Tom Pollard - In Memoriam

Thomas B. Pollard, Jr., a United States Navy Officer, a founding partner of Nexsen Pruet and highly respected member of the South Carolina Bar died Tuesday, August 23, 2011 in Columbia.  He was 78.

Mr. Pollard, a native of Nashville, TN, was a real estate attorney and lobbyist.  He joined the Cooper Gary Nexsen and Pruet firm in 1959.  Following the deaths of Paul Cooper and Frank Gary in the early 1970s, the firm name changed to Nexsen Pruet Jacobs and Pollard.

“His leadership was instrumental in the growth and success of our firm,” said John Sowards, Nexsen Pruet Board Chairman.  “We mourn his passing and recognize that our firm stands on the solid foundation Tom helped to build while practicing law for almost 50 years.”

Through the Naval Reserve Officers Training Corps at the University of South Carolina, the U.S. Navy Commissioned Mr. Pollard as an officer in 1954.  He served on active duty as a Gunnery Officer on the USS Vermillion.

Mr. Pollard earned bachelor and law degrees from the University of South Carolina and became a member of the South Carolina Bar in 1959.  He practiced law for 46 years before retiring in 2005 and was a leader in South Carolina’s legal and business communities.  He served on the SC Bar’s Legislative Counsel Committee, Midlands Transportation Committee, the Palmetto Land Title Association as well as a Board member for the South Carolina Chamber of Commerce and the Greater Columbia Chamber of Commerce.

Although most well known for his legal and business skills, Mr. Pollard was an avid sportsman.  On one occasion, he summoned a young associate downstairs to give him a hand.  The young lawyer rushed to his office, imagining a major real estate deal that demanded special attention.  Instead, the associate arrived to find a large wooden box in the middle of the floor.  Mr. Pollard needed help holding it down so he could removed the mounted head of a Cape Buffalo he had recently killed in Africa.   Assisting Mr. Pollard with trophies from various other hunts became a regular duty for that associate.

“What I will remember most is how he could not look at a plat or survey without telling numerous stories about the land depicted or the people involved with the deal,” said Leighton Lord, former Chairman of Nexsen Pruet, whom Mr. Pollard mentored.  “Tom was a fine lawyer who cared about his clients.  We will miss him greatly.”

Mr. Pollard’s love of our country and the law was second only to that of his family.  He is survived by Anne Gillespie; daughter, Suzanne Pollard Narbona and her husband Miguel, of Raleigh, North Carolina; grandchildren, Patricia and Miguel Angel Narbona; sister, Mary Ann Pollack (Alan); brother, William A. Pollard (Al).