Partner
803.451.4510 Direct
803.799.1111 Main
803.254.1335 Fax
matt@basjlaw.com
1613 Main Street
Columbia, SC 29201

Mr. Gerrald practices primarily in the fields of civil litigation and appeals, general and professional liability defense, insurance coverage, and construction law. He regularly defends complex civil cases–particularly those alleging negligence or professional malpractice–and handles appeals thereof at all levels of state and federal courts in South Carolina. His defense clients include business owners and corporate entities as well as professionals such as lawyers, accountants, and doctors. He also handles collection, bankruptcy, and other creditor’s rights matters for finance and development companies. In addition to his litigation practice, he regularly advises and represents insurance carriers regarding coverage and bad faith issues, and churches and other nonprofits often call upon him to advise them on a variety of issues ranging from incorporation to risk management to parliamentary procedure.

Mr. Gerrald is licensed to practice and has appeared in the state courts of South Carolina, the United States District Court for the District of South Carolina, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, and the Supreme Court of the United States. He is a member of the South Carolina Bar, the Richland County Bar Association, DRI, the Claims & Litigation Management Alliance (CLM), the South Carolina Defense Trial Attorneys Association, the Professional Liability Underwriting Society, the Professional Liability Defense Federation, and Christian Legal Society.

Mr. Gerrald is the President of the CLM South Carolina chapter and formerly served on the DRI Young Lawyers Steering Committee. He has authored several articles, including in For the Defense, the flagship magazine of DRI, and The DefenseLine, a publication of the South Carolina Defense Trial Attorneys Association. He has also drafted articles for the South Carolina Baptist Convention and is a former contributor to the South Carolina chapter of Fifty State Construction Lien and Bond Law (a Wolters Kluwer publication). He maintains an AV Preeminent® rating from Martindale-Hubbell (the highest possible rating) and has been selected to the Rising Stars list published by South Carolina Super Lawyers magazine every year since 2014. In 2016, Columbia Business Monthly selected him to their list of the Best & Brightest 35 and Under, and each year since 2017 the same publication has selected him as a Midlands Legal Elite.

Mr. Gerrald received a B.A. (magna cum laude) in political science and religious studies from the University of South Carolina in 2003 and a J.D. (cum laude) from the University of South Carolina School of Law in 2007. While in law school, he received various honors and awards including the CALI Excellence for the Future Award (formerly known as the American Jurisprudence Award), and he was a member of the South Carolina Law Review, the Order of the Wig and Robe, and the Order of the Coif. He also earned a Master’s in Public Administration from the University of South Carolina in 2007.

In addition to his practice, Mr. Gerrald enjoys spending time with his family, reading, studying theology, and following Gamecock athletics. He has finished numerous 5Ks, a 10K, and a half marathon in addition to ten triathlons, including the Washington D.C. Triathlon and the Ironman 70.3 Augusta. He serves as the Troopmaster for Trail Life USA Troop SC-0110 in Ballentine, South Carolina. He and his family attend Grace Point Church in Irmo, South Carolina, where he is an ordained elder and children’s Sunday School teacher.