+ The Honorable Tarita 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.

+ Hannah Metcalfe Rogers

Hannah Rogers Metcalfe is in private practice with the law firm of Metcalfe & Atkinson, LLC, which she co-founded in 2011 with her partner, Courtney Atkinson, past president of the Greenville Bar. Ms. Metcalfe’s litigation practice includes civil litigation on behalf of plaintiffs and defendants, business litigation, family law, federal criminal defense, media and first amendment, and appellate law.

Ms. Metcalfe received her Bachelor of Science of Foreign Service degree from Georgetown University in 1999. She received her J.D. from Columbia University School of Law in 2002, where she was a Harlan Fiske Stone Scholar, President of the Student Senate, and a member of the Columbia Law Review. After law school, she clerked in Philadelphia for the Honorable Anita B. Brody of the Eastern District of Pennsylvania. She went on to clerk for The Honorable William B. Traxler, Jr. of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. After toiling in the salt mines of a larger firm (Wyche) for several years, Ms. Metcalfe embarked on her current small-firm adventure in 2011.

Ms. Metcalfe is admitted to practice in New York and South Carolina, as well as in the Eastern District of New York, the District of South Carolina, the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals, the United States Supreme Court, and the Court of Appeals for the Armed Services. A past president of the South Carolina Chapter of the Federal Bar Association, Ms. Metcalfe now serves as the elected Circuit Vice-President for the Fourth Circuit for the Federal Bar Association and is a member of the board of the South Carolina Women Lawyers Association. A member of the Haynsworth Perry Inn of Court, Ms. Metcalfe serves as the Chair of the Fourth Circuit Rules Advisory Committee.

Hannah is also the mother of two beautiful children, Marshall and Riley, and is married to Logan, an entrepreneurial Kiwi who is the founder of Arkiver, a technology startup that provides families and businesses a way to digitally collect and curate life’s memories. In her spare time, Hannah likes to get out of town and return to her roots in the Dark Corner.

+ Alex Stalvey

Alex Stalvey currently serves as a managing partner for Bannister, Wyatt & Stalvey, LLC in Greenville, South Carolina. Alex grew up in Columbia, South Carolina graduated from the University of South Carolina in 1999. Alex then moved to Washington, D.C. and served on the staff of Senator Strom Thurmond as a projects assistant until the fall of 2001. Alex attended the USC School of Law from 2001 to 2004.

Alex began his career as a law clerk to Circuit Judge John L. Breeden Georgetown and Horry Counties. He then moved to the upstate serving as an Assistant Solicitor in Spartanburg and Greenville counties until 2009 when he joined his current firm.

Alex’s current practice involves Criminal Defense, Divorce and Personal Injury.
In 2010, Alex was elected by members of the Greenville County Bar to serve as circuit representative on the Board of the S.C. Association for Justice. The following year, he was nominated to represent the Thirteenth Circuit on the Board of the S.C. Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.

Mr. Stalvey is a member of numerous professional organizations including the National College of DUI Defense, the Greenville Association of Criminal Defense Attorneys and the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers.

In 2014, Alex achieved Criminal Trial Advocacy Certification from the NBTA based on his extensive jury trial experience as a prosecutor and defense attorney. Alex has served as trial counsel on various cases including murder, criminal sexual conduct, federal white collar offenses, drug trafficking and DUI.

Alex has given past presentations to the Greenville County Bar and S.C. Public Defenders’ Association on self-defense strategies under the “Stand Your Ground” law. He has also served as an instructor in trial advocacy with the S.C. Association of Magistrate and Municipal Judges.

In 2015, Alex’s article on an individual’s constitutional rights under Miranda vs. Arizona was featured in the monthly journal South Carolina Lawyer which is published by the S.C. Bar. In 2016, Alex’s article on expert testimony in criminal sexual conduct cases was featured in the Justice Bulletin, a monthly publication provided to members of the South Carolina Association for Criminal Justice.

