A. Victor Rawl Jr.

After receiving his Master of International Business Studies and Juris Doctor degrees, he served as law clerk to The Honorable P. Michael Duffy, United States District Judge, District of South Carolina, from 1995 until he joined McNair Law Firm, P.A. in November 1997. Prior to joining GRSM, Vic served as the Chair of McNair’s Class Action Practice Group. Vic joined GRSM in 2017 to build the South Carolina and Nebraska offices.

Vic has been highly rated by his peers in the areas of class actions, mass tort litigation, commercial litigation and construction law since 2012, including being selected as Lawyer of the Year in the area of “Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants” by The Best Lawyers in America® in 2021 and 2023.

Vic has successfully litigated individual and class action cases involving environmental & toxic tort issues, insurance coverage, bad faith, receivership law, cyber security, healthcare, the False Claims Act, products liability, consumer protection claims, trade secrets, shareholders disputes, shareholder derivative claims, professional liability (lawyers, accountants and design professionals), construction claims, and employment matters.

Representative examples of his experience include the following:

Commercial Litigation/General Liability

Vic has considerable experience handling litigation involving general commercial litigation claims, including contract disputes, shareholder disputes, product liability, breach of warranty, defamation actions, premises liability, franchise disputes, unfair trade practice, civil RICO, trade secret claims, non-compete, and corporate unwind.

Class Action Defense

Vic devotes a significant portion of his practice to class action defense. He has defended class actions in a wide variety of matters, including construction claims, product liability claims, lender liability claims and claims arising under consumer protection statutes. He has litigated class actions in federal courts, state courts and in arbitration. He has both defeated class certification in matters and obtained summary judgement prior to class certification. He has removed class actions to federal court pursuant to the Class Action Fairness Act, and he has obtained significant opinions from federal appellate courts blocking class claims in arbitration. More recently, he has defended entities in class actions arising after a Cyber Attack – including obtaining a pre-answer dismissal. Vic consults with regard to class strategy for other law firms and for clients defending cases in other jurisdictions.

Insurance 

Vic has represented dozens of insurers in matters regarding insurance coverage and/or bad faith litigation. He also represents insurers regarding primary and excess liability policies with regard to environmental, asbestos, PFAS and other mass torts – including defending several insurers being pursued by receivers appointed in South Carolina.

Construction

Vic has significant experience representing general contractors and other construction related entities – including representation of some of the country’s largest national builders. Matters have included construction defects, class actions, product defects, breach of contract claims, breach of warranty claims, alleged errors in design and/or workmanship, mechanic’s liens and construction site accidents. Vic also advises construction entities on employment matters, licensing matters and a variety of other general legal issues.

Environmental & Toxic Tort

Vic has handled the defense of environmental, chemical exposure, asbestos and other “toxic tort” claims in both South Carolina and Nebraska. He has experience defending manufacturers, suppliers, and sellers of flavoring products used in food manufacturing. Vic has also defended insurers in asbestos and PFAS litigation.

Product Liability

Vic has defended several clients in product liability matters. He has represented large companies in claims relating to tires, pharmaceuticals, medical devices, consumer electronics, building products, and other manufacturing machinery.

Professional Liability

Vic has experience in the defense of professionals, including attorneys, healthcare providers, architects, engineers, accountants, and directors and officers.

Health Law

Vic has broad healthcare experience – including Medicare fraud, qui tam actions, drug and medical device claims, medical negligence, and certificate of need. He has numerous years of experience defending nursing homes in negligence and wrongful death cases.

Awards and Honors

Vic served as law clerk to The Honorable P. Michael Duffy, United States District Judge, District of South Carolina, from 1995 though 1997.

In 2002, Vic was named Young Lawyer of the Year, by the American Board of Trial Advocates – South Carolina Chapter.

In 2002, Vic was elected President, Young Lawyers Division of the South Carolina Bar Association.
In 2003, Vic was appointed to the ABA Justice Kennedy Commission. This commission was created in response to a speech by Supreme Court Justice Anthony Kennedy, in which he challenged the legal profession to pay more attention to what happens after conviction — i.e. sentencing, incarceration, prison conditions, reentry, mercy, and criminal justice reform.

In 2006, Vic was elected President of the John Belton O’Neall American Inn of Court. The John Belton O’Neall American Inn of Court was the first American Inn of Court in South Carolina. The American Inns of Court inspire the legal community to advance the rule of law by achieving the highest level of professionalism through example, education and mentoring.

In 2013, Vic was selected to be a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation. “ABF Fellows are a global honorary society of attorneys, judges, law faculty, and legal scholars whose public and private careers have demonstrated outstanding dedication to the highest principles of the legal profession.”

In every year since 2012, Vic has been rated by his peers in the areas of class actions, mass tort litigation, commercial litigation and construction law by Best Lawyers in America® and/or Super Lawyers. Vic is also Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Rated as “AV Preeminent.”

In 2020, Vic was elected to the ABA House of Delegates to serve through 2026.

In 2021 and 2023, Vic was selected “Lawyer of the Year – Mass Tort Litigation / Class Actions – Defendants” by Best Lawyers in America®.