Burnette honored as South Carolina Bar’s first distinguished employment lawyer
COLUMBIA, S.C. – M. Malissa Burnette, a specialist in South Carolina employment law, was honored as the South Carolina Bar’s Labor and Employment Law Section’s first recipient of the Distinguished Lawyer Award.
Burnette was nominated and selected by her peers for the award, which recognizes meritorious service and outstanding community and professional contributions.
A certified specialist in employment and labor law since 1993, Burnette has a wealth of experience in family law, personal injury, sexual harassment and discrimination law as well. She’s also a certified federal court mediator. Burnette has served the legal community in numerous capacities, including as Chair of the SC Bar’s Judicial Qualifications Committee, and as President of the SC Women Lawyers Association.
She holds a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of South Carolina and is a graduate of the University of South Carolina School of Law. She’s held a number of appointed and community service positions over the years, ranging from The Governor’s Domestic Violence Task Force to the board of directors of South Carolina Equality. She joined Burnette Shutt & McDaniel in 2010.
Burnette will receive the award at a luncheon May 13 at the Bar Conference Center in Columbia. The day also will include a continuing legal education seminar covering the fourth edition of “Labor and Employment Law for South Carolina Lawyers,” a publication Burnette co-edited. She and Nekki Shutt were among the book’s co-authors.
In addition to employment and labor law, Burnette’s practice areas include alternate dispute resolution and domestic relations.