David Yarborough Named 2025 Compleat Lawyer Award Recipient by University of South Carolina School of Law

Yarborough Applegate is proud to announce that co-founding partner David Yarborough has been honored with the University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law’s Gold Compleat Lawyer Award, a peer-nominated recognition of exceptional achievements in the courtroom and across the community.

A 1998 graduate of the Joseph F. Rice School of Law, Yarborough was recognized alongside eight other alumni on April 10 during a ceremony at the South Carolina State Museum in Columbia. In presenting Yarborough’s award, Chief Judge of the South Carolina Court of Appeals H. Bruce Williams noted that “David’s reputation for being a top plaintiff’s trial lawyer is only outweighed by his service to the legal community and beyond.” 

Though the award honors Yarborough as one of the state’s top trial lawyers, he is most moved by its recognition of his dedication to community service and philanthropy. Every year, Yarborough places a significant emphasis on giving back and improving lives through pro bono legal work, ongoing mentorship, and generous financial and service contributions to local charities.

“To be recognized by my peers and my alma mater is incredibly humbling,” says Yarborough. “This award reflects not just the work we do in the courtroom, but also the impact we strive to make beyond it. Both the law and my recovery have given me a platform to help create real, lasting change in people’s lives, and for that, I will always be deeply grateful.”

For the last 30 years, Yarborough has been heavily involved in mentoring and counseling individuals around the state suffering from alcoholism and addiction. Sharing his own journey in sobriety since age 22, he helps them forge their own path to recovery. He volunteers his time meeting with multiple mentees each month through South Carolina Bar’s Lawyers Helping Lawyers program, which offers confidential mental health resources, assistance, and peer support. Additionally, David dedicates hours each week counselling and helping both lawyers and non-lawyers seeking recovery.

Alongside his wife, Jessica, Yarborough is a major supporter of Dee Norton Childhood Advocacy Center, a nonprofit that provides comprehensive care and support for abused children across the Lowcountry; WakeUpCarolina, a local community-based recovery organization; and Neighbors Together, a local ministry focused on providing services for hunger, health, homelessness and economic mobility. He also serves on the Charleston County Bar’s Mental Wellness Committee.  

David and his partner William Applegate have endowed a Yarborough Applegate scholarship at the University of South Carolina Joseph F. Rice School of Law and the Yarborough family have endowed scholarships at several other primary schools in Charleston in an effort to promote both diversity and inclusion of economically disadvantaged students.

In the legal arena, Yarborough similarly views his practice as a critical avenue for improving quality of life—advocating on behalf of the catastrophically injured and refusing to back down on a just cause, no matter the odds. His approach to law has helped Yarborough Applegate earn a reputation for unparalleled advocacy in civil litigation, and since the firm’s 2010 founding, Yarborough has collected jury verdicts and settlements totaling hundreds of millions of dollars for his deserving clients. Read about some of his record-breaking cases here.

About the Compleat Lawyer Awards

The Compleat Lawyer Awards, established in 1992 by the Joseph F. Rice School of Law Alumni Council, is the highest honor the law school bestows upon its alumni. The awards honor those who have made significant contributions to the legal profession and exemplify the highest standards of professional competence, ethics and integrity. They are presented in three categories based on years of practice: Platinum (31+ years), Gold (16-30 years) and Silver (up to 15 years).