Event Information

Amy Gaffney

 Gaffney Mediation

Amy has been a certified mediator since 1995 and is a member of the National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals, ABOTA, the James L. Petigru chapter of the American Inns of Court, and the South Carolina and Charleston County Bar Associations. 

As a litigator, Amy was recognized by Best Lawyers in America for many years in Employment Law and Litigation and in 2019 was recognized as Lawyer of the Year for her work in Labor and Employment Litigation by the publication. Amy has an AV Peer Rating from Martindale-Hubbell.

After thirty years litigating tort and employment cases state-wide, Amy turned her focus to full time mediation in 2025.  In that capacity, Amy mediates diverse cases throughout South Carolina, drawing on her litigation experience to provide comprehensive insight on each specific case and create a clear, communicative atmosphere that provides the parties the necessary platform to craft a satisfactory resolution.

In her spare time, Amy chairs the Queens University of Charlotte's Charleston chapter, serves on the Board of PURE Theatre, and volunteers at Grace Episcopal Cathedral where she is a parishioner.  She continues to enjoy cooking, traveling, learning the Italian language, and her lovely high school senior daughter, Elyse.

Education:

Bachelor of Arts Degree
Communication, General
Queens College (now Queens University 
of Charlotte), Magna Cum Laude, 1991
Juris Doctor Degree
University of South Carolina School of 
Law, 1994
 

Mr. Matthews is certified by the South Carolina Supreme Court as a Specialist in Employment & Labor Law.  He is also a certified mediator, and often mediates employment claims. 

From April 2000 to March 2004, Mr. Matthews was General Counsel and Deputy Director for the South Carolina Department of Public Safety (SCDPS).  From 1999 to 2000, he was Deputy Director for Labor at the South Carolina Department of Labor, Licensing & Regulation (LLR).  Prior to state service, from 1995 to 1999, Mr. Matthews practiced law with Kilpatrick Stockton, L.L.P. 

Mr. Matthews has previously served as the Chairman of the South Carolina Bar’s Employment & Labor Law Section, and has also served on the Employment & Labor Law Specialization Advisory Board of the S.C. Commission on CLE and Specialization.  He is a member of the South Carolina Bar and North Carolina Bar 

Mr. Matthews received a B.A. summa cum laude from Furman University, an M.A. in International Relations from Yale University, and his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law.  Prior to attending law school, Mr. Matthews served with the Central Intelligence Agency.  In 2019, he retired as a Captain from the U.S. Navy Reserve.

George (Trey) Reeves is a partner in the Columbia office. His practice primarily involves representation of management in employment and labor litigation involving discrimination, harassment and retaliation under Title VII, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA); wage and hour litigation under the Fair Labor Standards Act (FLSA); and employment litigation under state law for workplace torts such as defamation, wrongful termination, invasion of privacy, and negligent hiring or supervision. George also represents employers in audits and investigations by federal and state agencies investigating or challenging employers' wage and hour practices and worker misclassification issues.
George is a frequent presenter on employment and labor issues for local and state Society for Human Resource Management (SHRM) chapters, chambers of commerce and other professional organizations. Prior to attending law school, George served in the United States Navy.
 

A certified specialist in labor and employment law, Nekki Shutt has been involved in the employment / human resources field for more than 35 years, beginning with her work in the human resources department of a publicly-traded property and casualty insurance company. Nekki eventually became the company’s corporate recruiter, responsible for hiring approximately 225 employees on an annual basis as well as managing its temporary workforce. This is her 29^th year practicing law. 

While Nekki earned her juris doctor at the University of South Carolina School of Law, she worked as a graduate assistant in what is now the Master’s in Human Resources Program at the USC Darla Moore School of Business. She also clerked for the law firm that represented the insurer where she had previously been employed. Since then, Nekki has built on her human resources experience and developed a civil litigation practice with an emphasis on employee benefits (ERISA) and employment law. From 2000 to 2005, she also was an adjunct professor at the University of South Carolina School of Law, teaching a course for third-year law students entitled “Diversity and the Law,” emphasizing social justice issues involving race, gender, sexual orientation, disabilities, and the poor.  More than six years ago, Nekki, Malissa Burnette, and Kathleen McDaniel founded Burnette Shutt & McDaniel, PA, a progressive law firm with employment law, civil rights, and civil litigation as its focus.  Notably, the University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law recently selected their law firm as the recipient of 2024 Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr.’s Distinguished Service Award. 

                                    Nekki frequently has received professional recognition and honors. She is secretary of the SC Bar’s Board of Governors and in the House of Delegates.  She chaired the SC Bar’s Labor and Employment Section in 2010, and has served on its  executive  committee for 15 plus years.  For the past five years, she has been named “Lawyer of the Year” in ERISA Litigation by peers through Best Lawyers.  She was the 2018 Recipient of the Civic Star Award from the Richland County Bar Association. She was a 2016 honoree by South Carolina Lawyers Weekly for Leadership in the Law. The University of South Carolina School of Law Alumni Association awarded her the James Petigru Compleat Lawyer Award, Silver Medallion in 2005. Her peers have selected her for inclusion in The Best Lawyers in America® 2010 to present in the field of labor and employment law. She’s also continuously educates others in her field through her writing and seminar presentations like “Modern Family I and II” on protecting LGBT clients, “Against the Wind: a history of the civil rights movement in South Carolina as told through case law and testimony,” and 10 years of the annual Fundamentals of Employment Law in South Carolina, one of the SC Bar’s Essential Series. Nekki authored the ERISA chapters in the Labor and Employment Law for South Carolina Lawyer 2007, 2011, 2019, and 2024 editions. She also is the author of a chapter on employment law for Paralegal Survival Guide, published by South Carolina Bar Association in 2010. 

Nekki was one of the lead attorneys in Condon v. Haley, the 2014 federal lawsuit which made South Carolina the 35 state to recognize marriage equality in the country.

Judge Shiva V. Hodges has served as a United States Magistrate Judge since 2010, where she has presided over bench and jury trials while managing employment discrimination and other civil cases, social security appeals, habeas corpus petitions, prisoner civil rights actions, and criminal matters. She handles mediations at the request of District Judges and federal practitioners. Before her appointment, Judge Hodges served as a career law clerk for six years to then-Chief District Judge Joseph F. Anderson, Jr., after having worked as a litigator for Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein, LLP, involving employment disputes, general civil disputes, and bankruptcy matters in South Carolina and North Carolina. She has authored thousands of opinions and orders since 2010 in federal civil cases and is currently working on a book on Social Security law and practice.

She obtained a Bachelor of Science in Biology from the University of South Carolina's Honors College, a Juris Doctor from the U.S.C. School of Law, and a Master in International Business Studies (Italian track) from the Darla Moore School of Business. She also graduated from Duke Law School, earning a Master of Judicial Studies (LLM).

Judge Hodges enjoys teaching regularly at the Department of Justice's National Advocacy Center. She is President of the Federal Magistrate Judges Association and active in international, national, and local civics and community organizations. Judge Hodges received the Matthew J. Perry Civility Award from the Richland County Bar Association in 2020. She taught Advanced Legal Writing at the USC School of Law from 2013-2016 and is active in legal education and mentoring programs for lawyers and students, including on employment law issues, e-discovery, ethics and social media, implicit bias, and evidentiary pitfalls.

Judge Hodges is married with four boys ages 14, 17, 18, and 20.