Protecting your family court client

+ The Honorable Katherine Tiffany

Judge Tiffany was born in Spartanburg, South Carolina in 1970, to Stuart and Kay Hall. She was raised in Gaffney, South Carolina with her fraternal twin sister (Eleanor Caroline). While attending Spartanburg Day School, she spent most of her free time with horses, competing in horse shows and participating in fox hunts in Tryon, North Carolina.

After graduating from Spartanburg Day School in 1988, 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.

In 1995, Judge Tiffany married Peter Clifford Tiffany, a native of Aiken, South Carolina who works as a Certified Public Accountant. She and her husband have two sons, Brice Baskin and Barron Joseph; a dog, Grace and a cat, Banjo. They are members of St. James Episcopal Church, where Judge Tiffany has served as a nursery volunteer and Children’s Church leader. She enjoys spending time with her friends and family, reading a wide variety of books, watching old movies, and trying to stay active.

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

+ Tom Traxler

Thomas W. Traxler is a partner with Carter, Smith, Merriam, Rogers & Traxler, P.A. in Greenville, SC. He graduated from Davidson College in 1974 with a B.A. in German, and the University of South Carolina Law School in June, 1979. He has been admitted to practice law in South Carolina since November 8, 1979, and practiced in Greenville County, South Carolina, since that time.

He is a member of the South Carolina Association for Justice (formerly South Carolina Trial Lawyers Association), a Fellow in the American College of Trial Lawyers, a member of the South Carolina Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), and a member (Masters category) of Haynsworth-Perry Inn of Court. He served on the South Carolina Judicial Council from 2012 to 2016. He served as the Greenville County Bar Association President in 1997, served on the South Carolina Board of Bar Examiners 2001-2009, and was an adjunct instructor in Business Law at Furman University from 1981 to 2011.

For several years, Tom has been selected among the The Best Lawyers in America© and is recognized in 7 different areas of practices: Commercial Litigation, Bet-The-Company Litigation, Real Estate Litigation, Family Law, Personal Injury Litigation-Plaintiffs, and Alternative Dispute Resolution, and Mediation-Family Law. He was named the Best Lawyers’ Greenville Family Law Lawyer of the Year in 2009 and 2015, the 2010 and 2014 Greenville Bet-the-Company Litigator of the Year, and the 2011 and 2012 Greenville Real Estate Litigator of the Year.

Tom has been listed in Super Lawyers Magazine® since its inception in South Carolina and was also rated in The Top 25 lawyers in South Carolina by Super Lawyers® Magazine /South Carolina for the years 2009, 2013, 2014, 2015, and 2016, and was rated in The Top 10 in 2014, 2015, and 2016. He has been rated AV by Martindale-Hubbell since 1989.

Tom was awarded the Greenville County Bar Tommy Thomason Award for 2009, the 2009 South Carolina Trial Lawyer of the Year Award by the South Carolina Chapter of the American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA), and the 2011 Platinum Compleat Lawyers Award from the University of South Carolina School of Law.

He has written and distributed to South Carolina Court Administration three (3) software programs for use in the Family Court, Traxler’s Child Support Calculator, the Alimony Calculator, and the Equitable Apportionment Worksheet.

+ Tim Madden

Tim Madden is the managing partner of the Greenville office of South Carolina-based firm Nelson, Mullins, Riley & Scarborough, LLP (www.nelsonmullins.com). He practices statewide. Tim's family law practice is focused on contested financial litigation. He also maintains an extensive general litigation and appellate practice in all courts. 

Tim is a Fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, and previously served on the Board of Governors and as President of the South Carolina Chapter. He serves on the faculty of the Houston Family Law Trial Institute at which he lectures and teaches trial skills and matters related to business valuations in divorce litigation. Tim taught family law in the paralegal program at Greenville Technical College, wrote the chapter on marital dissolution and child custody for the South Carolina Practice Manual (Howard/Moise ed. 2000), served on the editorial board for the treatise Marital Litigation in South Carolina (Stuckey), taught at the orientation program for new family court judges, and speaks at various seminars sponsored by the South Carolina Bar and other organizations. He is listed in the Best Lawyers in America (2000-through current edition), South Carolina Super Lawyers (Law and Politics, 2008 and later editions), and Greenville Business Magazine's "Legal Elite of the Upstate" in the area of family law (2012-2016).

