Theodore D. Riley
Theodore D. Riley of Riley Pope & Laney is an attorney in Columbia, SC. He provides government relations consulting services and practices in the areas of regulatory and administrative law. He is a native of Greenville, South Carolina and earned his Bachelor of Arts degree in Political Science in 1988 from the University of South Carolina. Upon graduation, Mr. Riley served in Washington, D.C. as an International Affairs Analyst for the Central Intelligence Agency before returning to South Carolina to earn his Juris Doctor degree from the University of South Carolina School of Law. Upon graduating from law school, Mr. Riley became an Associate at Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP. Mr. Riley was a member of that firm’s government law team practicing in administrative, commercial and regulatory law and legislative affairs. He also served as a special prosecutor for the Fifth Circuit Solicitor’s office. Mr. Riley was an Associate with Haynsworth Marion McKay & Guérard, LLP and its successor, Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd, PA from 1997 until 2001. At the Haynsworth firm, Mr. Riley provided government relations services to clients on both the state and federal level and practiced in the areas of administrative and regulatory law.
In July 2001, Mr. Riley, along with life-long friends and business partners Lowndes Pope and Roy Laney, formed Riley Pope & Laney, LLC with a vision of building a law firm their own way while providing exceptional client service. For more than twenty years, Mr. Riley has represented clients ranging from non-profits to Fortune 500 companies and encourages prospective clients to contact any chairman of any legislative committee regarding RPL’s reputation, abilities and work ethic. An avid runner who shares a love of sports, travel and adventure with his family, Mr. Riley’s community involvement includes serving on the Boards of the National Dropout Prevention Network, Palmetto Project, and Winston’s Wish, and he additionally volunteers with Youth Corps and numerous local community, church and school groups. He is a 2014 member of the South Carolina Diversity Leaders Initiative, recognized as a Riley Institute Diversity Fellow.
Mr. Riley is a member of the South Carolina Bar and the Richland County Bar Association and is admitted to practice before all South Carolina state courts, the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina and the United States Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. Mr. Riley, his wife Nancy and their four children reside in Columbia, South Carolina.
