John Koon

Name:

John Kesely Koon; jkoon@koonandcook.com

Family

Wife: Darnell Branham Koon

Children: Jason Thomas Koon, age 37;

Fallon Elizabeth Koon, age 26

Mr. Koon was born in Newberry County. Mrs. Koon was born in Richland County and moved to Fairfield County at a young age. They have resided in Lexington County for the past thirty-five years. Their children were educated in the Lexington County public school system.

Legal membership organizations:

American Association of Justice (formally American Trial Lawyers Association)
South Carolina Trial Lawyers Association
South Carolina Bar
Education: University of South Carolina School of Law, J.D., 1974
University of South Carolina, B.S. in Business, 1971
Mid Carolina High School, Prosperity, SC, 1961

Admitted to practice:

All South Carolina State Courts
Federal District Court
The Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals
The U. S. Supreme Court

Legal Experience:

Koon and Cook, P.A. 1991-present
John K. Koon, P.A. 1979-1991
Dallas D. Ball, P.A. 1974-1979

Types of cases:

Personal injury including automobile accident, worker’s compensation, slip and fall, trip and fall, wrongful death, dog bite, liquor liability, fraud, underinsurance reformation cases, various cases against the South Carolina Department of Transportation, pedestrian injuries, premises liability, nursing home negligence, products liability and medical malpractice.
Breach of contract, wrongful refusal to pay by insurance companies, train wrecks and injuries by persons on the train, other train wrecks where employees were represented and other train wrecks where people in their vehicle were injured

Criminal defense including murder, assault and battery with intent to kill, assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, armed robbery, burglary, bank robbery, arson, simple assault, criminal sexual conduct, DUI, DUS, Felony DUI, drug conspiracy in State and Federal Court as well as most other drug charges, unlawful weapon in State and Federal Court, criminal domestic violence, criminal domestic violence of a high and aggravated nature, various traffic offenses.

Significant cases:

Baggerly vs. CSXT and Amtrak - Abrogated the South Carolina statute prohibiting testimony of an out of state engineer without first obtaining a South Carolina license.

Elam v. Elam – Parental immunity common-law doctrine applicable to tort actions brought by an unemancipated minor against the parents was abolished.

Stokes v. First National Bank – The first South Carolina case recognizing a mental on mental Worker’s Compensation claim without a physical injury.

Risinger v. Risinger – Family court could require divorced husband to contribute money necessary to enable a child, who is over the age of 18, to attend college.

Beall v. Beall – First time South Carolina courts allowed nonmutual offensive collateral estoppel (issue preclusion).

 

Stephen Cook

Name:

Stephen H. Cook; scook@koonandcook.com

Family / From:

Mr. Cook was born and raised in Orangeburg, South Carolina.

Education:

University of South Carolina School of Law
Juris Doctor (J.D.) 1985
University of South Carolina Bachelor of Science in Business Administration, Magna Cum Laude, 1982

Admitted to Practice:

All South Carolina State Courts
United States District Court for the District of South Carolina
United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit (Richmond, Virginia)
Legal Experience: Koon & Cook, P.A. 1991-present.
Law Offices of John K. Koon 1985-1991

Handled and tried various types of cases involving personal injury including automobile accidents, workers’ compensation, slip and fall, trip and fall, wrongful death, premises liability, negligence, products liability, day care negligence, cases against governmental agencies, and school negligence.

Handled criminal defense including minor in possession of beer, minor in possession of alcohol, murder, assault and battery with intent to kill, assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, armed robbery, burglary, bank robbery, simple assault, DUI, DUS, drug possession, and possession with intent to distribute.
Mr. Cook has taught seminars to attorneys on how to handle automobile accident cases. Mr. Cook serves as State Legal Advisor for South Carolina Dixie Majors Baseball.

 

Chip Truitt

Name:

David N. “Chip” Truitt; ctruitt@koonandcook.com

Family / From:

Wife: Andrea Derrick Truitt

Children: Abby, 10; Shelby, 6; Rachel, 4.

Mr. Truitt was born in Burlington, NC and grew up in Danville, VA. Mr. Truitt has lived in South Carolina since 1989.

Education:

University of South Carolina School of Law, J.D., 1992
University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, B.A., History, 1989
George Washington High School, Danville, VA, 1985
Admitted to Practice: All South Carolina State Courts, 1992
United States District Court for South Carolina, 1993

Legal Experience:

Koon & Cook, P.A. 1999-present

Types of cases: personal injury including automobile accidents, workers’ compensation, slip and fall, trip and fall, wrongful death, premises liability, nursing home negligence, products liability, school negligence
criminal defense including murder, assault and battery with intent to kill, assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature, armed robbery, burglary, bank robbery, simple assault, criminal sexual conduct, improper conduct in office, DUI, DUS, felony DUI, federal drug conspiracy, drug possession, possession with intent to distribute, distribution of drugs, drug trafficking, simple possession of marijuana, unlawful weapon, federal felon in unlawful possession of a weapon, criminal domestic violence, criminal domestic violence of a high and aggravated nature, various traffic offenses

5th Circuit Solicitor’s Office, Assistant Solicitor (Prosecutor) 1993-1999

Types of cases: member of violent crime task force- murder, burglary, armed robbery, bank robbery, criminal sexual conduct, assault and battery with intent to kill, felony DUI, DUI, assault and battery of a high and aggravated nature
In 1994, one of the first prosecutors in state to successfully participate in the prosecution of a rape case using DNA evidence.

Warlick Law Office 1992-1993

Types of cases: personal injury including automobile accidents, workers’ compensation, slip and fall, trip and fall, wrongful death, premises liability, products liability, medical malpractice, family law, criminal defense