Court Rejects Elected Official’s Challenges to County Council’s Constitutional Authority

April 19, 2012 - PRLog -- Wyche attorneys John Moylan and Matthew Richardson represented Florence County Council in two lawsuits brought by the Florence County Treasurer, Dean C. Fowler, Jr., that raised constitutional challenges to the authority of County Council. In an Order signed this week, the Court sided with Wyche and Florence County Council, ruling in favor of Florence County Council on all issues raised in these lawsuits.  

In the first lawsuit, the Treasurer argued that he could decide to grant pay raises to his staff so long as the pay raises were “budget neutral.”  When County Council informed the Treasurer that it would need to approve the pay raises, he hired an attorney and sued the County.  He later wrote a check using county funds to pay his attorney without having authorization to spend taxpayer funds.  In the second lawsuit, the Treasurer asked the Court to stop the County Council from transferring excess funds from the county’s delinquent tax account into the County’s general fund.

“The Court correctly noted that ‘the facts of this case are disturbing.’ Checks and balances is a fundamental principle of a democratic government and it was gratifying to have the Judge rule in Florence County’s favor on every issue presented,” said John Moylan of Wyche. “We are glad to be a part of this important case that reiterates essential constitutional protections for the taxpayers of South Carolina.”

Wyche has a long history of providing legal services to South Carolina’s counties, cities, and state government. In addition to handling constitutional challenges, Wyche has experience handling other politically sensitive matters, including contract disputes, election disputes and ballot access, insurance coverage disputes, municipal employment disputes, representation before the State Ethics Committee, and redistricting litigation.   In fact, Wyche attorneys have been involved in every statewide redistricting case in South Carolina during the past 20 years.

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Wyche is a full-service law firm which has practiced law and served the community for more than 90 years. In that time, Wyche has participated in landmark litigation, served as counsel on cutting-edge transactions, and provided community leadership that has helped shape and drive our region’s growth and success. With offices in Greenville and Columbia, Wyche is the South Carolina member of Lex Mundi, the world’s leading association of independent law firms. Visit www.wyche.com to learn more.