Robertson H. Wendt, Jr.

Charleston, South Carolina

Member

phone	(843) 577-5460
fax	(866) 347-3906

Rob Wendt is one of three managing members of the Finkel Law Firm. He leads the firm’s disability department representing clients in claims for Social Security disability, long term disability, and other disability benefit programs. He has practiced law in Charleston, S.C. since 1981 after earning his law degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law, and has successfully handled thousands of disability claims in hearings before federal administrative law judges and in administrative and federal court appeals. He is a board-certified specialist in Social Security disability law, certified by the National Board of Trial Advocacy (NBTA).

Throughout his career, Rob has worked to improve the practice of disability law and to promote justice for the disabled. He has served as a leader in several state and national bar organizations; has worked with members of Congress and the Social Security Administration on disability law and policy; has served as speaker, trainer, and panelist on Social Security law and practice; and has addressed the public on disability issues in personal appearances and through the media.

In the late 1990’s, Rob conceived and promoted the creation of a national board certification for Social Security disability legal specialists to serve disability claimants looking for the most qualified lawyers to represent them. In 2005, the American Bar Association accredited the first national legal specialization program for Social Security disability attorneys through the NBTA, the country’s largest national certifying organization of legal specialists. Rob has served on the NBTA board of directors since 2012 and is active on several committees.

Because of his commitment to public and professional service, Rob was honored with a South Carolina Lawyers Weekly’s 2011 Leadership in Law award.

In 1993 Rob founded a small regional law firm in Charleston, SC focusing exclusively on disability benefits law. In 2016 Rob joined the Finkel Law Firm with the goal of building a statewide disability law practice for the firm, which has offices in Columbia and Charleston, SC. He is committed to using his many years of experience to train a new generation of lawyers and professional legal staff to represent disabled clients with the highest degree of professionalism and service.

Areas of Practice:

• Social Security Disability
• Long Term Disability

Bar Admissions:

• South Carolina, 1981
• United States District Court, District of South Carolina, 1982
• United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit, 1983

Education:

• University of South Carolina School of Law, Columbia, S.C., 1981
• Juris Doctor
• Washington & Lee University, Lexington, Virginia, 1978
• Bachelor of Arts
• St. Andrew’s School, Middletown, Delaware, graduated 1974

Judicial Clerkships:

• The Honorable Klyde Robinson, South Carolina Circuit Judge, Ninth Judicial Circuit, 1981-1982
• The Honorable Lawrence E. Richter, Jr., South Carolina Circuit Judge, Ninth Judicial Circuit, 1982
• Federal Bar Association (FBA)
• American Association for Justice (AAJ)
• American Bar Association (ABA)
• South Carolina Bar
• South Carolina Association for Justice (SCAJ)
• Charleston County Bar Association

Past Professional Leadership Positions:

• American Association for Justice
• Founding member of Social Security Disability Law Section
• Chair, Social Security Disability Law Section, 2000-2001
• South Carolina Association for Justice
• Elected to Board of Directors representing Ninth Judicial Circuit, 1999-2002
• Chair, Social Security Section, 1997-2000, 2003-2007
• Federal Bar Association, South Carolina Chapter
• Board of Directors, 2003-2005
• National Organization of Social Security Claimants’ Representatives (NOSSCR)
• Board of Directors, at-large representative, 2016-2017

Government Service – Criminal Prosecutor:

• Assistant Solicitor (state criminal prosecutor), Ninth Judicial Circuit 1990-1994, Appointed by Ninth Circuit Solicitor Charles Condon as South Carolina’s first state environmental crimes prosecutor, focusing on white collar pollution/hazardous waste crimes.
• Special Assistant United States Attorney, 1992. Appointed by United States Attorney Bart Daniel to assist in prosecution of complex international case involving illegal manufacture, transportation, and disposal of hazardous waste. United States v. Stoller Chemical Company Inc., et al.

Public Offices:

• Chair, Charleston County Business License/User Fee Appeals Board, 1989-1991, Appointed by Charleston County Council.
• Chair, Charleston Area Mental Health Center Board, 1986-1988. Appointed 1983 by Governor Richard Riley, reappointed 1987 by Governor Carroll Campbell.

Current Professional Associations and Memberships:

• National Organization of Social Security Claimants’ Representatives (NOSSCR)
• sustaining member
• NOSSCR board of directors, Fourth Circuit representative, October 2020 to present
• policy committee and conference exhibitor committee

• National Board of Trial Advocacy (NBTA)

• Certified specialist, Social Security Disability Advocacy, certified 2008, recertified 2013 and 2018
• Board of Directors 2012 to present
• Examination Committee
• Social Security Disability Specialty Program Commission
• Appeals Panel Committee

Representative Cases:

• Meyer v. Astrue, 662 F.3d 700 (4th Cir. 2011)
• Hazel v. Comm’r of S.S.A, 820 F.Supp.2d 721 (D.S.C. 2011)
• Sherby v. Astrue, 767 F.Supp.2d 592 (D.S.C. 2010)
• Mitchum v. Astrue, 586 F.Supp.2d 424 (D.S.C. 2007)
• Jepson v. U.S. Dept. of Health & Human Servs., 977 F.2d 911 (4th Cir. 1992)
• Rhodes v. Palmetto Pathway Homes, Inc., 303 S.C. 308, 400 S.E.2d 484 (1991)

**Any results the law firm may have achieved in past cases does not imply or indicate that similar results may be had in your case. Outcome of litigation is dependent on many factual and legal circumstances that may differ in your particular case.