Ogletree Deakins’ Fred Suggs Named Distinguished Lawyer of the Year

GREENVILLE, S.C. – May 17, 2013 – Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, P.C. (Ogletree Deakins), one of the largest labor and employment law firms representing management, is pleased to announce that Fred W. Suggs Jr., a shareholder in the firm’s Greenville office, has been selected as the Distinguished Lawyer of 2013 by the South Carolina Bar Employment and Labor Law Section Council. Suggs, who was recognized today at the organization’s mid-year meeting, was nominated and selected by his professional peers for commendable service to employment and labor law practice in South Carolina.

Suggs, a founding lawyer and shareholder of Ogletree Deakins, has practiced in the firm’s Greenville office since its inception in 1977. His experience in labor and employment law began in 1975 defending across-the-board class action suits, and since then, he has handled a number of complaints alleging discrimination based on race, sex and age before government agencies and in state and federal courts. In 1985, Suggs and two North Carolina attorneys established the annual N.C./S.C. Employment and Labor Law Conference, which has become the premier CLE program for employment and labor law practitioners in the Carolinas.

“There is no one more deserving to receive this high recognition than Fred,” said R. Allison Phinney, a shareholder in Ogletree Deakins’ Greenville office. “I have worked with him for more than 26 years and know first-hand his incomparable work ethic, considerable lawyering skills and unassailable professional integrity.”

Suggs served as president of the S.C. Bar from 2009 to 2010, chair of the S.C. Bar Labor and Employment Law Section Council from 1996 to 1998, chair of the S.C. Bar Professional Responsibility Committee and chair of the S.C. Bar House of Delegates. He has been elected a State Bar ABA Delegate for 2014. He is also active in his community, serving as chair of the Board of the Metropolitan YMCA, general counsel of the Greenville Chamber of Commerce and counsel to the Buncombe Street United Methodist Church’s Staff Parish Relations Committee.

An experienced speaker, Suggs regularly presents at employment law conferences, Bar programs, Association of Corporate Council meetings, SHRM conferences, and workshops and seminars sponsored by Ogletree Deakins. He earned his J.D. from the University of Alabama in 1975 and is a certified specialist in labor and employment law.

About Ogletree Deakins
Ogletree Deakins is one of the largest labor and employment law firms representing management in all types of employment-related legal matters. The firm has more than 650 lawyers located in 44 offices across the United States and in Europe. Ogletree Deakins was named “Law Firm of the Year” in both the Litigation – Labor & Employment and the Employment Law – Management categories in the 2013 edition of U.S. News – Best Lawyers “Best Law Firms” list. In addition to handling labor and employment law matters, the firm has thriving practices focused on business immigration, employee benefits, and workplace safety and health law. Ogletree Deakins represents a diverse range of clients, including more than half of the Fortune 50 corporations in the United States. For more information, please contact Ryan King or Mary Lou Baxter.

About the South Carolina Bar
The South Carolina Bar, which has a membership of more than 14,000 lawyers, is dedicated to advancing justice, professionalism and understanding of the law.