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Columbia, SC | November 21, 2019 – The South Carolina Bar Foundation would like to announce that Robert M. Wilcox, Dean of the University of South Carolina School of Law, is the recipient of the 2019 DuRant Distinguished Public Service Award.  The award will be presented to Dean Wilcox at the South Carolina Bar’s annual convention taking place in January 2020 in Columbia, SC.

The Foundation Board selected Wilcox for this award for numerous reasons including his tireless work as the current dean and a professor of the University of South Carolina School of Law as well as his involvement in both the legal and academic communities.  He serves on the Chief Justice’s Commission on the Profession, and formerly served on the South Carolina Commission on Judicial Conduct and the South Carolina Judicial Merit Selection Commission.

Wilcox is on the executive board of the local John Belton O’Neall Inn of Court as well as chair of the Warren Burger prize selection committee for the American Inns of Court.  He chaired the Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough Center on Professionalism at the law school and was former chair of the University of South Carolina Faculty Senate.  Wilcox is a frequent presenter at continuing legal education seminars around the State of South Carolina, and a member of the Order of the Coif.  He is very involved in St. John's Episcopal Church and served on the board of the local chapter of City Year and was a dedicated little league coach for years.

“Dean Wilcox is the epitome of what it means to be a DuRant award recipient,” stated Chris Koon, president of the Bar Foundation Board. “He has dedicated most of his professional life to educating and advocating for some of the best and brightest law students in the state and the country.  He worked tirelessly to get the new University of South Carolina School of Law building completed all while continuing to teach, serving on numerous committees and volunteering his time and guidance to improve the legal profession in South Carolina.  The South Carolina Bar Foundation Board of Directors is honored to recognize him with the 2019 DuRant Award.”

The DuRant Distinguished Public Service Award was created in 1980 by the South Carolina Bar Foundation in memory of Charlton DuRant, a well-known Manning attorney who served as state senator and special associate justice of the SC Supreme Court. Today, this award is one of the most prestigious statewide honors that members of the Bar can bestow on a fellow attorney. Recipients are nominated by their professional peers and selected by the South Carolina Bar Foundation Board of Directors.  Selection criteria include meritorious service to the law and the community.

Click here to learn more about the DuRant award.