I. S. Leevy Johnson is recognized as one of South Carolina's top civil and criminal lawyers. He graduated from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 1968 and admitted to practice in state and federal courts the same year. After pacticing as a solo practitioner for seven years, he was one of the original founders of the law firm of Johnson, Toal & Battiste, P. A. in 1975 with offices in Columbia, South Carolina and Orangeburg, South Carolina. He was honored by his peers in 1985, when he was elected President of the South Carolina Bar. He has received numeerous top honors accorded a lawyer in Souht Carolina. He is a frequent speaker at Continuing Legal Education programs. He has been inducted as a Fellow in the prestigious American College of Trial Lawyers. On October 18, 1999, I. S. received the State of South Carolina's highest award, the Order of the Palmetto. Active in the American Bar Assoication, he currently serves as the Chairman of the ABA Diversity Center for Racial and Ethnic Diversity. He is the South Carolina state delegate to the American Bar Association.