Gerald M. Finkel

North Charleston, South Carolina

Mr. Finkel was the founding member and the Managing Member of Finkel Law Firm L.L.C. until January, 2007, at which time he went of counsel to the firm. From 2007 until May 2015, he was a full time faculty member at the Charleston School of Law as a Professor of Law where he taught Torts, Insurance Law, Evidence and Trial Advocacy. From 1981 until 2006, he taught Trial Advocacy and Insurance Law at the University of South Carolina School of Law as an Adjunct Professor. He is a past President of the South Carolina Association for Justice; has served as Chairman of the Insurance, Negligence and Workers Compensation Section of the South Carolina Bar and as a member of the Bar's Board of Governors and as a member of the House of Delegates. He has served as a Special Judge for Richland County Family Court and the Court of General Sessions for the Fifth Judicial Circuit. Mr. Finkel is a certified Circuit Court Arbitrator and a member of the Ninth Circuit Fee Disputes Panel. In 1981, he served on the Governor's Sentencing Guidelines Commission and the South Carolina Appellate Defense Commission. In 2006, Mr. Finkel was a Distinguished Visiting Professor of Law at the Charleston School of Law. Mr. Finkel has lectured and published extensively in the areas of Business Law, Insurance Law, Torts and Property Rights. He has been a Member of the American Law Institute for more than thirty years where he has served on the Consultative Groups for the Restatement of Unfair Trade Practices and the Restatement of Torts 3rd, and the Consultative Committee for Restatement of Liability Insurance.

Areas of Practice:

• Commercial Litigation

Bar Admissions:

• South Carolina, 1970
• District of Columbia, 1973
• U.S. District Court District of South Carolina, 1971
• U.S. Court of Appeals District of Columbia Circuit, 1973
• U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit, 1972
• U.S. Supreme Court, 1973
• U.S. Court of Federal Claims

Education:

• University of South Carolina School of Law, Columbia, South Carolina, 1970
  • Juris Doctor
  • Honors: Recipient, American Jurisprudence Award in Evidence
  • Honors: Recipient, American Jurisprudence Award in Industries
  • Law Review: South Carolina Law Review, Business Manager, 1970
• New York University College of Arts and Science, New York, New York, 1962
  • Bachelor of Arts

Published Works:

• CGL Coverage and the Myth of L-J v. Bituminous Fire & Marine Ins. Company (Co-Author), South Carolina Association for Justice Bulletin, Fall, 2004
• South Carolina Legal and Business Forms (Co-Author), Lawyers Co-op, Vols. 1 and 3, 1988
• A Guide to South Carolina Torts (Co-Author), Palmetto Law Publishers, 1st ed., 1981
• A Guide to South Carolina Torts II (Co-Author), S.C.T.L.A., 2nd ed., 1986
• A Guide to South Carolina Torts III (Co-Author), S.C.T.L.A., 3rd ed., 1990
• A Guide to South Carolina Torts IV (Co-Author), S.C.T.L.A., 4th ed., 1995
• Medical Depositions and Court Appearances, Claimant's Counsel Perspective Painful Cervical Trauma (Co-Author with Williams & Wilkins), 1990
• Survey of Damages, 21 S.C.L. Rev. 552, 1968
• Effective Deposition Techniques, ALI-ABA Study Materials Federal Discovery Practice No. 3537, May, 1980
• Trends in Liability - Negligent Infliction of Emotional Distress, 4 S.C.T.L.A. Bulletin, July/August, 1980
• Videotape Depositions, ALI-ABA Study Materials, Federal Discovery Practice No. C686, November, 1982
• Educating Laymen on Legal Fictions, Intangibles, and Other Ethereal Concepts, 28 S.C.T.L.A. Convention Program 350, 1985
• Cases and Materials on South Carolina Insurance Law, U.S.C. Press, Supplemented annually, 1988
• Insurance Law, S.C. Bar Review, Revised Annually
• Property Insurance Issues in the Aftermath of Hurricane Hugo (Co-Author), South Carolina Lawyer, S.C. Bar, Sept/Oct, 1990
• The Coast is Clear; Lucas Court Sheds Light on Regulatory Takings (Co-Author), 2 S.C. Env. L. J. 28, U.S.C. Press, 1992
• Stacking of Liability Coverage: Unstacked, South Carolina Lawyer, S.C. Bar, May/June, 1998

Representative Cases:

• Lucas v. The South Carolina Coastal Council, 112 S.Ct. 2886, 120 L.E. 2d 798 (1992)
• City of Folly Beach v. Atlantic House Properties, 458 S.E.2d 426 (1995)
• Kores Nordic (USA) Corp. v. Sinkler, Gibbs & Simons, 327 S.E.2d 365 (1985)
• Interstate Securities Corp. v. Costantino, 72 B.R. 189 (1987)
• Chester County Hospital & Nursing Center v. Martin, 314 S.E.2d 308 (1984)
• In re: Allen University, 497 F.2d 346 (1974)
• Mims v. Kemp, 516 F.2d 21 (1975)
• Mims v. Yarborough, 343 F.Supp., 343 F.Supp. 1146, 461 F.2d 1266 (1972)

Classes/Seminars Taught:

