Beaufort County council authorizes settlement negotiations in James Ware case and waives privilege for certain attorney communications

Beaufort County Council voted Oct. 27 to authorize county attorneys to negotiate a settlement in the litigation filed by James Ware against Beaufort County and to allow the county administrator to execute a settlement agreement consistent with terms discussed in executive session.

Separately, the council voted unanimously to waive attorney-client privilege for legal advice contained in text messages, emails, or voicemails exchanged between June 2021 and August 2023 between county attorneys or retained counsel and county administration or counsel, excluding communications that pertain to currently active litigation or mediation. The council directed that the communications described in the motion (referenced as Attachment A) be provided to the South Carolina Law Enforcement Department pursuant to a subpoena dated May 22, 2025, and a renewed request in October 2025.

The motions were introduced after an executive session cited under South Carolina Code §30-4-70(a)(2). The settlement authorization and the waiver/production motion were both approved by unanimous voice votes of members present at the caucus. The transcript contains a typographical reference to "Buford County" in one motion line; the litigation in question is James Ware v. Beaufort County, as stated elsewhere in the caucus record.

The caucus record does not disclose settlement terms, proposed payment amounts, or the precise subset of messages and dates beyond the June 2021–August 2023 range; it records only council directions to negotiate and to produce the specified communications to law enforcement. Any final settlement or additional production details would be returned to the council or handled according to legal process.