Donnell G. Jennings
Donnell Jennings has practiced law since 1989 when he began his career as a plaintiff’s lawyer. Then, he was responsible for prosecuting various torts, including automobile accidents, and slip and falls. He left private practice for six years while he served as counsel to the South Carolina Senate Committee on Corrections and Penology and as senior research analyst for the South Carolina Senate Finance Committee. Yearning to return to the courtroom, Donnell joined Turner Padget in 1998 and since then has tried, as first chair, 80 civil jury trials to verdict throughout South Carolina.
Donnell focuses primarily in the litigation of personal injury, product liability and premises liability cases. He also handles employment law matters. He is routinely assigned cases in problematic counties such as Allendale and Hampton because of his trial skills and his ability to relate to jurors, regardless of the venue.
In 2008, Donnell was certified as a circuit court mediator and is rapidly growing this area of his practice. He has both plaintiffs and defendants throughout South Carolina seeking him as a mediator because of their positive experiences with him as a litigator. Donnell has earned a reputation among members of the South Carolina Bar as being aggressive, efficient, fair and reasonable. He has represented some of the nation’s largest insurers, largest retailers and restaurant chains. He has also represented one of the nation’s largest automotive manufacturers.
“There is nothing more rewarding than resolving a matter efficiently, aggressively and to the satisfaction of my clients.”
Representative Matters
Personal Injury
- Successfully established that the plaintiff in an automobile accident case, although not legally intoxicated, caused the accident because he could not perform the tasks necessary to safely operate a motorcycle. After a weeklong trial, the jury found the plaintiff 70 percent at fault, and returned a defense verdict on a loss of consortium claim. The appeal of the jury verdict resulted in an affirmation of the original verdict, in a decision published by the Supreme Court of South Carolina.