Our History

The firm was founded in 1955 when the late Chief Justice C. Bruce Littlejohn suggested that Sam N. Burts and Noel Turner form a partnership. At that time, Justice Littlejohn was a Circuit Court judge in Spartanburg County. It was not until 1967 that Justice Littlejohn was appointed as a Justice on the South Carolina Supreme Court.

The partnership of Sam Burts and Noel Turner expanded and added attorneys to handle the increasing diversity in the legal practice. Justice Littlejohn remained close friends with Sam Burts and Noel Turner. After finishing law school in 1974, Richard H. Rhodes had the honor and privilege of working as a law clerk for Justice Littlejohn. Upon completion of his clerkship, and at the suggestion of Justice Littlejohn, Richard Rhodes joined the law firm in 1975. These three attorneys formed the core of what is now known as the law firm of Burts Turner & Rhodes.

The philosophies, work-product, instruction, and tradition that existed when the firm began in 1955 are still ingrained in the law firm as it exists today.