faculty of the National Family Law Trial Institute in Houston, Texas, where lawyers from across the country spend a week of intensive training focused on courtroom advocacy. He frequently participates at local, state, and national continuing education programs. Judge Madden authored the chapter titled “Marital Dissolution and Child Custody” of the South Carolina Practice Manual, and served on the editorial board for the treatise Marital Litigation.
Outside his law practice, Judge Madden chaired and served on the South Carolina Education Lottery Commission. Previously he served on the South Carolina Transportation Infrastructure Bank board, and the Greenville County Transportation Committee. His involvement in non-profit organizations includes board service on the South Carolina Student Loan Corporation, Welvista, and the Upcountry History Museum.
Judge Madden is the recipient of the Charles H. Gray, Jr. Distinguished Service Award from Wofford College, and the Compleat Lawyer Award from the University of South Carolina Law School Alumni. He is a Liberty Fellow.
Judge Madden and his wife are the proud parents of two adult daughters.
+ The Honorable Katherine H. Tiffany
Judge Tiffany was born in Spartanburg, South Carolina and was raised in Gaffney, South Carolina. After graduating from Spartanburg Day School, Judge Tiffany attended the University of South Carolina Honors College, where she was a member of Alpha Delta Pi Sorority and Phi Beta Kappa Honor Society. She graduated in 1992 Magna Cum Laude with a Major in English and a minor in South Carolina Studies, and then attended the University of South Carolina School of Law, graduating in 1995 and becoming the fourth generation in her family to enter the practice of law.
From 1995 to 1996, she clerked for the Honorable Henry Floyd, then Circuit Judge for the Thirteenth Judicial Circuit. In 1996 she joined Carter, Smith, Merriam, Rogers & Traxler, P.A. as an Associate, and then became partner in 2006. During her twenty years of private practice, she focused almost exclusively on family court with an emphasis on custody, support and complex issues both in her practice and as presenter at numerous continuing legal education seminars. From 2009 to 2016 she served as a member of the South Carolina Bar Family Law Council, serving as Co Course Planner for the Family Law Intensive CLE in 2011 and 2013, and as Secretary, Vice Chair and Chair Elect.
Judge Tiffany is married Peter Clifford Tiffany, a native of Aiken, South Carolina.
On May 25, 2016 Judge Tiffany was elected to succeed the late Honorable Harry L. Phillips as Judge of the Family Court, Thirteenth Judicial Circuit.
+ Thomas W. Traxler
+ Peter Tiffany
Following his graduation; first from the University of South Carolina Aiken campus in 1994 with a degree in business administration, and then from the University of South Carolina’s main campus in 1995 with a masters in Accounting, Peter moved to the great city of Greenville in search of better opportunities. Though he didn’t find BGC right away, in 1997 their paths crossed and he became an integral member of the firm he would continue to work at for nearly 20 years (so far!).
Peter specializes in business tax, individual tax, litigation support, and business valuation. Peter is a Certified Public Accountant, and is Accredited in Business Valuation, Certified in Financial Forensics, and is a Certified Global Management Accountant.
Peter loves to spend time with his wife and two sons in downtown Greenville, especially when the seasons are changing. Fall is his favorite season by far with the leaves turning a variety of colors, and the hot, humid air of summer being replaced with the crisp autumn breeze so sought after in the south. A real life guitar hero, Peter enjoys playing whenever he has free time. On the off chance he’s not practicing his strumming, Peter can be found improving his woodworking skills. In fact, he’s honing his abilities for the day he’s able to build his own personal boat.
2:45-3:00
Break with Refreshments
Judges Panel: Dispelling the Myths of Family Law
(60 Minute CLE)
3:00-4:00
+ The Honorable Tarita A. Dunbar
Judge Tarita A. (Ridgill) Dunbar was born in Manning, South Carolina and raised in Summerton, South Carolina. She is the daughter of Roland Hayes and Clotel Ragin Richburg and the late William Nelson Ridgill. She is a graduate of Manning High School, Georgetown University and the University Of South Carolina School Of Law.
After law school, Tarita started her legal career in private practice in Columbia, South Carolina practicing in the area of domestic relations. Shortly thereafter, Tarita served as the Director of Research and Legal Counsel for the South Carolina Senate Committee on Corrections and Penology. Her legal career also includes serving as an Attorney for the South Carolina Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation; Attorney for Spartanburg and Cherokee County Department of Social Services; and Attorney for South Carolina Department of Social Services Child Support Division.
Tarita was appointed to serve as a Commissioner to the South Carolina Human Affairs Board of Commissioner. She also served on the Board of Eau Claire Cooperative Health Centers, Inc., Columbia, South Carolina.
Tarita is a member of Augusta Road Church of Christ, Greenville, South Carolina, where she has served as Sunday School Teacher. She is married to Vernon F. Dunbar and they have three children, William Radford Dunbar, Kathleen Eleanor Dunbar, and Richard Hayes Dunbar.
She enjoys exercising at the Caine Halter YMCA, reading, and hiking. Tarita is passionate about other’s health in terms of eating properly and using nature’s remedies for healing.
+ The Honorable Thomas T. Hodges
Thomas Tredway Hodges was born in Conway, South Carolina in 1959 to Dr. Rupert E. Hodges and Eunice Purnell Hodges.
Tommy grew up in Spartanburg, South Carolina and graduated from Spartanburg High School in 1978. He attended Georgia Tech before graduating from USCS with a degree in Business Administration. He graduated from USC School of Law in 1987. He was admitted to the South Carolina Bar on November 23, 1987.
