11 at Burnette Shutt & McDaniel honored in “Best Lawyers,” including a Lawyer of the Year
August 15, 2024
Eleven attorneys at Burnette Shutt & McDaniel are listed in the just-released 2025 edition of “Best Lawyers in America” and its companion guide, “Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch,” a total that includes every partner at the firm.
Firm co-founder M. Malissa Burnette also received Lawyer of the Year honors for the Columbia area in Employment Law – Individuals. It’s the fourth time she’s received that honor and her fifth overall “Lawyer of the Year” award.
Most of the attorneys are cited in multiple practice areas. Firm co-founder Nekki Shutt led the way with honors in nine practice areas.
All told, Burnette Shutt & McDaniel was recognized in more than a dozen diverse practice areas, a number that grows every year. Many honors were in employment and litigation-related fields, though attorneys also are included in health care law, criminal law, family law, qui tam whistleblower law, and more.
The attorneys and their recognized practice areas are:
Stuart M. Andrews, Jr.
• Health Care Law
• Qui Tam Law
M. Malissa Burnette
• Civil Rights Law
• Education Law
• Employment Law – Individuals Lawyer of the Year
• Litigation – Labor and Employment
• Mediation
Jack E. Cohoon
• Employment Law – Individuals
• Litigation – Labor and Employment
Kathleen M. McDaniel
• Administrative / Regulatory Law
• Land Use and Zoning Law
Amanda S. Mueller
• Family Law
Ashley Pennington
• Criminal Defense: General Practice
Janet E. Rhodes
• Employment Law – Individuals
• Litigation – Labor and Employment
Nekki Shutt
• Civil Rights Law
• Commercial Litigation
• Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law
• Employment Law – Individuals
• Employment Law – Management
• Litigation – ERISA
• Litigation – Labor and Employment
• Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
• Qui Tam Law
Annie Day Bame – Ones to Watch
• Civil Rights Law
Sarah J.M. Cox – Ones to Watch
• Appellate Practice
• Civil Rights Law
• Labor and Employment Law – Employee
• Litigation – Labor and Employment
Grant Burnette LeFever – Ones to Watch
• Civil Rights Law
• Education Law
• Family Law
• Labor and Employment Law – Employee
• Labor and Employment Law – Management
• Litigation – Labor and Employment
A full-service law firm handling employment discrimination, employee benefits, Title IX student/education discrimination, election law, housing discrimination, Section 1983 actions such as those involving excess force, and family law, Burnette Shutt & McDaniel attorneys have long histories with “Best Lawyers in America.”
Andrews was first honored in 2003, while Burnette’s first appearance was in the 2005 edition. As of 2024, the most recent year that’s been published, the companion piece, “Best Law Firms in America,” has honored Burnette Shutt & McDaniel every year since the firm was founded. The 2025 edition of “Best Law Firms” will be released in November.
The “Best Lawyers” selection process includes peer review from attorneys in the same geographic region and practice area. Independent research verifies attorneys’ credentials. The selection process for “Ones to Watch,” which includes attorneys with less than 10 years’ practice, is the same.
About Burnette Shutt & McDaniel, PA
Located in Columbia’s historic Vista district, Burnette Shutt & McDaniel, PA’s attorneys are licensed to practice in all South Carolina courts and at all levels of federal courts, including the U.S. Supreme Court. The firm represents clients in a range of areas, including employment, environmental, and education law. They also handle employee benefits and ERISA matters, privacy and data protection issues, and government matters such as eminent domain, land use, and zoning. The attorneys’ civil rights work includes discrimination, wrongful termination, and criminal justice civil rights. Additionally, the firm represents LGBTQ+ clients in a range of issues, including family law and name and gender-marker changes. Learn more at burnetteshutt.law.
