“[T]he Constitution is the supreme guide, and I must follow it wheresoever it leads.”

– Associate Justice Jonathan Jasper Wright dissenting in Ex parte Norris, 8 S.C. 408 (S.C. 1876)

ABOUT THE SC SUPREME
COURT HISTORICAL SOCIETY

The South Carolina Supreme Court Historical Society endeavors to discover, preserve, and disseminate the history of the Court and to educate the public on the historical role of the state judiciary and legal profession in developing and protecting the rule of law and judicial independence in South Carolina.  The work of the Society highlights key historical figures in South Carolina legal history, the South Carolina Supreme Court as an institution, and significant legal decisions, especially in the state court system.

The Society, under the auspices of the South Carolina Bar Foundation, was organized in the late 1990s by former Chief Justice Jean Hoefer Toal and current United States District Judge Richard Gergel. It has hosted symposia led by nationally known historians focused on the important contributions of various individuals or groups of individuals to the judicial development of the law in the state.  The Society also has a growing library of oral histories provided by leading judges and lawyers in the state.

The Society is a membership organization, but its mission focuses on educating both members and the public through its website, publications, and conferences. Members each year elect officers and members of the Board of Directors of the Society at an annual meeting co-hosted by one or more members of the Supreme Court. Membership also supports the public mission of the Society to make citizens more fully aware of the historical significance of South Carolina’s judicial branch of government.

OUR MISSION

The mission of the South Carolina Supreme Court Historical Society is to study, preserve, and collect the history of the courts, the judiciary, the legal profession, the judicial development of the rule of law, and judicial independence in South Carolina, as well as to educate the public about that history through publications, conferences, or other means.