After graduation from law school Judge Hodges worked as an associate with Haynsworth Baldwin Johnson and Greaves, a nationally renowned labor and employment law firm. He became a partner in that firm in 1994. In 2003 he and Marsh Robertson formed what would later become Robertson & Hodges, LLC where he practiced family law exclusively. After Marsh Robertson was elected to the Family Court bench in 2010, Judge Hodges formed Thomas T. Hodges, P.A. where he continued his exclusive Family Court practice until his election on February 1, 2017.
Judge Hodges is a member of the Greenville County Bar, the South Carolina Bar, and is admitted to practice in the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. While in private practice he was recognized as a “Super Lawyer” in the area of family law and held an “AV” rating from Martindale-Hubbell.
In his spare time, he enjoys golf, hunting and traveling with his family.
+ The Honorable Kimaka Nichols-Graham
Judge Nichols-Graham is a native of Mullins, South Carolina. She graduated from Mullins High School with honors; from Winthrop University with a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science; and, from the Eagleton Institute of Politics at Rutgers University with a Master of Science in Public Policy. Judge Nichols-Graham returned to South Carolina and earned a Juris Doctor from The University of South Carolina School of Law. Judge Nichols-Graham demonstrated an interest in children’s law by interning, clerking or volunteering at the domestic violence shelter in Rock Hill, South Carolina, at the Education Law Center of New Jersey, at the Richland County CASA Office, at the SC Department of Education and the SC Association of School Administrators before seeking a position at a legal services program that would allow her to represent students and families in matters related to public school.
The Legal Services Agency of Western Carolina, Inc., gave Judge Nichols-Graham the opportunity to develop a children’s law program that included education law. Judge Nichols-Graham worked as a staff attorney, a children’s law attorney, the education unit head, a supervising attorney for the Low Income Taxpayer Clinic, and as a managing attorney of a large office at South Carolina Legal Services. She worked with SC Appleseed Legal Justice Center to create an education task force that later became a unit at legal services. Judge Nichols-Graham primarily practiced family and education law but she also practiced housing, consumer, social security, and in a few other areas of law to assist with stabilizing families.
As a young lawyer, Judge Nichols-Graham developed a children’s law program that included monitoring the firm’s termination of parental rights and adoption cases and assisting attorneys in ways to efficiently and effectively resolve those cases across several counties in the upstate. She coordinated a program focused on explaining legal rights and responsibilities to parents while their children participated in a Saturday Success Program at the Center for Educational Equity. Judge Nichols-Graham volunteered with the School Carolina Bar’s children law committee and the SC Black Lawyers Association. By 2001 she had worked successfully to add education law to the areas of practice for all legal services programs in South Carolina. She served on the board of SC Protection and Advocacy, on the SC Supreme Court Commission of Continuing Legal Education and Specialization and on the SC Children Justice Act Task Force. She provided numerous legal education sessions to the Bar and the public.
The South Carolina Bar awarded Judge Nichols-Graham with the Young Lawyer of the Year Award for 2001-2002. The SC Supreme Court’s Access to Justice Commission and the SC Bar Foundation awarded Judge Nichols-Graham the 2014 Ellen Hines Smith Legal Services Attorney of the Year. In 2019 the Greenville Business Magazine included Judge Nichols-Graham as one of the Legal Elite of the Upstate.
Judge Nichols-Graham is the daughter of Deacon John L. Nichols and Reverend Bettie Nichols of Mullins, South Carolina. She is married to Hakim Graham and they have a daughter. She has one sibling, Sheila Arrington, RPh. Judge Nichols-Graham is a member of Delta Sigma Theta, Sorority, Inc. She enjoys art, genealogy, exploring the history of South Carolina and spending time with her family.
+ The Honorable W. Marsh Robertson
William Marsh Robertson was born in 1963 in Greer, South Carolina and grew up in Greenville. After graduating from Greenville High School in 1981, Robertson attended Washington & Lee University in Lexington, Virginia, where in 1985 he graduated cum laude. He earned his juris doctorate degree from the University of the South Carolina School of Law in the spring of 1988.
Following law school, Robertson worked for two years as an associate with the Columbia, South Carolina law firm of Lewis, Lide, Bruce and Potts, PA. In 1990, he relocated to Greenville, where he joined his father in forming Robertson & Robertson, PA, a law firm dedicated to the practice of matrimonial and family law. For the next 20 years, Robertson practiced exclusively in the area of family law, most recently with Robertson & Hodges, LLC. On February 3, 2010, he was elected by the South Carolina Legislature to Seat 2, Family Court, 13th Judicial Circuit.
Robertson has been a member of the South Carolina Bar since 1988. He served on the Family Law Council from 1998 to 2001, and was a Fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers from 1999 to 2010. Robertson also served as an editorial board member for Stuckey, Marital Litigation in South Carolina: Substantive Law, 3rd Edition, 2000, and Stuckey, Marriage and Divorce in South Carolina: A Layperson’s Guide, 2001. In private practice, Robertson was rated “AV” by the Martindale-Hubbell Law Directory, and was selected for inclusion in the 2008, 2009, and 2010 editions of South Carolina Super Lawyers. Robertson has presented at multiple Continuing Legal Education seminars, both as a lawyer and as a judge. He has served as an officer of the South Carolina Conference of Family Court Judges, a member of the Family Court Judge’s Advisory Committee, and an instructor at Orientation School for Newly Elected Family Court Judges.
Robertson is married and has three adult children and two adult stepchildren. He is an enthusiast of music and sports, and enjoys playing golf and spending time with family.