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As a former appellate law clerk, Ben offers a valuable perspective on briefing and arguing issues before an appellate court. While at Robinson Gray, Ben has written numerous appellate briefs on a variety of legal issues at the state and federal level. He also has experience representing attorneys and law firms in legal malpractice actions in both state and federal courts. Ben’s business litigation practice covers a wide variety of business disputes, including banking litigation, legal actions between members of an LLC, commercial landlord/tenant disputes and securities arbitration. Ben’s undergraduate studies in business and finance provide him with the necessary background to understand the functions, operations, and complexities of the businesses he represents.

David Sella-Villa joined the University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law faculty as an Assistant Professor in July 2024. His primary research and teaching interests focus on law and technology, privacy, cybersecurity, and artificial intelligence.

Prior to his full-time faculty appointment, Professor Sella-Villa served as an adjunct faculty member at the Joseph F. Rice School of Law at the University of South Carolina and William & Mary Law School. He also brings extensive practical experience to his academic role. He served as South Carolina's Chief Privacy Officer, leading the Enterprise Privacy Office and educating state agencies on privacy best practices. Before that, he was Assistant General Counsel for the South Carolina Department of Administration, where he advised the state's IT division. In the private sector, Professor Sella-Villa worked as general counsel for a private aviation company, managing complex transactions and regulatory compliance. He has also maintained a solo law practice focused on serving pro bono clients.

Professor Sella-Villa's scholarship appears in University of Richmond Law Review, University of Missouri Kansas City Law Review, the International Journal of Remote Sensing, and The Business Lawyer. He is an active member of the Sedona Conference Working Group on Data Security and Privacy Liability. His work has also been selected for discussion at the Privacy Law Scholars Conference (PLSC), Privacy Law Scholars Conference - Europe (PLSC-E) and the Annual Symposium on Applications of Contextual Integrity (PrivaCI).

He holds a J.D. from William & Mary Law School. He also earned an M.Sc. in European Political Economy from the London School of Economics and dual bachelor's degrees from West Virginia University. Professor Sella-Villa holds the highest designation from the International Association of Privacy Professionals - Fellow of Information Privacy (FIP). He is admitted to practice law in South Carolina, Virginia, and Pennsylvania.
 

Jim Koutrakos is a member of Callison Tighe & Robinson, LLC in Columbia, South Carolina. Jim focuses his practice on litigating and resolving all types of real property disputes. He has handled over a thousand title insurance claims, including claims involving potential high exposure and significant loss, bad faith claims, and litigation involving large title defects in commercial and resort properties.

Jim is often asked to speak at seminars held by major title insurance carriers and industry groups. At these seminars, Jim covers a variety of topics including title insurance claims, recent case law involving real property matters, and trends in real estate litigation.

Jim graduated magna cum laude from the University of South Carolina in 1993. He graduated in 1996 from the University of South Carolina School of Law, where he was an Associate Student Works Editor of the South Carolina Law Review. After law school, Jim was a clerk to the Honorable C. Tolbert Goolsby, Jr. of the South Carolina Court of Appeals. He joined Callison Tighe in 1997 and became a member in 2002.

Jim has been recognized by Best Lawyers in America since 2017 and, in 2023, was named Lawyer of the Year for Columbia in Real Estate Litigation. Jim has been recognized by Super Lawyers since 2016.
 

Cal is a litigator with experience in complex business and insurance disputes, class actions, and professional liability and ethics.  During his 37 years of practice, Cal has represented individuals, local and national businesses, partnerships, insurance companies, and financial institutions.  He has been routinely recognized by Best Lawyers, Super Lawyers, South Carolina Lawyer Weekly, and Chambers U.S.A. America's Leading Lawyers for Business.

Cal graduated from Wofford College, summa cum laude, in 1984.  He is a 1987 cum laude graduate of the University of South Carolina School of Law.  Following graduation, Cal clerked for the Honorable Robert F. Chapman on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit.    Cal is a founding member of Robinson Gray in Columbia, S.C. where he has served as Managing Member since 2004. 

Cal is a former President of the South Carolina Bar, the South Carolina Bar Foundation, and the Young Lawyers Division of the South Carolina Bar.  He is a long-time member of the John Belton O'Neall Inn of Court and the International Association of Defense Counsel ("IADC").  Cal currently serves on the Board of Directors of Meritas, a global alliance of leading independent law firms.
 

