Sullivan's Island Lawyers

J.D., High Honors, George Washington University Law School.
Ph.D., Chemistry, The Johns Hopkins University.
B.S., Chemistry, Juniata College (Huntingdon, PA) and Leeds University (England)

Thrive IP, Managing Member, since 2005.
Finnegan, Henderson, Farabow, Garrett & Dunner, L.L.P., 1997-2005.

Dr. Stipkala serves clients in all aspects of intellectual property law, from evaluating freedom to operate to securing patents, trademarks, and copyrights, to providing strategic advice regarding trade secrets and managing intellectual property for strategic business advantage.

Ralitsa François was born in Livingston, New Jersey but spent most of her life in Buford, Georgia. She is the daughter and descendant of Haitian immigrants and is very proud of her Haitian heritage. Ralitsa graduated from Queens University of Charlotte, cum laude, where she obtained a Bachelor of Arts in Political Science with minors in Pre-Law and Psychology. There, she balanced being a student-athlete where she served as an executive member of the National Political Science Honor Society, Pi Sigma Alpha, and was a co-captain and member of the Queens University of Charlotte Cheerleading Team. After college, Ralitsa worked in...

Cole Lawrimore was born and raised on his family’s tobacco farm in the rural, Pleasant Hill community of Georgetown County. As the son of a school administrator, Cole’s family moved frequently throughout the State of South Carolina with stops in Georgetown, Mt. Pleasant, Walhalla, and Newberry. Cole graduated from Newberry High School and attended Wofford College on an academic scholarship. In between attending social events, Cole was a Dean’s List student and the Vice Chairman of the Honor Council. After graduating from Wofford with a degree in accounting, Cole attended the Charleston School of Law. During his time there, Cole was...

Andrew Copenhaver devotes his practice to the representation of individuals and families harmed by defective products, motor vehicle accidents, nursing home abuse and neglect, premises injuries and other incidents involving negligence in products liability, personal injury and wrongful death cases. Mr. Copenhaver currently serves as counsel in several catastrophic and fatal injury cases throughout Georgia and South Carolina and is responsible for all aspects of litigation from initial pleadings to trial. He is also involved in several class actions in Georgia and states throughout the country. Prior to joining Bell & Brigham, Mr. Copenhaver clerked for the Honorable Dudley H. Bowen,...

Jessica L. Cleary received her B.A. from Westfield State College in 1997 and received her J.D. from Roger Williams University School of Law in 2000. She went before the court, for 8 years, representing disabled Veterans and their dependents in pursuit of VA compensation. Jessica is admitted to practice before the United States Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims, the United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit and the United States Supreme Court and is a member of the Rhode Island Bar. She has been accredited by the VA since May 2009. In 2014 Jessica was recognized in...

Marissa Fish received her J.D. from the University of Massachusetts School of Law-Dartmouth, where she graduated magma cum laude. Before Law school, Marissa received her M.S in Criminal Justice from Charleston Southern University. Having grown up in a military family and marrying into the military, Marissa has lived in many places. She was born in Maryland, but now calls South Carolina home, residing in the Aiken area with her husband.

Patrick T. Napolski attended Clemson University where he was on the Dean’s List. Patrick then went to Charleston School of Law. While at Law school, he was a member of Student Trial Lawyers Association and American Bar Association Committee, among other activities. Outside of work, Patrick is a judge for various moot court and mock trial competitions, a member of the South Carolina Bar Association’s Professional Development Committee, and a mentor in Charleston School of Law’s Mentoring Program. Patrick is licensed to practice law in Illinois, South Carolina, and the U.S. District Court for the District of South Carolina.

Prior to founding Miller|Conway, David worked as an attorney for a Chicago, Illinois based boutique trial law firm, which was retained by some of the largest law firms in the world to litigate multi-million dollar disputes between Fortune 500 companies. He also worked as a consultant on numerous highly litigious, high-value cases. David also worked with Corporate Counsel for the Law Department of the City of Chicago where he defended the City of Chicago against Section 1983 claims. David gained invaluable trial experience assisting a team of attorneys in a highly-publicized matter involving an Illinois State Senator. David’s team achieved...

Trip was born and raised in Charleston, SC. He graduated from the College of Charleston (B.A., 1992) and from Golden Gate University School of Law in California (J.D., 1999). In 1998, Trip was selected into the Honors Program with the Department of Justice as a third year law student where he worked for the U.S. Attorneyâs Office in San Francisco and had the unique opportunity to prosecute cases in the drugs, guns and explosives unit. After graduation and upon passing the California Bar, Trip worked in the legal department of Siebel Systems, Inc. in Silicon Valley where he negotiated and managed...

I’m a Native South Carolinian. I grew up on the rural outskirts in the midlands of South Carolina. Growing up I enjoyed fishing for bream, bass, and catfish. A good day in the country was spent riding bikes, eating boiled peanuts, swimming in the Edisto River, and tending to Brahma cows. I attended a small high school and my focus was always furthering my education. Why I Pursued Law After graduating from high school, I went on to the University of South Carolina, proud to be a Gamecock fan. Shortly after my freshman year I was held...

Ryan Templeton helps people that have been charged with crimes, people going through a divorce or child custody case, and people that have been injured.

He can help you navigate the legal minefield that you have found yourself in to get you the best possible result in your case. You will receive quality representation when you need it the most, in the areas of Family Law, Criminal Defense, and Personal Injury.

Ryan Templeton graduated from the University of South Carolina School of Law, and began his legal career as a Law Clerk to Circuit Court Judge Diane S. Goodstein. Upon...