Spence

Melissa is a member of Butler Snow’s Labor and Employment group, with experience in a wide range of industries.  Melissa regularly counsels clients on compliance issues and represents employers before the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the South Carolina Human Affairs Commission, and in both state and federal court against lawsuits arising under Title VII, ADA, ADEA, FMLA, and the FLSA.

• Labor & Employment
• Employment Counseling
• Employment Litigation
• Commercial Litigation
• Appellate & Written Advocacy

• Regularly counsels employers on personnel issues including hiring, firing, compensation, and compliance with state and federal employment laws.
• Reviews and advises employers concerning employee handbooks and policies, severance agreements, non-disclosure agreements, non-solicitation agreements, and non-compete agreements.  
• Defends lawsuits involving employment discrimination, harassment, non-compete, and wage and hours claims in South Carolina and Federal courts.
• Defends class and collective actions involving wage and hour claims arising under Fair Labor Standards Act and South Carolina Payment of Wages Act. 
• Conducts employee training on anti-discrimination and anti-harassment policies.  
• Negotiated and tried numerous cases to verdict, representing clients in a wide range of industries.
• Argued before the state and federal courts, including the South Carolina Supreme Court and the South Carolina Court of Appeals.  
• Regularly defends timeshare companies in cases arising under state law.  
• Obtained defense award, including award of counterclaim, in timeshare defense arbitration.

• Charleston Regional Business Journal, Forty Under 40, 2020
• Charleston Metro Chamber of Commerce, Leadership Charleston, Class of 2019
• South Carolina Super Lawyers®
  • Rising Star: Employment Litigation, 2016-2019
• Best Lawyers in America®
  • Employment Law - Management, 2024-2025
  • Litigation - Labor and Employment, 2024-2025
  • Ones to Watch, Labor and Employment Law – Management, 2021-2023
  • Ones to Watch, Litigation – Labor and Employment, 2023
• Charleston Business Magazine
  • Legal Elite, 2023-2024

• South Carolina, 2009
• U.S. District Courts
• South Carolina: District of South Carolina
• U.S. Court of Appeals
• 4th Circuit

• Charleston School of Law, J.D., cum laude, 2009
  • Charleston Law Review, Senior Articles Editor
  • Honor Council, Chair
  • Michelle Robbins Memorial Award
  • CALI Excellence for the Future Awards: Federal Courts and Supreme Court Seminar
• Wofford College, B.A., magna cum laude, 2006

• Clerkship, Judge Daniel F. Pieper, South Carolina Court of Appeals

• International Association of Defense Counsel (IADC)
• South Carolina Bar Association
  • Employment and Labor Law Section Executive Council
• Federal Bar Association
• Charleston County Bar Association
• South Carolina Women Lawyers Association
• Palmetto Society for Human Resource and Management
  • Board of Directors
    • Legislative Representative, 2024
    • Membership Vice President, 2023
    • General Counsel, 2020-2022

