South Carolina's Leading Tax Credit Advisors

Robert has practiced law for over 35 years.  For the first 20 years, he had a litigation practice, trying numerous cases in both state and federal courts.  During his legal career he also led the charge in preservation in the State of South Carolina.  Over the past 15 years, he has encouraged South Carolinians to re-appraise the value of dozens of historic properties.  Robert is a lawyer and businessman whose ventures in historic preservation have resulted in impacts beyond the bounds of the immediate project.

For the past 10 years, Robert has been a principal in the Rogers Lewis Group and its predecessor law firm, and his practice has focused on representing real estate developers and business owners in property tax reassessment matters and in seeking tax credits, grants, and other incentives for his clients.  He has been involved in numerous historic, textile mill or abandoned building tax credit projects, both as an owner/developer and as a legal consultant.  Robert helps clients determine which tax credits and incentives their project may be eligible for and advises the developer throughout their project to ensure that the incentive or tax credit requirements are properly adhered to.  Robert and the Rogers Lewis Group have received numerous awards and recognitions for their work and their projects.

CONTACT ROBERT:
robert@rogerslewisgroup.com
(O) 803.667.4600
(F) 803.667.9169

Chris is a Member of Rogers Lewis Group, LLC in Columbia, South Carolina, practicing in the areas of business, tax, and commercial real estate transactions.  He earned his Juris Doctor and Master of Business Administration degrees from the University of South Carolina, and his Master of Laws (LLM) in Taxation degree from the University of Florida.

Chris’ law practice is primarily focused on tax credits and other incentives for real estate development and commercial growth.  These incentives include federal and state historic rehabilitation tax credits, state textile mill tax credits, state abandoned building tax credits, new markets tax credits, affordable housing tax credits, and various related state and local tax credits and incentives.  He also assists his clients with commercial real estate and finance transactions, title matters, entity formation, mergers and acquisitions, operational and governance issues, tax planning and analysis, and a variety of other business and tax related matters.

Chris has also participated in the successful development of a number of historic rehabilitation projects, including the historic Curtiss-Wright Hangar in Columbia, the Hotel Trundle / Boudreaux Architecture building in Columbia, the historic buildings at 1631-1637 Main Street in Columbia, the Waikiki Village Motel in Myrtle Beach, the Holiday Shores Motel in Myrtle Beach, the Grand Strand Brewery building at 819 N. Kings Hwy in Myrtle Beach, the historic Spivey Building at 1028 Third Ave. in Conway, the historic Whaley House at 1527 Gervais Street in Columbia, and the Clarendon County Health Center building in Manning, SC.

CONTACT CHRIS:
chris@rogerslewisgroup.com
(O) 803.403.8820
(F) 803.667.9169

Steve is Of Counsel to the law firm of Rogers Lewis Group, LLC in Columbia, South Carolina. His practice includes tax credit transactions, taxation and business law. He is admitted to practice in South Carolina and Georgia.

Steve earned his B.S. in Business Administration with emphasis in Accounting from the College of Charleston, his Juris Doctor from the University of South Carolina, and his Master of Laws in Taxation (LL.M.) from the University of Florida.

Prior to joining Rogers Lewis, Steve served as a Professor of Law at the Charlotte School of Law in Charlotte, NC, Associate Professor of Accounting and Legal Studies at College of Charleston School of Business in Charleston, SC, and practiced with law firms in Charleston, SC, Savannah, GA, and Atlanta, GA. Steve has published more than twenty-five articles on taxation, estate planning and related topics.

Steve is a member of the South Carolina Bar Association and the State Bar of Georgia.

CONTACT STEVE:
steve@rogerslewisgroup.com
(O) 803.667.4600
(M) 843.860.3223
(F) 803.667.9169

Janie joined Rogers Lewis in 2016 upon earning her master’s degree in Public History from the University of South Carolina. Her role as preservation consultant focuses on assisting clients access historic tax credits and other historic preservation incentives by preparing National Register of Historic Places nominations, Parts I, II, and III of the National Park Service’s Historic Preservation Certification Applications, as well as the preparation of local property tax abatement applications. Janie ensures projects adhere to the Secretary of the Interior’s Standards for Rehabilitation by consulting with developers, architects, contractors, property owners and working with historic preservation staff at the local, state, and federal levels. Janie’s adept research skills and attention to detail have resulted in more than twenty National Register listings and numerous successfully completed projects across the state of South Carolina. She has steered more than 85 successful federal historic tax credit projects in South Carolina alone, 34 of them in Columbia and West Columbia which represent more than $38 million of rehabilitation investments in the Columbia area.

