Gene Pruet - In Memoriam

Gene V. Pruet, a founding partner of Nexsen Pruet whose skill and personality made him a popular and highly regarded member of the South Carolina Bar, died Friday, November 28, 2008, in Falls Church, Virginia. He was 84.

Mr. Pruet, a native of Oklahoma, was a litigator and tax attorney. In 1951 he joined the Cooper & Gary firm in Columbia after working with the U.S. Department of Justice in Washington. While he was ostensibly a replacement for Julian J. Nexsen, a partner who had been called to serve in Korea, Mr. Pruet stayed on when Nexsen returned. They would both help to establish Cooper Gary Nexsen and Pruet and, eventually, Nexsen Pruet Jacobs and Pollard.

“Gene Pruet was an exceptional lawyer with the rare ability to get along with just about anyone,” said W. Leighton Lord, chairman of Nexsen Pruet. “That earned him many friends and a great deal of respect in and out of the profession. He brought a level of character and integrity to the firm that continues to define us today.”

Mr. Pruet, who retired in 1992, was born in Waurika, Oklahoma, in 1924. He earned his undergraduate degree in engineering and his law degree from the University of Oklahoma – which explains his passion for Sooner football – and served with the U.S. Navy in the Pacific Rim during World War II.

For all of his considerable legal skills, Mr. Pruet is also remembered for a sense of perfectionism that did not stop at courtroom. An avid golfer, he once vowed to give up the game altogether after a single bad shot. On another occasion, a less-than-ideal performance on the links led him to toss his new bag – along with its new woods, irons, and golf balls – into a water hazard at the Spring Valley Golf Course, where it remains to this day.

Young associates were also the frequent targets of his rumored photographic memory. A favorite game was to call in a new attorney, place an open South Carolina Code book in front of him or her, and ask what statute was on the page. The attorney would tell him, and Mr. Pruet would proceed to cite the statute verbatim – including punctuation. The associate would leave, amazed and impressed, until learning that for years Mr. Pruet had been playing the same trick, with the same statute, on everyone.

But it was Mr. Pruet’s genuine warmth that may well be remembered most. He was always willing to spend an extra few minutes with young attorneys, whether as a mentor or as a friend. He was known for taking time out of his schedule to meet and talk with the parents, spouses, and children of Nexsen Pruet lawyers. And, of course, he was a devoted father, grandfather, husband, and uncle.

His spirit, his heart, and his love of life were always apparent, and touched all of those who had the good fortune to know Mr. Pruet and to work with him. He will be fondly remembered and greatly missed.