James Franklin Hartman III

Frank Hartman concentrates his legal practice in several areas, specializing in cases concerning social security disability, auto accidents, on the job injuries, slip and falls, trucking injuries, medical malpractice, and wrongful death. Mr. Hartman recently achieved a settlement on behalf of his client, a Beaufort, SC woman involved in a slip and fall claim, obtaining a $230, settlement with a maximum possible recovery of $300, had death resulted.

The Hartman Law Firm, LLC was established by Mr. Hartman in 2011 in North Charleston, South Carolina. Mr. Hartman worked with a prominent local firm prior to opening his own firm. During the three years of his employment, Mr. Hartman tripled the settlement results for his clients. His experience in the industry led him to conclude that large plaintiff firms put their own bottom line above their clients’ best interest, settling their clients’ cases on a case volume practice as opposed to obtaining the best results for their client, or profit over people. Insurance companies are well aware of the large firms’ reputation for settling cases for less than their actual values, so they offer significantly less, knowing these claims are likely to settle anyway. Mr. Hartman opened his own firm so he could help his clients obtain the best settlement results and because he thinks the people of South Carolina deserve better.

Mr. Hartman is a local boy who returned to serve his home town. Born at the Baptist Hospital in Columbia, SC, his family moved to the Isle of Palms when he was two years old. Mr. Hartman grew up on the Isle of Palms, attended Sullivan’s Island Elementary School, Porter-Gaud High School, and is a James F. Byrnes Scholar and an alumnus of the College of Charleston. He graduated from The Florida State University School of Law in 2006. Mr. Hartman was an exchange student to the University of Groningen, the Netherlands while in undergraduate school. He studied at Oxford University, England, and Erasmus University in Rotterdam, the Netherlands while in law school. Mr. Hartman speaks Dutch and Spanish and has a working knowledge of Russian, bringing a multicultural viewpoint to his practice. His uncle, Cotton Harness, served the people of the Low Country for thirty years in Environmental Law, and was a forerunner and advocate for mediation in South Carolina. His father, Pogo Hartman, was a successful personal injury lawyer in Columbia, SC.

Today, Mr. Hartman is a well-respected and successful attorney in South Carolina, a member of the Charleston Bar Association, South Carolina Bar Association, American Bar Association, and The South Carolina Association for Justice. Mr. Hartman is Episcopalian by faith, and a published author, penning “Tyger River Redux,” an exploration of the historical foundation of insurance bad faith law in the State of South Carolina. Future publications include “Ten Ways to Wreck Your Car Accident Case.”

J.D., The Florida State School of Law (2006)
Erasmus University of Rotterdam (2005)
Oxford University, England (2005)
B.A., College of Charleston (2000)
The University of Groningen, The Netherlands (1998-1999)
Porter-Gaud High School (1995)

South Carolina Bar (2007)