Clay earned his J.D. from the University of Alabama School of Law. He now works at the Hopkins Law Firm in Pawleys Island where his father, who has been representing injured individuals and employees for over 25 years, is his mentor.
Clay has an active litigation practice, representing individuals in state and federal court in many types of civil litigation including: personal injury litigation, medical malpractice mass torts including defective drugs and defective medical devices, business litigation, and insurance bad faith litigation. Clay also maintains a very active employment practice, where he represents employees regarding federal and state employment laws. Clay’s practice includes litigating employment related disputes involving wrongful termination, Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, Fair Labor Standards Act, Americans with Disabilities Act, Family Medical Leave Act, Age Discrimination in Employment Act, and other types of employment based claims, and Clay has represented employees in both single plaintiff and class actions. Finally, Clay represents individuals who have been charged with crimes in General Sessions Court where they have been charged with felonies, and municipal courts for lesser charges.
Clay is a member of the Ethics Advisory and the Fee Disputes Board for the South Carolina Bar, as well as the Voices Against Violence Committee for the Young Lawyers Division of the South Carolina Bar. He is a graduate of Leadership Georgetown County Class 24, serves as Chairman of the Georgetown County Young Professionals Board, Chamber Golf Tournament Chair, and recently was elected to the Chamber’s Board of Directors. Clay holds a Bachelor of Science in Bioengineering from Clemson University, with a minor in Political Science. He spent his college summers working in Pensacola, Florida developing nylon membrane for the detection of nucleic acid. He resides in Georgetown with his golden retriever, Lee.