South Carolina Court of Appeals

Judges of the South Carolina Court of Appeals

The South Carolina Court of Appeals is the intermediate appellate court in South Carolina. The Court of Appeals was established on September 1, 1983. It generally consists of a chief judge and eight associate judges who are elected by the state legislature for six-year terms. The court hears cases either as a small panel of three judges or as a whole, and it may hear oral arguments and motions in any county of the state.[1]

* Published opinions of the South Carolina Court of Appeals can be found here.

South Carolina Court of Appeals

Court information
Judges: |  9
Founded: |  1983
Salary: |  [2]
Judicial selection
Method: |  Legislative elections
Term: |  6 years

## Contents

* 1 Judges
* 2 Judicial selection
* 2.1 Qualifications
* 2.2 Salary
* 3 Ethics
* 3.1 Removal of judges
* 4 State profile
* 4.1 Presidential voting pattern
* 4.1.1 Pivot Counties (2016)
* 4.1.2 Pivot Counties (2020)
* 5 Recent news
* 6 See also
* 7 External links
* 8 Footnotes

## Judges[edit]

Judge | Tenure | Appointed By

|
|

Aphrodite Konduros

February 6, 2008 - Present

South Carolina General Assembly

D. Garrison Hill

2017 - Present

South Carolina General Assembly

H. Bruce Williams

June 3, 2004 - Present

South Carolina General Assembly

John Geathers

July 31, 2008 - Present

South Carolina General Assembly

Paula Thomas

June 18, 2007 - Present

South Carolina General Assembly

Thomas Huff

March 29, 1996 - Present

South Carolina General Assembly

Stephanie P. McDonald

May 28, 2014 - Present

South Carolina General Assembly

Blake Hewitt

January 1, 2020 - Present

South Carolina General Assembly

Jerry Deese Vinson Jr.

January 1, 2022 - Present

South Carolina General Assembly

## Judicial selection[edit]

South Carolina is one of two states, along with Virginia, that uses a system of legislative election of judges. Judges are elected by public vote of the South Carolina State Legislature. Both chambers come together for a joint vote.[3] Before the assembly votes on a particular judicial candidate, he or she must be approved by the South Carolina Judicial Merit Selection Commission, making the system somewhat reminiscent of the assisted appointment method.[3]

Judges are also re-elected by the legislature. If there is an unexpired term with less than a year left before expiration, the governor may fill the vacancy. Interim judges stand for legislative re-election at the end of the unexpired term. Terms for justices on the Court of Appeals last six years, including the term of the chief justice.[4]

The chief justice is also chosen by legislative election.[4]

For details about South Carolina's judicial elections, visit the South Carolina judicial elections page.

### Qualifications[edit]

To serve on the Court of Appeals, a judge must be:

* a U.S. citizen;
* a resident of South Carolina for at least five years;
* a licensed attorney for eight years
* between 32 and 72 years old[4]

### Salary[edit]

The annual salary for intermediate appellate court judges in South Carolina was $140,508 as of 2014.[5]

## Ethics[edit]

The South Carolina Code of Judicial Conduct sets forth ethical guidelines and principles for the conduct of judges and judicial candidates in South Carolina. It is composed of five canons:

* Canon 1: "A Judge Shall Uphold the Integrity and Independence of the Judiciary"
* Canon 2: "A Judge Shall Avoid Impropriety and the Appearance of Impropriety in All of the Judge's Activities"
* Canon 3: "A Judge Shall Perform the Duties of Judicial Office Impartially and Diligently"
* Canon 4: "A Judge Shall So Conduct the Judge's Extra-Judicial Activities as to Minimize the Risk of Conflict With Judicial Obligations"
* Canon 5: "A Judge or Judicial Candidate Shall Refrain From Inappropriate Political Activity"[6]

The full text of the South Carolina Code of Judicial Conduct can be found here.

### Removal of judges[edit]

Judges in South Carolina may be removed in one of three ways:

* Dismissal, transfer to inactive status, retirement or removal by the supreme court, after recommendation from the commission on judicial conduct
* Conviction by a two-thirds vote of the senate, following impeachment by a two-thirds vote of the house of representatives
* Removal by the governor, upon the address of two-thirds of each house of the General Assembly[7]

## State profile[edit]

Demographic data for South Carolina

| South Carolina| U.S.
Total population:| 4,894,834| 316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):| 30,061| 3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:| 67.2%| 73.6%
Black/African American:| 27.5%| 12.6%
Asian:| 1.4%| 5.1%
Native American:| 0.3%| 0.8%
Pacific Islander:| 0.1%| 0.2%
Two or more:| 2%| 3%
Hispanic/Latino:| 5.3%| 17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:| 85.6%| 86.7%
College graduation rate:| 25.8%| 29.8%
Income
Median household income:| $45,483| $53,889
Persons below poverty level:| 22%| 11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015)
Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in South Carolina.

* * *

**Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

### Presidential voting pattern[edit]

See also: Presidential voting trends in South Carolina

South Carolina voted Republican in all six presidential elections between 2000 and 2020.

#### Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, five are located in South Carolina, accounting for 2.43 percent of the total pivot counties.[8]

#### Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. South Carolina had five Retained Pivot Counties, 2.76 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.

More South Carolina coverage on Ballotpedia

* Elections in South Carolina
* United States congressional delegations from South Carolina
* Public policy in South Carolina
* Influencers in South Carolina
* South Carolina fact checks
* More...

## Recent news[edit]

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms South Carolina Court Appeals. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

South Carolina Court of Appeals - Google News

## See also[edit]

South Carolina | Judicial Selection | More Courts

|
|

Courts in South Carolina South Carolina Court of Appeals South Carolina Supreme Court |  Elections: 2022 • 2021 • 2020 • 2019 • 2018 • 2017 Gubernatorial appointments Judicial selection in South Carolina |  Federal courts State courts Local courts

* News: Engagement ring dispute goes all the way to South Carolina Court of Appeals, May 12, 2012

## External links[edit]

* South Carolina Judicial Department, "South Carolina Court of Appeals"

## Footnotes[edit]

1. ↑ South Carolina Court of Appeals
2. ↑ This may vary for the chief judge.
3. ↑ 3.0 3.1 South Carolina General Assembly, "How Judges Are Selected in South Carolina," January 11, 2010
4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: South Carolina," accessed August 1, 2015
5. ↑ National Center for State Courts, "Judicial Salary Tracker," accessed August 1, 2015
6. ↑ South Carolina Judicial Department, "Court Register - Table of Contents," accessed August 1, 2015
7. ↑ American Judicature Society, "Methods of Judicial Selection: South Carolina, Removal of Judges," accessed August 1, 2015
8. ↑ The raw data for this study was provided by Dave Leip of Atlas of U.S. Presidential Elections.

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South Carolina courts

* * *

Federal courts:

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State courts:

South Carolina Supreme Court • South Carolina Court of Appeals • South Carolina Circuit Courts • South Carolina Masters-in-Equity • South Carolina Family Courts • South Carolina Magistrate Courts • South Carolina Municipal Courts • South Carolina Probate Courts

State resources:

Courts in South Carolina • South Carolina judicial elections • Judicial selection in South Carolina