Mr. Merline is a shareholder in the firm.    Mr. Merline founded the firm in 1970.  He is a certified specialist in the fields of both Taxation Law, and Estate Plan­ning and Probate Law by The Supreme Court of South Caroli­na.  He is listed in the book The Best Lawyers in America in the fields of both Tax Law, and Trusts and Estates Law.  Mr. Merline received his Bachelor of Science Degree from the Univer­sity of South Carolina and his Bachelor of Laws Degree from the Univer­sity of South Carolina School of Law.  He was a member of the Order of Wig and Robe and Editor-in-Chief of the South Carolina Law Quarterly at the University of South Carolina School of Law.  He is a Fellow of both the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel and the American College of Tax Counsel.  He is a past Chairman of the South Carolina Taxation Law Specialization Advisory Board.  He is a past Chairman of The Supreme Court of South Carolina Commission on Continuing Legal Education and Specialization.  Mr. Merline is a Fellow of the South Carolina Bar Founda­tion and the American Bar Foundation.  He is a past member of the Board of Directors of the Clemson University Foundation.  He is a past President of the Greenville County Bar Association.  He has served the South Carolina Bar as Chairman of the Tax Section, delegate to the Southeast Region Special Liaison Tax Committee,  as a member of both the Board of Governors and the House of Delegates, and as Secre­tary, Treasurer, and President-Elect.  Mr. Merline was President of the South Carolina Bar for the year 1996-1997.