• Presenter, "The Ins and Outs of Conducting an Effective Workplace Investigation," Palmetto Society for Human Resource Management May Meeting, May 21, 2024.
• Presenter, "Hazed and Confused: Navigating the Ever-Changing Field of Cannabis in the Workplace," North Charleston Rotary, January 22, 2024.
• Panelist, "The Ramifications of the Supreme Court Affirmative Action Decision on the Corporate World," Butler Snow and ACC TN CLE Program, December 6, 2023.
• Speaker, Encore Virtual Presentation, “Hazed and Confused:  Navigating the Ever-Changing Field of Cannabis in the Workplace,” Palmetto Society of Human Resources Management, September 27, 2023.
• Panelist, "Affirmative Action & Corporate DEI: Where do we go from here?" Hinton & Company, August 3, 2023.
• Presenter, "Let’s Be Blunt: Navigating the Ever-Changing Field of Cannabis in the Workplace," Palmetto Society of Human Resources Management, June 20, 2023.
• Author, "Handbook Hot Topics: Remote Work Policies," Law360 Employment Authority, May 25, 2023.
• Panelist, “Establishing Your Business on the Right Legal Foot,” FAB Conference, June 7, 2022.
• Panelist, “Building an Employee Handbook for the Employee,” FAB Conference, June 7, 2022.
• Moderator, “Culture Fit: Disability, Accessibility and Discrimination,” FAB Conference, June 6, 2022.
• Speaker, "A Brewery for All: Best Practices for Preventing Discrimination in the Workplace," South Carolina Brewers Guild Conference, April 6, 2022.
• Quoted, "What Biden's New Vaccination Mandate Means for Restaurant Operators," Back of House, December 20, 2021.
• Presenter, "How’s Your Handbook? Best Practices for Legal Compliance,” Palmetto Society for Human Resource Management, November 9, 2021.
• Moderator, "Wage & Hour Law in the Era of COVID-19," 37th Annual NC/SC Labor & Employment Law Conference, October 29, 2021.
• Co-Author, "Lessons and Recommendations from the COVID-19 Era," ACC South Carolina, 2nd Quarter Newsletter, June 30, 2021.
• Quoted, "Employment Hires You May Have Missed In The 1st Quarter," Law360 Employment Authority, March 31, 2021.
• Presenter, “Campaigning and the Workplace,” Employment Law Briefing, Charleston, SC, October 29, 2020. 
• Panelist, “Reopening without Reservation,” SC Restaurant & Lodging Association, May 6, 2020.
• Presenter, “Privacy Issues in the Workplace During COVID-19,” Employment Law Certificate Series Webinar, April 8, 2020.
• Presenter, “An Employer’s Guide to Emergency Leave and Unemployment,” Lowcountry Local First, April 2, 2020.
• Presenter, “Managing Your Workforce During the Pandemic,” Myrtle Beach Area Chamber of Commerce, March 31, 2020.
• Presenter, “Managing Your Workforce during COVID-19,” Palmetto Society of Human Resource and Management, March 27, 2020.
• Presenter, “Practical Points for Bringing and Defending a Wage and Hour Lawsuit,” South Carolina Bar Convention, Employment Labor Seminar, January 24, 2020.
• Presenter, “Marijuana in the Workplace,” Employment Law Briefing, Charleston, S.C., October 29, 2019.
• Presenter, “Wage and Hour Update: Fair Labor Standards Act and State Law Refresher,” Employment Law Certificate Series Webinar, October 9, 2019.
• Presenter, “Private Eyes: Surveillance and Privacy in the Workplace,” Employment Law Briefing, Myrtle Beach, S.C., May 10, 2019.
• Presenter, “Hiring & Firing: Best Practices for Saying Hello and Goodbye in the Workplace,” Employment Law Briefing, Charleston, S.C., January 29, 2019.
• Presenter, “Pregnancy in the Workplace: Complying with the FMLA, ADA, and other laws,” Employment Law Briefing, Hilton Head Island, S.C., October 4, 2018.
• Presenter, “Weapons at Work: Preventing and Responding to Workplace Violence,” Employment Law Briefing, Hilton Head Island, S.C., May 17, 2018.
• Presenter, “Conducting Effective Workplace Investigations,” Employment Law Briefing, Myrtle Beach, S.C., May 4, 2018.
• Presenter, “Strategies for Reducing Sexual Harassment Liability in the ‘Me Too’ Era,” Employment Law Briefing, Myrtle Beach, S.C., February 2, 2018.
• Presenter, “Preventing Harassment and Retaliation Claims,” Employment Law Webinar Certificate Series, December 13, 2017.
• Panelist, South Carolina Manufacturer’s Alliance Annual HR Managers Meeting, Myrtle Beach, S.C., November 2, 2017.
• Presenter, “Guns and the Workplace,” Employment Law Briefing, Hilton Head, S.C., February 2017.
• Presenter, “FMLA and Leave Issues,” NBI’s Human Resource Law from A to Z, Charleston, S.C., November 17, 2016.
• Presenter, “Discrimination and Harassment,” NBI’s Human Resource Law from A to Z, Charleston, S.C., November 17, 2016.
• Presenter, “FLSA – Putting What You’ve Learned into Practice,” Benefits inFORUM, Charleston, S.C., October 20, 2016.
• Presenter, “FLSA Update,” Employment Law Briefing, Charleston, S.C., September 2016.
• Presenter, “Top HR Challenges of 2016,” Employment Law Briefing, Charleston, S.C., January 2016.

• Charleston Legal Access
  • Board of Directors, 2022-present
• Florence Crittenton Programs of South Carolina
  • Board of Directors, 2013-2019
• The Charleston Forum
  • Board of Directors, Former Member