Thomas L. Harper, Jr.

Tom is an experienced commercial real estate and land use attorney who guides clients at all stages of the real estate development process, including land acquisition, diligence and entitlement matters, zoning, project construction and disposition, leasing, and finance.

He represents a number of ground-up real estate developers of retail, office, industrial and multi-use projects throughout the Southeast. He also represents both private equity funds and sponsors in negotiating real estate joint venture agreements, as well as banks and other institutional lenders in making and restructuring construction and permanent loans. A significant component of Tom’s practice is the representation of landlords and tenants in commercial leasing.

Tom began his practice in Charleston with Buist Moore Smythe & McGee, PA in 1996 and practiced with the firm for over 25 years as it transitioned to Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice, PLLC, and then Womble Bond Dickinson (US) LLP. Along with his three partners, he founded Harper, Warnock, Weatherholtz & Wilson, LLC in 2026 with a focus on real estate, construction, and litigation.

Education

J.D., Duke University School of Law, 1996

Winner, Dean’s Cup Moot Court Competition, 1996
Moot Court Board

A.B., Duke University, 1992

cum laude

Civic and Professional Activities

Board of Directors, Center for Birds of Prey, 2010-2016
Lowcountry AIDS Services Legal Clinic, 2012-2014
Citizens’ Advisory Committee, Hollings Cancer Institute, Medical University of South Carolina, 2003-2004
Board of Directors, Carolina Youth Development Center, 2004-2005
Leadership South Carolina, 1998-1999

Honors and Awards

Recognized in The Best Lawyers in America in the fields of Real Estate Law, Banking and Finance Law, and Litigation – Real Estate, 2010 – Present
Best Lawyers® “Lawyer of the Year” Award, Litigation – Real Estate, 2022
Charleston Business Magazine’s Legal Elite, Commercial Real Estate, 2020 – Present

Admissions

1996, South Carolina
Admitted to practice before:
- United States District Court for the District of South Carolina
- United States Court of Appeals of the Fourth Circuit