Many of the projects Janie has overseen have received local and statewide awards including the Curtiss-Wright Hangar (2018), Hotel Trundle/BOUDREAUX ARCHITECTS (2019), Claussen’s Bakery (2020), Smoked (2022), and Woodside Mill (2022).

Prior to joining Rogers Lewis, Janie worked at Historic Columbia Foundation as well as SEARCH Inc. in Washington, D.C. She earned a B.A. in History from Randolph College in Lynchburg, Virginia where she played tennis and ran cross country. She is currently a member of the Junior League of Columbia, Females in Action (FiA), and Trinity Episcopal Cathedral, and coaches JV Girls’ Tennis at Heathwood Hall. She most recently served as the secretary for Historic Columbia Foundation’s Palladium board and a board member of One Columbia for Arts and Culture. Janie has also worked extensively with Girls on the Run and the United Way’s Young Leader Society while in Columbia. In 2020, Janie received an Honorable Mention for the National Council on Public History’s Excellence in Consulting Award, in 2021 was selected as one of The State newspaper’s “20 Under 40,” and in 2024 was awarded Historic Columbia’s Preservation Leadership Award.

CONTACT JANIE:
janie@rogerslewisgroup.com
(O) 803.667.4600
(F) 803.667.9169

Sherry joined Rogers Lewis Jackson & Mann, LLC in December 2013 as the Office Manager, Bookkeeper and Billing Coordinator and continues in a similar role as the Firm Manager for Rogers Lewis Group, LLC.  She is responsible for overall coordination of a broad range of services/resources that allow the organization to operate efficiently and deliver premium service to our clients.

Before joining Rogers Lewis Group, Sherry worked in a variety of roles including bookkeeper, paralegal.

In her free time, Sherry enjoys spending time with her family, especially her grandchildren.

CONTACT SHERRY:
sherry@rogerslewisgroup.com
(O) 803.978.1967
(F) 803.667.9169

Since starting with Rogers Lewis in May of 2023, Roman Platanis has spent countless hours corresponding with clients, performing historical research, and assisting the team in numerous project management tasks.

Roman is a Columbia local, graduating from Dreher High School in 2017 and University of South Carolina in 2022 with a degree in History.  In his free time he enjoys playing soccer, traveling, and spending time with  family and friends.

CONTACT ROMAN:
roman@rogerslewisgroup.com
(O) 803.978.2830
(F) 803.667.9169

Maria Toole joined Rogers Lewis Group in November of 2023 as a Real Estate Paralegal. Her role in the firm is to support and assist attorneys and clients throughout the closing and/or tax credit process to ensure a smooth and successful transaction. Her duties include but are not limited to opening and managing files, preparing and reviewing legal documents, running conflict checks, ordering and reviewing title work, creating Smartsheets and checklists, coordinating with clients, mortgage companies and other individuals involved in a particular transaction.

Maria has 5+ years’ experience as a Real Estate Paralegal. She received her associate’s degree in business management from Midlands Technical College in Columbia, SC.  Prior to working with Rogers Lewis Group, she worked as a Paralegal for a firm that handled residential closings and refinances primarily. She also worked for a surveying company where she researched and drafted. She later took time off to raise her 3 children, who she devotes all her spare time to as well as her husband of 23 years before returning to the workforce where she began to work for Rogers Lewis Group.

CONTACT MARIA:
maria@rogerslewisgroup.com
(O) 803.978.9001
(F) 803.667.9169

Meredith joined Rogers Lewis in 2023 as an Associate Preservation Consultant. Before joining the firm, she worked at Andersonville National Historic Site in Andersonville, Georgia. She earned her master’s degree in Public History in 2022 from Middle Tennessee State University in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. While at MTSU, she worked at Nashville’s Metropolitan Historic Zoning Commission as well as MTSU’s Center for Historic Preservation. In 2020 she earned a B.A. in History from the University of Montevallo in Montevallo, Alabama where she worked at the Milner Archives and Special Collections and was a member of Alpha Delta Pi sorority.

CONTACT MEREDITH:
janie@rogerslewisgroup.com
(O) 803.978.9003
(F) 803.667.9169