State Rep. Marvin Pendarvis, D-Charleston, has resigned from the South Carolina House of Representatives, according to Speaker Murrell Smith’s office.
Pendarvis’ name has been removed from the State House website. He filed to run for reelection this year and did not have any general election challengers.
Pendarvis, 34, was suspended from the bar by the South Carolina Supreme Court after he was accused in a lawsuit of legal malpractice and of committing “unfair and deceptive practices” under the South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act. The lawsuit — filed April 11 by attorneys Eric Bland and Ronnie Richter on behalf of Adrian Lewis, Pendarvis’ former client — claims, among other things, that Pendarvis forged a client’s signature in order to secure a settlement for a amount far smaller than was promised.
When the alleged duplicity was discovered, Pendarvis used funds from his law firm’s trust account to try to pay off his client, according to the lawsuit.
The Supreme Court’s order did not specify why the license was suspended, including whether it was connected to the lawsuit.