Legal Services
Clear counsel.
Proven judgment.
LEGAL SERVICES ACROSS SOUTH CAROLINA
John Cannon Few, LLC offers a wide range of services to clients across South Carolina. With 26 years of experience on the bench, including over a decade as a Justice on South Carolina’s highest court, his perspective informs a practice built on sharp legal insight, disciplined strategy, and an unwavering commitment to the clients he represents.
LEGAL SERVICES
Appellate Litigation: Federal and State
Appellate practice is a discipline unto itself. Sixteen years of work on the appellate courts of South Carolina — six as Chief Judge of the Court of Appeals, ten as a Justice on the Supreme Court — gives John C. Few a firsthand understanding of how appellate courts approach their work that no amount of study can replicate. He knows what appellate judges look for in a brief, what persuades them at oral argument, and perhaps more importantly, what they are not looking for and what does not persuade them.
Few's approach to appellate representation begins at trial. Preserving the right issues for appeal, in the right way, is often what determines whether an appeal can be successful. From that foundation through briefing and oral argument, Few brings a disciplined, strategic approach to appellate litigation based on his years of appellate experience.
If you are preparing for a trial, you should be planning for an appeal. If you believe a trial court got it wrong, you need to file an appeal. In either instance, John Cannon Few, LLC will evaluate your case thoroughly and, if the grounds are there, pursue or defend your appeal with everything the firm's experience commands.
Other Complex Litigation
Success in “complex litigation” depends on having an attorney with the experience to understand the complicated issues that make it so difficult. These complicated issues arise in cases including multiple parties with cross-claims, requiring extensive discovery, and involving novel procedural and substantive issues. “Complex litigation” is an exclusive area of practice no matter the subject matter of the lawsuit, and it requires an attorney who understands how courts actually work — how judges think, how juries decide, and how these difficult cases are often won or lost long before trial begins.
Few's experience with complex litigation spans every phase of his career and every role he has played in it. In the 1990s as a litigator, he handled some of the most controversial discovery battles the courts of this State and federal district had ever seen, and tried many of those cases to jury verdict. In the 2000s as a Circuit Court Judge, he presided over dozens of jury trials in complex cases all over South Carolina. In the years that followed — as a Court of Appeals judge and Supreme Court Justice — he wrote many of the opinions that now govern how complex cases are handled in South Carolina.
Few is available to represent clients — businesses or individuals — in any type of complex litigation in which his range of experience would make a difference.
Business & Corporate Litigation
Few's career has been defined largely by business litigation — first as a litigator in the 1990s, handling lawsuits ranging from complex contract disputes to multiparty and class action cases involving the Unfair Trade Practices Act, the Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA), the Sherman and Clayton Antitrust Acts, and the Securities Exchange Act; then as a trial judge trying business disputes all over South Carolina; and finally as an appellate judge and Supreme Court Justice, writing opinions that govern how business disputes will be litigated in South Carolina for years to come. His degree in economics from Duke University gave him an early grounding in market principles and business dynamics that has informed his legal work ever since.
Few now represents businesses and individuals in the full range of commercial disputes — contract claims, fraud, partnership and shareholder disagreements, unfair trade practices, federal law claims, and other matters in which the financial stakes are significant. If your business faces litigation, or if another business or individual has wronged you in a way that demands legal accountability, Few brings depth and breadth of experience to that fight.
Criminal Defense
Some criminal cases — state or federal court — call for an attorney of experience and judgment. John C. Few is that attorney and his firm handles those cases.
Few spent 26 years on the bench evaluating how criminal cases are investigated, charged, and tried. That experience now informs a criminal defense practice built on thorough preparation, strategic judgment, and, where a case demands it, aggressive advocacy before a jury.
Few's approach to serious criminal matters is to assemble a team whose combined skills are a formidable match for whatever the State or the federal government brings. From pre-indictment negotiations through trial and appeal, Few will put together a team that is prepared to protect the rights and future of every client the firm represents.
Serious criminal charges demand serious representation. If you or someone you care about faces such a charge, let John Cannon Few, LLC put a team together to defend the charge.
Mediation & Arbitration
Few was a South Carolina Bar trained mediator before he took the bench in 2000. As Few concluded his judicial career in 2026, he attended and completed the "Mediation Intensive" course at the Harvard Program on Negotiation, hosted at Harvard Law School — one of the most rigorous and prestigious mediation training programs available.
Few brings to mediation what 26 years on the bench provides: the ability to evaluate a case honestly, to help parties understand where their positions are strong and where they are vulnerable, and to guide a difficult conversation toward the parties reaching their own resolution — one that is fair, durable, and grounded in legal reality.
Few is not the right mediator for every case. But if the complexity of the dispute, the sophistication of the parties, or the stakes involved suggest that the depth and breadth of his experience would make a difference, he welcomes the opportunity. He is also available to serve as an arbitrator in matters requiring a neutral decision-maker of comparable experience.
Legal and Professional Ethics
The Supreme Court of South Carolina has ultimate authority over lawyer and judicial discipline in this State. Few spent more than ten years on that Court, participating in its consideration of ethics and disciplinary cases, and developing a thorough understanding of how and why disciplinary proceedings arise, how they are evaluated by disciplinary counsel and the Court, and the variables that determine their outcome.
If you are a lawyer or other professional facing disciplinary action in South Carolina, Few can bring that understanding and experience directly to your defense. He will navigate the process with you, honestly evaluate your exposure, and help you protect your professional standing and continue practicing in the field you love.
Consultation on Litigation
Not every engagement with John Cannon Few, LLC requires filing a lawsuit — nor should it. Few represents clients in a range of situations in which his understanding of law and litigation helps the client avoid a lawsuit, and achieve their business or other goals while minimizing the risk that legal exposure through litigation will interfere with their success.
Few understands that litigation is — in many instances — the most significant and dangerous risk faced by entrepreneurs, investors, and the businesses they build and run. Identifying the sources of that risk early — and addressing them before risk becomes crisis — is often the most valuable service a lawyer can provide.
If you or your business needs clear-eyed counsel on litigation risk, Few is available to help in a way that is informed by his professional experience.