Outside his law practice, Tim previously served as chairman of the board of the South Carolina Education Lottery Commission (www.sceducationlottery.com), as vice chairman of the South Carolina Transportation Infrastructure Bank, and as chairman of the Greenville County Transportation Committee. He serves as member of the local advisory board for United Community Bank, previously served as a director of Welvista (www.welvista.org) and the South Carolina Student Loan Corporation. 
Tim served seven terms as a member of the House of Delegates for the South Carolina Bar, and is a recipient of the Compleat Lawyer Award from the University of South Carolina Law School Alumni Association. He is a member of the Haysnworth/Perry Inn of Court. Tim is also a Liberty Fellow (www.libertyfellowshipsc.org) .

Tim earned his law degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1988, and a bachelor of arts degree in Finance from Wofford College (www.wofford.edu) in 1985.

+ Amie Carpenter

Amie was born and raised in Greenville, South Carolina. She is a graduate of the College of Charleston and Thomas Goode Jones School of Law. Amie is a partner at Anderson & Carpenter in Greenville, South Carolina. She has experience in cases spanning Family Court, Probate Court and Circuit Court. Amie’s practice area is primarily dedicated exclusively to Family Law, including litigation and serving as a Guardian ad Litem in private custody disputes. In addition to her work at Anderson & Carpenter, Amie has served as a contract attorney for Safe Harbor since 2015. Amie is active in her community serving on the Board of Directors of Christmas Shoes, LLC.

+ Dustin Davis

Dustin Davis is a Greenville transplant from Knoxville, Tennessee. He graduated from the University of Tennessee with a Bachelor of Arts and a Masters in Business Administration. After graduating from the Charleston School of law in 2012, he moved to Greenville, South Carolina and started working at the Law Office of R. Mills Ariail, Jr. In 2014, Dustin started a solo law practice with an emphasis on family law.

+ Kinli Abee

Kinli Abee has been an Assistant Attorney General for the State of South Carolina since 2013 and currently serves as the managing prosecutor of special victim cases, focusing on child sexual assaults and human trafficking. In October of 2015, she secured the first human trafficking conviction in the history of the state of South Carolina.

Kinli is a 2008 graduate of Wofford College where she graduated with degrees in Government and Philosophy. She attended the Charlotte School of Law where she graduated in 2011 with pro bono honors. While at Charlotte Law, she was the chair of the Pro Bono Custody and Divorce Clinic, a semi-finalist in the National Trial Competition and won the title of “Best Oral Advocate” at the William Daniel National Mock Trial Competition.

Kinli is licensed to practice law in South Carolina and began her career at the Seventh Circuit Solicitor’s Office where she prosecuted general crimes and crimes against children. She is a member of the Young Lawyers Division, the South Carolina Drug Endangered Children’s Task Force, The Silent Tears Task Force, and a recipient of the Palmetto Center for Women Honors in Government and Law Enforcement. In 2016, she was a co-recipient of the title, “Prosecutor of the Year” from the Carolinas Chapter of the International Association of Financial Crimes Investigators. In her spare time, she coaches the W.A. Perry Middle School Mock Trial Team and the USC School of Law Mock Trial team with her husband, Matt, taking the team to nationals for the first time in school history.

+ Carrie Fisher Sherard

Carrie Fisher Sherard is an Assistant United States Attorney for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of South Carolina. Carrie joined the criminal division of the U.S. Attorney’s Office in 2008. She is a graduate of Furman University and the University of South Carolina School of Law. Prior to joining the U.S. Attorneys Office, she served as a law clerk for the Honorable Karen J. Williams of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. Carrie currently works as the asset forfeiture attorney for the office and she also serves as the human trafficking coordinator and the tribal liaison for the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of South Carolina.

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