Jimmy Long is a commercial litigator who has tried cases in federal, circuit, family and the administrative law Court.  In addition to his busy trial practice, Jimmy has briefed and argued over a dozen appeals in the South Carolina Supreme Court and Court of Appeals.  For 10 years, he served as the General Counsel for Nexsen Pruet and brings a deep knowledge of the issues faced by lawyers in their day-to-day practice. Jimmy is a lawyer's lawyer - other lawyers seek his advice and representation in areas from malpractice claims and disciplinary complaints to unusual issues related to legal ethics.   

Jimmy has defended individuals and corporations in all types of litigation, including many bet-the-business cases. His current emphasis is handling injury cases involving death and catastrophic injury, medical malpractice, professional negligence, legal malpractice, shareholder/business disputes, and claims involving fiduciary duties and fraudulent conduct. 

Jimmy’s previous work as the firm’s General Counsel provides a unique insight into the fiduciary and ethical traps facing lawyers. He is particularly well suited to defend claims for legal malpractice and is available to serve as an expert witness or consultant if needed.

In his career, Jimmy has served or is currently serving in numerous capacities to further the practice of law and his professional development. Some examples are the following:

South Carolina Bar, Past Committee Chairperson

South Carolina Bar House of Delegates, Former Member

Jasmine Smith is a cum laude graduate of the University of South Carolina, where she received her Bachelor's Degree in Psychology.  Thereafter, she received her Educational Specialist Degree in Counselor Education, specializing in Marriage and Family Therapy from USC's graduate school.  She also became certified as a National Certified Counselor.  After completing graduate school, Jasmine worked as a counselor and psychology instructor for Spartanburg Community College.    Jasmine received many years of training and experience working with individuals, couples, and families.   Jasmine went on to attend law school at USC's School of Law.  As a member of the South Carolina Bar, Jasmine actively serves on several bar and community committees.  Jasmine is actively involved in the American Bar Association, where she serves as Chair of the Professional Responsibility Committee of the Business Law Section.  She has received numerous community and professional honors.  Jasmine is a Member at Robinson Gray Stepp & Laffitte, LLC.  Prior to joining Robinson Gray, Jasmine served as a Staff Attorney at the South Carolina Court of Appeals.  She also clerked for the Honorable Jasper M. Cureton and the Honorable John D. Geathers at the South Carolina Court of Appeals.  She is a Co-Director for the University of South Carolina School of Law’s Moot Court Bar, training students on practicing in appellate courts.

J. Howard Yates, Jr. was born on February 2, 1951, in Charleston, South Carolina. He graduated from the University of South Carolina with a degree in History in December 1972. After graduation, he worked as a real estate paralegal for nine years. He graduated in December 1984 from the Mississippi College School of Law. He practices real property and probate law. He was the continuing legal education chairman of the Charleston County Bar Real Estate Practice Section from 1988 to 2017. He was an adjunct professor at the Charleston School of Law from 2014 through 2020 where he taught a skills course on Real Estate Title Examinations.  

As an expert witness, Mr. Yates has given testimony in the following Charleston County real estate cases:  

Russell E. Perkins, Jr. v Justin Hopson, 2020-CP-10-01555

PNC Bank v Spartanburg Lend, LLC, 2017 CP-10-002837

Mikell v Hazel, 2016-CP-10-05611

Ralph v. McLaughlin, 2015-CP-10-03550, 428 S.C. 320, 834 S.E.2^nd 213 (S.C. App. 2019), 432 S.C. 640, 856 S.E.2^nd 154 (S.C. 2021)

Charles H. Campbell v State of South Carolina, 2012-CP-10-03797 

In December 2021, Mr. Yates was appointed by Charleston County Administrative Judge Roger Young to investigate and offer recommendations to resolve the recording and indexing backlog in the Charleston County Register of Deeds Office.

The Honorable Mikell R. Scarborough is a master-in-equity for the Charleston County Equity Court in South Carolina. He was appointed to the bench on June 21, 2003. 

Prior to his appointment, Scarborough managed his own private practice since 1999. He first entered private practice in Columbia, SC, in 1987 before returning to Charleston in 1991. Before that, Scarborough was an assistant solicitor in Lexington (1985 to 1987) and a judicial law clerk to the Hon. Owens Cobb with the Circuit Court and Hon. Lee Chandler with the Supreme Court of South Carolina. 

In addition to his practice, Scarborough was an assistant county attorney in Charleston County (1998 to 2003). 

He received a B.A. from the University of the South in 1980. Scarborough then completed a J.D. at the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1983.  

He served as a member and past chairman of the Charleston County Planning Commission and was a representative for the Charleston County Election Commission. Scarborough was also involved with the Charleston County Public Defender Corporation and was a proxy to the Berkley-Charleston-Dorchester Council of Governments. 

He was born in Charleston, South Carolina. Scarborough and his wife, Mary, have three children.

