ABOUT

E. Hood Temple is a trial attorney and litigator at Hatfield Temple Law, LLC with over 34 years of experience. Hood exclusively represents injured workers, car and tractor-trailer crash victims, and the families of victims in personal injury claims. Hood leads the litigation team handling Workers’ Compensation claims and also handles cases involving collisions with tractor-trailers, car wrecks, defective products, victims of drunk drivers, nursing home negligence/abuse, and premises liability claims. Notably, Hood has experience with complex cases involving traumatic brain injuries, amputations, spinal injuries, paralysis, and wrongful deaths. 

Prior to joining the firm, Hood attended Wofford College on an academic scholarship and, while in school, was elected and served as President of the Student Body. Upon graduation, he was chosen to receive the “William H. McLeod Award” as the most outstanding senior. Upon graduation from Wofford, Hood attended and graduated from the University of South Carolina where he received his Juris Doctorate. He began practicing law with The Hyman Law Firm in August 1989 (the predecessor to Hatfield Temple Law).

Hood has a distinguished legal career. His professional accomplishments and recognitions include: 

• AV Rated for Highest Level of Professional Excellence by Martindale-Hubbell
• Injured Workers’ Advocates (Past President, Executive Board, Member)
• South Carolina Bar (Member, Twelfth Judicial Circuit Delegate; Executive Council, Chairman Workers Compensation Section)
• South Carolina Association for Justice, f/k/a South Carolina Trial Lawyers Association (Member, Executive Board, Board of Governors, State Chairman of the Workers’ Compensation Section, Alliance for Legislative Education Trustee, Recipient of the Public Citizen Award)
• Florence County Bar Association (Member, Past President, Past Treasurer)
• Association of South Carolina Claimant Attorneys for Workers’ Compensation (Member, Executive Board)
• American Association for Justice (Member)
• WILG (Workers’ Injury Law & Advocacy Group) (Member, Top 10 Workers’ Compensation Attorneys)

Hood has received recognition for his leadership and professional ability which include the South Carolina Trial Lawyer Association’s Public Citizen’s Award recognizing Excellence in Community Service; Top 10 Best Attorneys in South Carolina for Workers’ Compensation (WILG); Top 10 Trucking Trial Lawyer by the National Trial Lawyers Association.

In addition to practicing law, Hood is extremely involved in the community. He co-founded Camp Pee Dee Pride in 1997. For nearly 30 years, Camp Pee Dee Pride has provided a no-cost summer experience for children in the Pee Dee Area. For six weeks each summer, the Camp teaches several hundred campers life skills and exposes them to Francis Marion University. Camp Pee Dee Pride funds its operations through fundraising events and its association with The Florence County Sheriff’s Department.

Hood also co-founded ScienceSouth and served as the Board Chairman for over a decade. ScienceSouth was established in 2000 in cooperation with Roche Pharmaceuticals and other local business and educational leaders. ScienceSouth has provided thousands of hands-on learning experiences including rocketry, robotics, water sampling, astronomy, and electrophoresis to local children. As Chairman, Hood raised money to purchase their first mobile lab. A second lab was built with the assistance of Senator Leatherman to serve all of the surrounding school districts. In addition to the two mobile labs, ScienceSouth now has a permanent facility at Freedom Florence. 

In addition to ScienceSouth, Hood’s passion for education is reflected in the numerous leadership positions he has held at both the local and statewide level.

In 2006, Hood was appointed to the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education by our local legislative delegation. Originally, he served as the 6^th Congressional District Representative and was reappointed to the 7^th Congressional District once the districts were reapportioned. He has chaired the Access & Equity Committee, served on the Academic Affairs Committee, and served as the Chairman for the Finance & Facilities Committee for several years overseeing most of the capital projects submitted by public higher education institutions. Hood also served as the Chairman of the South Carolina Commission on Higher Education Foundation. This foundation supports the Commission monetarily through outreach with the business community. Hood also served two terms on the MUSC Board of Visitors from 2003 to 2004 and 2007 to 2008. 

Locally, Hood has served on the Florence-Darlington Tech Area Commission continuously since 2005.  He served as Chairman of the Commission from 2013 to 2015.  He was the Vice Chairman for the Florence School Foundation and was on the All Saints’ Episcopal Day School Board of Trustees from 2017 to 2021, where he served as Chairman of the Board from 2019 to 2020.

In 2005, Hood started a program to celebrate and honor teachers and law enforcement officers in Florence County that continues to this day. The program honors the “Teachers of the Year” from Florence County each year through a recognition ceremony in the Statehouse’s House and Senate Chambers. During their visit to Columbia, the honorees tour the Statehouse and dine at the Capital City Club or the Palmetto Club. 

Additionally, Hood organized a “Lunch with Leatherman” each year for law enforcement in Florence County, which includes Florence City Police, Florence County Sheriff’s Department, and the South Carolina Highway Patrolmen from our local Troop. Similar to the “Teachers of the Year”, two officers from each branch are recognized and honored at the Statehouse and then treated to a special lunch.

Outside of practicing law, Hood enjoys spending time with his wife, Joelle, and their six children, competing in triathlons, piloting airplanes, traveling, and overseeing a special needs Center he founded.