Chad Nicholas Johnston

Chad Johnston is an attorney with Willoughby & Hoefer, P.A., in Columbia and has a general business and administrative litigation practice, encompassing the representation of water, sewer, and electric utilities, state and local governmental entities, corporate entities, as well as individual and institutional securities and investment mismanagement litigation.  In addition to general litigation, Mr. Johnston’s practice extends across the spectrum of representation, from front-end environmental permitting, contract and economic development issues, to the handling of post-litigation appeals.

A native of Frankfort, Kentucky, Mr. Johnston holds a B.A. from Wofford College in French and Intercultural Studies for Business with German.  Following Wofford, Mr. Johnston completed the joint JD/IMBA program (German Track) at the University of South Carolina School of Law and Moore School of Business.

Prior to joining Willoughby & Hoefer, Mr. Johnston served as law clerk to the Honorable Kaye G. Hearn, Justice of the Supreme Court of South Carolina, for three years, encompassing Justice Hearn’s final two years as Chief Judge of the South Carolina Court of Appeals and first year as a Justice on the Supreme Court.

Mr. Johnston is a member of the South Carolina and Richland County Bars.  He is a past graduate of the Leadership Academy of the South Carolina Bar, is the current Chair-Elect of the Bar’s Environment and Natural Resources Section, and has been active in the Young Lawyers Division as past Chair of the Courthouse Keys Program.  Outside of the legal world, Mr. Johnston is a graduate of Leadership Columbia, is a frequent participant and presenter with the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce’s Environmental Tech Committee, has been a longtime Board Member of the Palladium Society, an affiliate organization of the Historic Columbia Foundation, and is a member of the Columbia Rotary Club.