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For further information regarding our team of neutrals, call Meghan Lettington on 949-760-5280, at email MLettington@phillipsadr.com
Areas of expertise:
Margaret B. Seymour is a retired United States District Judge who served in the District of South Carolina from 1998-2022. Her distinguished legal career includes serving as the first African American woman federal judge in South Carolina and the first African American to hold the title of chief federal judge in the state. Prior to her appointment as a federal district court judge, she served for two years as a U.S. magistrate judge for the South Carolina Court from 1996-1998.
During her twenty-six years on the bench, Judge Seymour presided over cases involving a multitude of federal and state law issues. Her cases included complex securities matters, contract disputes, multi-state class action litigation, commercial and banking disputes, bankruptcy and social security appeals, employment and discrimination claims, and environmental clean-up disputes. She presided over numerous criminal matters, including multi-defendant drug conspiracies, white-collar crime, child pornography, and human trafficking, as well as a Ponzi scheme that affected hundreds of victims.
Judge Seymour sat by designation on the Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. She also participated in two three-judge-panel redistricting cases. She was twice appointed to the Judicial Conference Committee on the Administration of the Bankruptcy System.
In addition to her tenure on the bench, Judge Seymour brings decades of experience as an attorney and a public servant. Before her appointment to the bench, Judge Seymour served as an assistant U.S. attorney for the District of South Carolina, during which time she was twice named the interim U.S. Attorney for the District. She began her career working for the federal government as an equal opportunity specialist for the U.S. Department of Health, Education, and Welfare while earning her law degree from American University, Washington College of Law. After graduating from law school, Judge Seymour began her legal career as an attorney for the Office for Civil Rights for the U.S. Department of Education and at the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission.
Judge Seymour is the recipient of the National Bar Association Leadership Award, the Richland County Bar Association Civility Award, and the South Carolina Lawyers Weekly 2024 Influential Women in Law. She is a member of the American Bar Foundation, The American Law Institute, the American Arbitration Association, Arbitral Women and Atlanta International Arbitration Society (AIAS).
Judge Seymour received her B.A. from Howard University, Washington, D.C. in 1969. She received her J.D. from the American University, Washington College of Law in 1977.
© 2025 PHILLIPS ADR | 2101 East Coast Highway, Suite 250, Corona Del Mar, California 92625 | (949) 760-5280 | Privacy Policy | Terms & Conditions