2025 Senior Symposium

Register today!

September 12-14, 2025
The George Hotel • Georgetown, SC

Regardless of your stage or type of practice, this weekend is tailored especially for members of the Senior Lawyers Division. Experts will address retirement options and succession planning, and we'll have plenty of time for fun!

Succession planning in the context of the legal profession can mean different things to different lawyers. When most solo practitioners think of “succession planning” they think of designating someone to take over or wind down their practice when they die and leaving necessary instructions to assist in that process. A lawyer in a larger firm might associate “succession planning” with a process for transitioning the law firm to new management when key senior lawyers retire. Regardless of the nature of the practice or the size of the law office, the smart lawyer will think beyond “who will take over when I’m gone” and consider succession planning as a multi-faceted concept designed to protect clients and law firm interests in the event of a variety of expected and unexpected changes. In this program, we will introduce the concept of succession planning, give tips on how to develop and implement a plan effectively and ethically and provide insight on what happens if you don’t plan. 

A seminar will be held on Friday afternoon, followed by a reception and dinner. On Saturday morning, attendees will enjoy a buffet breakfast prior to the seminar.  Lunch will be on your own. Then members and guests will have the opportunity to select from a wide variety of afternoon activities. Saturday evening members and guests are invited to a reception at a local home followed by dinner on your own. Full details are included below.

The cost to attend is $110 for guests and $240 for members. Breakfast, two receptions, and a dinner are all included in this price. Please note that the educational sessions are for SC Bar members only.

Accommodations 

THE GEORGE HOTEL
615 FRONT STREET, GEORGETOWN

In Georgetown’s historic district, along its storied waterfront, The George connects the world to its magical waterways and sea islands—and the gifts of life along the water. In beautifully whimsical spaces, the town’s first boutique hotel mirrors and moves like the water itself—inviting, inspiring, sparkling, and surprising—in ways infinite and enduring.

A special room rate has been arranged at $259+ per night for a Historic Double Queen or Palmetto King and $279+ per night for a Carolina Double Queen Water View. Rooms are limited so please make your reservations before August 8, 2025. Check-in is at 4 p.m. with check-out at 11 a.m. Complimentary self-parking.

Make Your Reservation

Agenda

Friday, September 12th 

1 p.m. Registration, Indigo Room, The George Hotel 

1:30-1:40 p.m. Welcome & Introductions
Hon. Catherine H. Kennedy • Turner Padget Graham & Laney, P.A., Columbia

1:40-2:40 p.m. Let’s Talk About Succession Planning
(1 hr. MCLE/LEPR)
Barbara M. Seymour, Esquire • Clawson & Staubes, LLC, Columbia
Many different scenarios cause us to need a succession plan. This introduction will present differing situations and possibilities for resolution.

2:40-2:50 p.m. Refreshment Break

2:50-3:50 p.m. When Is It Time? Recognizing Cognitive Impairment in Your Law Office
(1 hr. SA/MH)
Beth Padgett, Director, Lawyers Helping Lawyers • SC Bar, Columbia
This presentation will provide an overview of changes that might occur as we get older and how these changes might show up within the practice of law. If we get more informed about cognitive decline, we can thrive in our careers longer than we might think and enjoy our time in retirement.  We will discuss the following ideas. What do we need to learn about aging? Why don’t we embrace aging? Odd things happening to you?  It’s not always dementia. When it is a dementia-related cognitive decline, what steps can we take? How do we reduce the stigma of cognitive decline?  Bring an open mind and a willingness to explore new ideas about aging and the brain.

3:50-4:35 p.m. What if I Don’t Plan?
Emma T. Dean, Executive Director • SC Bar, Columbia
(45 min. MCLE/LEPR)
A discussion about Rule 428, naming a successor, attorneys to intervene, and how to assist.