• Regulatory Takings Development Since Lucas, Eminent Domain Seminar CLE International, February 28, 2005 - March 1, 2005
• Insurer's Duty to Defend, South Carolina Bar Convention, January 22, 2005
• Trial Strategy-The Beginning of The End "Bad Faith Litigation in South Carolina", National Business Institute, Columbia, South Carolina, December 16, 2004
• "I Did It - Pay Me Anyway!" - Special Problems in Automobile Insurance, S.C. Bar Convention, January 24, 2004
• Regulatory Takings Since Lucas, Takings Conference, Albany Law School, April 4, 2003 - April 5, 2003
• What Is An Occurrence?, Charleston County Bar Association, October 18, 2001
• How to Successfully Make and Manage Objections at Trial in South Carolina, National Business Institute, March 23, 2001
• Second Annual Governor's Summit on Growth, Property Rights Speech, March 12, 2001
• Insuring Mother Nature, Disaster Relief: Advising Victims after the Dust Settles, S.C. Bar C.L.E., September 4, 1998
• Earthquake Insurance: Disaster Legal Assistance, ABA/FEMA, December 13, 1991 - December 14, 1991
• The Law of Seat Belt Defense, S.C.T.L.A. Criminal Law and Automobile Torts Seminar, October 14, 1977
• The Damages Settlement Package, S.C. Bar Damages Seminar, March 25, 1977
• Federal Discovery Techniques, S.C.T.L.A. Convention Program, 1978
• Federal Civil Procedure, S.C. Bar, Basic Skills Course, November 2, 1979
• Juvenile Defense, S.C. Bar Judicial C.L.E. Seminar, November 16, 1979
• Federal Discovery, ALI-ABA Seminar, May 23, 1980
• Sources and Preparation of Expert Witnesses, S.C. Bar Trial Advocacy Series, August 29, 1980
• Exceptions to the Hearsay Rule, S.C. Bar Judicial C.L.E. Seminar, August 8, 1980
• Trustee Litigation: Jurisdiction, Removal Venue and Jury Trials in Bankruptcy Proceedings, U.S.C. Law School and Seminar Series-Bankruptcy Clinic, Fall, 1981
• Mechanics Liens under the Bankruptcy Code "Construction Law/Mechanics Lien Seminar", S.C. Bar C.L.E. Program, June 18, 1982
• Preference Litigation, Richland County Bar, January 5, 1983
• Negotiation and Counseling Skills for Lawyers, Professional Institute's Second Annual Law and Psychology Seminar, Montego Bay, Jamaica, January 26, 1983 - January 30, 1983
• Attorneys' Fees as Damages "Damages and Remedies", S.C. Bar C.L.E. Program, February 7, 1986
• Attorneys' Fees, University of South Carolina School of Law, C.L.E., November 1, 1986
• Speaker, Advocacy in Civil and Criminal Trials, Young Lawyers Program, S.C. Bar Midyear Convention, 1986
• Banking Law Seminar, Southern National Bank, June 18, 1987
• Lender Liability Seminar, The Bank Administration Institute - S.C. Chapter, November 12, 1987
• From the Medical Record to the Deposition, Richland Memorial Surgical Grand Rounds, March 5, 1988
• Depositions in Civil Litigation, William S.Hall, Psychiatric Institute, South Carolina Department of Mental Health, May 28, 1988
• Utilization of Computers by the Trial Lawyer, The John Belton O'Neall Inns of Court Program, October 20, 1988
• Charts, Drawings and Blackboards, Practical Evidence for Trial Attorneys, S.C.Bar, June 9, 1989
• The Lawyers Perspective; Insurance Law; Agent Responsibility; Flood, Wind, Rain and Hail, Hugo Related Hurricane issues, S.C.Bar, December 8, 1989
• The Lawyers Perspective; Insurance Law; Agent Responsibility; Flood, Wind, Rain and Hail, Hugo Related Hurricane issues, Charleston Country Bar, October 27, 1989
• The Lawyers Perspective; Insurance Law; Agent Responsibility; Flood, Wind, Rain and Hail, Hugo Related Hurricane issues, South Carolina Legal Services Association, December 4, 1989
• The Lawyers Perspective; Insurance Law; Agent Responsibility; Flood, Wind, Rain and Hail, Hugo Related Hurricane issues, South Carolina Legal Services Association, December 11, 1989 - December 12, 1989
• The Physician as a Witness, Richland Memorial Hospital Department of Surgery, September 11, 1990
• Lender Liability Commercial Law Seminar, First Union National Bank of South Carolina, Columbia, South Carolina, September 11, 1990
• Lender Liability Commercial Law Seminar, First Union National Bank of South Carolina, Greenville, South Carolina, September 25, 1990
• Lucas v. South Carolina Coastal Council, ABA National Appellate Advocacy Competition Banquet, Columbia, South Carolina, March 21, 1993
• Lucas v. South Carolina Coastal Council, 3rd Annual Maine Conservation Rights Congress, Bangor, Marine, April 24, 1993
• Property Rights and the Courts, Clemson University's College of Forest & Recreation Resources Teleconference, Forest Farmers Association, South Carolina Farm Bureau Federation, September 21, 1993
• Property Rights and the Courts, Clemson University's College of Forest & Recreation Resources Teleconference, South Carolina Forestry Association in Cooperation with Society of American Foresters, S.C.Department of Agriculture, September 21, 1993
• Property Rights and the Courts, Clemson University's College of Forest & Recreation Resources Teleconference, S.C.Forestry Commission, S.C.Sportsmen's Coalition, September 21, 1993
• Contradictory Relationships Between Government Laws and Property Rights, "A Day of Environmental Education", Natural Resources Foundation of Texas, Fort Worth, Texas, January 14, 1994
• Lucas v. South Carolina Coastal Council, Texas and Southwestern Cattle Raisers Association's 117th Annual Convention, Fort Worth, Texas, March 29, 1994

Professional Associations and Memberships:

• American Law Institute
  • Member
• American Bar Association
  • Member
• South Carolina Bar
  • Member
• Richland County Bar Association
  • Member
• Supreme Court Historical Society
  • Member
• South Carolina Association for Justice
  • Member

**Any results the law firm may have achieved in past cases does not imply or indicate that similar results may be had in your case. Outcome of litigation is dependent on many factual and legal circumstances that may differ in your particular case.