PAUL D. de HOLCZER was admitted to the South Carolina Bar in 1994.  He is a member of the South Carolina Bar.  He received his education at Presbyterian College (B.A.), Central College (London Program); University of South Carolina (M.A., International Studies; J.D.), and Corvinus University of Budapest (Summer Program). He has represented landowners as well as condemnors in eminent domain cases. Among other projects, he served as condemnor’s counsel on the Southern Connector (I-185), the Conway Bypass/Veterans Highway (SC-22/I-74), the Carolina Bays Parkway (SC-31) and the Ravenel Bridge (US-17) projects. Paul has lectured on eminent domain law for the South Carolina Bar, the University of South Carolina School of Law, the Charleston School of Law, Presbyterian College, the International Right of Way Association (Carolinas Chapter), and for several professional education firms. He authored the South Carolina chapter for The Law and Procedure of Eminent Domain in the 50 States (2012), published by the American Bar Association and he contributed to the Treatise on the Law of Easements in South Carolina, Second Edition (2025), published by the South Carolina Bar.  He is currently Assistant Chief Counsel at the South Carolina Department of Transportation (SCDOT).

Dick Unger has more than 40 years of experience representing private, public and institutional developers, purchasers, equity investors and lenders. Mr. Unger counsels clients in the development, acquisition, financing, operation, sale and leasing of all forms of commercial, industrial and residential real estate, with a particular emphasis on the resort development industry. In addition, he is a frequent speaker and author on real estate development topics and easements.   

Bobby is an experienced litigator focusing on complex cases in varied commercial settings at the trial and appellate level.

His practice includes professional liability defense, corporate governance disputes, contract matters, product liability defense, voting rights, and constitutional issues. Bobby is a member of the American College of Trial Lawyers and the American Board of Trial Advocates. He received the Trial and Appellate Advocacy Award from the South Carolina Bar in 2014 and was honored with the Richland County Bar Association's Matthew J. Perry, Jr. Civility Award in 2022.

Education
University of South Carolina School of Law, J.D., 1977
Order of Wig and Robe
South Carolina Law Review
University of South Carolina, B.A., 1972
 

A native of Charleston, South Carolina, Ronnie graduated from the College of Charleston in 1990, and from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1993. 

The son of a marine pipefitter from the Charleston Naval Shipyard, Ronnie had worked as a pipefitter at the Shipyard for nearly 3 years before deciding to return to the pursuit of his education. His work ethic and approach to the practice of law reflect his blue-collar roots.  

Ronnie is certified as a diplomat in the field of Legal Malpractice by the American Board of Professional Liability Attorneys.  In addition, Mr. Richter has been recognized as a Super Lawyer   in the field of Professional Liability every year since 2015.   

Ronnie is a former member of the South Carolina Bar Ethics Advisory Committee and is a frequent presenter at continuing legal education seminars on the subject matter of legal malpractice and legal ethics, as well as an occasional guest lecturer at the University of South Carolina School of Law.

While at Robinson Gray, Sarah has written numerous appellate briefs on a variety of legal issues. Sarah’s business litigation practice includes a wide variety of business disputes, including contractual disputes as well as legal actions between members of limited liability companies. Sarah also defends governmental entities and public officials against an assortment of claims in state and federal court. Through her diverse practice and experience as a judicial law clerk, Sarah has gained experience handling class actions, complex appeals, declaratory judgment actions, and injunctions.

Sarah graduated from Clemson University in 2016 with a bachelor’s degree in marketing. She received her Juris Doctor in 2020 from the University of South Carolina School of Law, where she graduated magna cum laude, was the Associate Managing Editor of the South Carolina Law Review, and was a member of the Order of the Coif. Sarah served as a judicial law clerk to the Honorable John Cannon Few of the Supreme Court of South Carolina from 2020 to 2022.

Mr. Robertson served as president of Cranston Engineering Group, P.C. for 34 years, and retired from full time professional practice in 2021. He currently fills a part-time role as a senior professional engineer and participates in specific aspects of the firm’s work where his broad experience can add value to clients. He has more than forty years of experience with the firm as a consultant for a wide variety of civil engineering, planning, urban design, land surveying, and historic engineering projects throughout the southeast. He has talents that are especially suited for developing initial design concepts and conceiving overall plans, particularly those that are sensitive to the contexts in which they are located. As a land surveyor, Mr. Robertson strives to produce surveys that represent land title lines based on good field methods on the ground, in-depth studies of realty records, and careful platting in the office.   

In 2024 Mr. Robertson served on the Editorial Board for the South Carolina Bar’s forthcoming Second Edition of Richard M. Unger, et al., Treatise on the Law of Easements in South Carolina.