4:35 p.m. Adjourn 

5:30-6:30 p.m. Cocktails, Eliza's Outdoor Bar, The George Hotel 

6:30-8:30 p.m. Dinner, Indigo Room, The George Hotel 

Saturday, September 13th 

8:15 a.m. Registration, Indigo Room, The George Hotel 

8:30-9 a.m. Buffet Breakfast, Indigo Room

9-9:10 a.m. Introductions
Hon. Catherine H. Kennedy • Turner Padget Graham & Laney, P.A., Columbia

9:10-10:10 a.m. How Do I Start Planning?
Doug Brown, J.D. • Summit Success International, Bluffton 
(1 hr. MCLE)
This segment will address key planning challenges, helping senior attorneys avoid common pitfalls in their succession journey.

10:10-10:20 a.m. Refreshment Break 

10:20-11:20 a.m. It’s Time.  What Now?
Barbara M. Seymour, Esquire • Clawson & Staubes, LLC, Columbia
(1 hr. MCLE/LEPR)
In this hour, we will discuss what steps need to be taken to close down a practice, both practically and ethically. 

11:20-11:50 a.m. Panel Discussion
Doug Brown; Emma T. Dean, Beth Padgett & Barbara M. Seymour
(30 min. MCLE)

11:50 a.m. Adjourn

*Lunch and Afternoon Activities are on your own. 

5-7 p.m. Reception, Front Street, Georgetown

*Dinner is on your own. 

Please note that CLE accreditation is pending. A request has been submitted to the Supreme Court of SC Commission on CLE & Specialization for consideration. 

*A list of recommended restaurants and suggested activities are provided below.

Meet the Speakers

Doug Brown has been an executive coach for over 10 years. He works with Summit Success International helping lawyers build up their business to a point it can run without them, giving them more time and freedom as well as earning the money they deserve from their ideal clients. Before joining Summit Success, Doug’s experience ranged from starting out at a big firm handling real estate commercial transactions and litigation to being the chief executive for the Connecticut Bar Association and then becoming the chief operating officer for a chain of fine jewelry stores.

Emma graduated from Washington and Lee University in 2003 with a double major in Economics and Politics. During law school at the University of South Carolina School of Law, she clerked at Baker, Ravenel, and Bender, and upon graduating in 2006, she began working at the South Carolina Court of Appeals as a Staff Attorney.  Later, she clerked for Justice John W. Kittredge at the Court of Appeals and then at the Supreme Court of South Carolina.

Emma went into private practice at Nelson Mullins, specializing in Appellate Advocacy.  In 2011, Emma became Assistant Chief Counsel to the House Judiciary Committee at the South Carolina House of Representatives.  Subsequently in 2015, Emma became Chief Counsel where she remained until 2023 when she was named Executive Director of the South Carolina Bar.

Emma is a recipient of the Silver Compleat Lawyer Award from the University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law, has served on the Chief Justice’s Commission on the Profession since 2010 and is a member of the SC Supreme Court Historical Society Board.

With experience from both sides of the bench, Cathy Kennedy is recognized throughout South Carolina for her expertise in probate and trust matters. From 1987 to 1999, Cathy served as the probate court judge in Columbia, SC, one of the largest probate courts in the state. Since 2000, she has been in private practice of law. During that time, she counseled clients and crafted plans that achieved their goals during their lifetimes and at death, avoided potential disputes and minimized tax ramifications. She also represented individuals and fiduciaries in complicated probate and trust matters in both uncontested and contested cases.

Cathy has testified before the legislature on changes in South Carolina probate and trust law. She served on the South Carolina Trust Code committee and chaired the South Carolina Probate Code committee that recommended changes in the law, which became effective in 2014 and 2016.

Cathy is currently scaling down her practice and is primarily focusing on serving as an expert witness and as a mediator. Knowing how litigation can damage relationships, she served on the task force to implement mediation in the probate courts and takes great satisfaction in moving parties toward restoration of family bonds.

