About Ashley Kirkham
Ashley Kirkham is a shareholder and chairs the firm’s Workers’ Compensation Practice Group. She focuses her practice on workers’ compensation defense, representing employers and their carriers against claims and disputes throughout South Carolina. Ashley’s experience with defending claims against repetitive trauma injuries, jurisdictional disputes, and fraud make her a tremendous asset to the Collins & Lacy workers’ compensation team. She also ensures workers’ compensation and liability settlements comply with federal law regarding the protection and consideration of Medicare’s interests, and she holds a certification as a Medicare Set-Aside Consultant (MSCC) through the International Commission on Health Care Certification.
Ashley received her undergraduate degree in political science from Clemson University and earned her Juris Doctor from Florida State University College of Law.
Ashley volunteers her time through the South Carolina Bar Young Lawyers Division, including the Special Olympics and drafting estate planning documents for first responders. She also serves on the membership committee for the South Carolina Women Lawyers Association and is on the Board of Directors for Kids’ Chance of South Carolina, an organization that provides educational opportunities and scholarships for the children of workers seriously injured or killed on the job.
Bar & Court Admissions
- South Carolina
Awards & Recognition
- 2017 South Carolina Leadership in Law Awards Honoree
- MSCC (Medicare-Set-Aside Consultant Certified) (2011)
- Charleston School of Law Moot Court Professionalism Award (2010)
- John & Sara Paulich Book Award, Business Associations (2009)
- Phi Delta Phi Honors Fraternity
- Florida State University's Order of the Coif
Professional, Civic, & Community Involvement
- Kids' Chance of South Carolina
- Board of Directors (2016-2018)
- South Carolina Workers' Compensation Educational Association
- South Carolina Women Lawyers Association
- South Carolina Defense Trial Attorneys' Association
- South Carolina Young Lawyers Division
- Junior League of Columbia
- Chair, Community Research Project Development (CRPD) Committee (2016)
Papers & Publications
- "SC Workers' Comp: Form Updates" South Carolina Workers" Compensation Blog, February 2019
- "Top Five Form Fines from the S.C. Workers' Comp Commission" South Carolina Workers' Compensation Blog, August 2018
- "South Carolina Changes Workers' Compensation Venue Law" South Carolina Workers' Compensation Blog, August 2018
- "New Governor, New State Legislative Session, New Workers' Compensation Laws?" South Carolina Workers' Compensation Law Blog, February 2017
- "Employers May Now Be Responsible for Injuries Sustained on Public Roads" South Carolina Workers' Compensation Law Blog, October 2016
- "Use a Third Party Claim as Leverage to Get Your Workers’ Compensation Claim CLINCHERED" South Carolina Workers' Compensation Law Blog, October 2016
- "Finally! A South Carolina Questions & Answers Guide to Workers' Compensation" South Carolina Workers' Compensation Law Blog, June 2016
- "2016 Denim & Diamonds Gala for Kids' Chance of South Carolina" South Carolina Workers' Compensation Law Blog, February 2016
- "Should Your Business Have to Pay Workers' Compensation Temporary Disability to an Employee Who Was Terminated for Cause?" South Carolina Workers' Compensation Law Blog, June 2015
- "Bus Driver’s Aneurysm Found Compensable" South Carolina Workers' Compensation Law Blog, March 2015
- "New Year, New Rules! 2015 Commission Guidelines" South Carolina Workers' Compensation Law Blog, January 2015
- "Reducing Contractor Workers' Comp Claims," Risk Management Magazine, November 2014
- "High Court Vindicates Employer's Right to Terminate for Cause," SCDTAA The Defense Line, October 1, 2013
- "The 411 on Medicare Set Aside Arrangements," SCDTAA The Defense Line, June 1, 2012