10 attorneys at Burnette Shutt & McDaniel honored in Best Lawyers
September 8, 2026
Ten attorneys at Burnette Shutt & McDaniel are listed in the just-released 2027 edition of Best Lawyers in America® and its companion guide, Best Lawyers®: Ones to Watch.
The list of honors includes firm co-founder Nekki Shutt’s Lawyer of the Year recognition for the Columbia area in Employment Law – Individuals. It’s her seventh Lawyer of the Year award.
Though many of the honors were in practice areas related to employment law, civil rights law, and litigation, Burnette Shutt & McDaniel attorneys were recognized in more than a dozen diverse practice areas. Most of the attorneys were cited in multiple practice areas. Shutt’s honors in nine categories led the way.
The attorneys and their recognized practice areas, all in the Columbia area except as noted, are:
Stuart M. Andrews, Jr.
• Health Care Law
• Qui Tam Law
M. Malissa Burnette
• Civil Rights Law
• Education Law
• Employment Law – Individuals
• Litigation – Labor and Employment
• Mediation
Grant Burnette LeFever
• Employment Law – Individuals
Kathleen M. McDaniel
• Administrative / Regulatory Law
• Food and Beverage Law
• Litigation – Environmental
• Real Estate Law
Ashley Pennington
• Criminal Defense: General Practice
Janet E. Rhodes
• Employment Law – Individuals
• Litigation – Labor and Employment
David E. Rothstein – Greenville Area
• Employment Law – Individuals
• Litigation – Labor and Employment
Nekki Shutt
• Civil Rights Law
• Commercial Litigation
• Employee Benefits (ERISA) Law
• Employment Law – Individuals Lawyer of the Year for the Columbia Area
• Employment Law – Management
• Litigation – ERISA
• Litigation – Labor and Employment
• Personal Injury Litigation – Plaintiffs
• Qui Tam Law
Lydia Robins Hendrix – Ones to Watch
• Labor and Employment Law – Employee
• Litigation – Labor and Employment
Sarah J.M. Cox, who is not practicing currently, was also honored in Best Lawyers in the practice area of appellate law.
Burnette Shutt & McDaniel attorneys have been included in Best Lawyers in America for over 20 years. Andrews was first honored in 2003, while Burnette’s first appearance was in the 2005 edition. A related directory, Best Law Firms in America®, has honored Burnette Shutt & McDaniel every year since the firm was founded. The 2027 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 business 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, education, family, and administrative law. They also handle employee benefits and ERISA matters, civil rights cases, privacy and data protection issues and government matters such as eminent domain, land use and zoning. Learn more at burnetteshutt.law(opens in new tab).