Cathy has been elected to membership in the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel, a national invitation-only organization recognizing attorneys with exceptional skill and expertise in trust and estate matters. For 20 years, she was a SC Supreme Court Certified Specialist in Probate and Estate Planning until the reduced scale of her practice caused her to no longer qualify as a specialist. She is a former member of the Probate and Estate Planning Specialization Advisory Board and a past chair of the Probate, Estate Planning and Trust Section of the South Carolina Bar. Having served as a past member of the South Carolina Bar House of Delegates and its Board of Governors, she presently serves on the Executive Council of the Senior Lawyers Division and was former president of the Division.

Beth was named Director of Lawyers Helping Lawyers (LHL) at the SC Bar in August of 2022, after having served as Co-Director and Assistant Director since coming to LHL in December of 2010.  Beth received a Bachelor of Arts Degree from the University of South Carolina, a Master of Education from the University of South Carolina and a Master of Arts in Human Behavior and Conflict Management from Columbia College.  She has completed numerous graduate hours in counseling and addiction studies at USC and holds a certification in drug and alcohol counseling through the South Carolina Association of Alcoholism and Drug Abuse Counselors. She recently completed certification as a Grief Specialist through University of Wisconsin at Madison Continuing Education Program. 

Mindfulness and other contemplative practices have been the foundation of her life and work for over twenty years.  She completed the Mindfulness for Professionals Program at Duke Integrative Medicine Center in 2011, Phase I of Koru Mindfulness Teacher Certification, a mindfulness program for emerging adults developed at Duke University; a 200-hour yoga teacher training course in 2014, teacher training in Y12SR (Yoga for 12-Step Recovery) in 2015, and numerous continuing education hours in yoga, including laughter yoga and yoga for grief recovery, and mindfulness, including Mindfulness Based Addiction Recovery. 

In her interest in life-long learning and community involvement, Beth has recently completed the Columbia Museum of Art’s Docent training and is looking forward to being an integral part of the CMA Docent Community and the greater community through sharing the study, practice, and sharing of art. 

Barbara M. Seymour practices in the area of Professional Responsibility and Legal Ethics at Clawson & Staubes, LLC, in Columbia, SC. She assists lawyers and law firms in ensuring ethical compliance, including conflicts analysis; advertising review; risk management assessment; trust account management training; and departure and dissolution guidance. She also defends lawyers and judges in disciplinary enforcement matters. She represents Bar applicants before the Committee on Character and Fitness and the Supreme Court of South Carolina. She provides consulting and opinions in legal malpractice matters. She represents lawyers and law firms in litigation matters related to disqualification, fee petitions, unauthorized practice of law, and sanctions.

Barbara earned her Bachelor’s Degree in Management and Marketing from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro in 1990. She received her Juris Doctor from the University of Georgia School of Law in 1993. She began her legal career as a trial lawyer in Greenville, SC. She then worked as a prosecutor for the Office of Disciplinary Counsel to the Supreme Court of South Carolina for seventeen years, serving as the Deputy Disciplinary Counsel from 2007 to 2017. She was an adjunct professor in the Paralegal Degree Program at Midlands Technical College and an instructor in the Paralegal Certificate Program at Converse College. Her courses included Civil Litigation, Legal Research and Writing, Business Law, Torts, Introduction to Law and Ethics, and Law Office Management.

Barbara is a member of the South Carolina Bar, the State Bar of Georgia, the South Carolina Women Lawyers Association, the Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers, the ABA Center for Professional Responsibility, and the Richland County Bar. Barbara was a Fellow of the National Institute for the Teaching of Ethics and Professionalism in 2006 and 2011. She frequently presents continuing legal education programs to local, state, and national audiences on a variety of topics related to professional ethics and lawyer wellness. She is the creator of the SC Bar’s three-part online CLE series Trust Account Academy and the author of Trust Accounting for South Carolina Lawyers: An Annotated Practice Manual. In addition to presenting seminars for MCLE credit, Barbara’s service to the South Carolina Bar includes volunteering for the Law-Related Education, Professional Responsibility, Unauthorized Practice of Law, and Diversity Committees.