Cohoon newest partner at Burnette Shutt & McDaniel
An experienced employment lawyer who fights in courts and before administrative agencies for clients whose livelihoods are at risk, Jack E. Cohoon is now a partner at Burnette Shutt & McDaniel.
Cohoon came to the firm in 2020 after 14 years as an attorney with South Carolina Legal Services, where he served as lead litigation attorney and head of the Employment Law Unit. In that position, he advocated for low-income clients with employment-law issues.
He’s continued the fight since joining Burnette Shutt & McDaniel. Cohoon has fought for safe working conditions for disabled teachers during the pandemic, as well as for the accrued PTO leave for essential workers in hospitals. He’s brought successful Freedom of Information Act litigation challenging a state commission’s illegal secret meetings. He has brought numerous legal actions to protect the rights of employees discriminated against based upon race, sex, national origin, religion, age, and disability.
Cohoon also has received numerous professional honors. He recently received the Richland Bar’s Civic Star Award in recognition of his community service. He maintains an AV Preeminent® Rating and Silver Client Champion recognition from Martindale-Hubbell. “Best Lawyers in America” and “Legal Elite of the Midlands” both have recognized his work in employment law.
In addition to employment law, his practice at Burnette Shutt & McDaniel includes civil rights, appeals, and administrative law. He’s long worked to eliminate roadblocks that have prevented people from obtaining jobs. He’s sought pardons, pursued criminal record expungements, defended occupational licenses, and worked to correct errors in criminal records.
His efforts have succeeded in changing the law. He successfully challenged a South Carolina policy that denied commercial driver’s licenses to legal immigrants. After he challenged a $50 charge for a state ID for people with certain criminal convictions, the state Legislature eliminated the fee.
“Jack’s work is an impressive example of what we have in mind when we say we want to move law forward,” firm co-founder Kathleen McDaniel said. “We were thrilled when he joined us two years ago, and we are just excited today that he’s now our partner.”