Hilton Head hires former Beaufort County attorney who resigned. What we know
Former Beaufort County Attorney Brittany Ward has been selected as the new town attorney for the Town of Hilton Head Island.
Ward resigned from the county in late 2024, one of many high-ranking officials who departed in the years following the firing of former county administrator Eric Greenway.
Starting July 1, Ward will serve as the chief official in charge of providing legal counsel to the town council, town manager and town employees on a wide range of matters.
That may include representing the town in litigation and contract negotiations, interpreting land use and zoning regulations and providing guidance on Freedom of Information Act requests.
In a press release, Mayor Alan Perry praised Ward for her “exceptional experience” and “commitment to public service.”
“This role is essential to ensuring our town operates with integrity, transparency and strong legal stewardship,” Perry said in a statement.
Ward tendered her resignation from her county position two weeks before a citizen complaint raised questions about the county’s purchase of land belonging to her parents. An independent investigation into matter ultimately concluded that Ward did not violate the county’s ethics policy, that she had disclosed the conflict to multiple departments and that she had no involvement in the county’s decision to acquire land.
Ward’s previous work with town
Ward had already been working with the town for several months prior to her appointment.
After leaving the county, Ward joined Finger, Melnick, Brooks & LaBruce P.A.
Before she was employed by the firm, the town had executed a contract with the law firm, former town spokesperson Heather Woolwine previously told The Island Packet.
Since 2025, Ward has assisted with a variety of legal matters, including representing the town in negotiations with the Hilton-Head Bluffton Chamber of Commerce and providing code review for an ongoing land use and zoning policy rewrite. The former resulted in the chamber agreeing to a contract that required it to turn over 100% of its receipts and invoices on spending with tax dollars it receives through the town.
Ward brings her previous experience with the town and the relationships she’s made to the role, Ward 5 Council Member Steve Alfred noted.
“People know her and have developed some sense of confidence in her abilities,” Alfred told The Packet.
How Ward was picked
Ward was selected for the town attorney position through a competitive bid process after the previous town attorney, Curtis Contrane, announced his retirement earlier this year.
Only three firms responded to the town’s request for proposals for the town attorney position, documents show. They include Hilton-Head based Finger Law, Columbia-based Haynsworth Sinkler Boyd, and Beaufort-based Griffith, Freeman, & Liipfert, LLC.
Town law requires that the town attorney have an established practice somewhere in Beaufort County limits. According to Alfred, during the hiring process of for the town attorney, the town council interviewed two of these firms and selected Ward’s firm.
Why the town needs strong legal representation
Public bodies are “prime” objects for litigation, Alfred said.
“It is very important to have good legal advice, so that we don’t get up getting sued,” Alfred said.
Strong legal expertise is especially needed in complex real estate matters, such as the series of land transfers involved in the relocation of St. James Baptist Church and Cherry Hill School.
The town is also dealing with two significant lawsuits that could have “major legal implications” for municipalities “everywhere,” Alfred said.
One is a lawsuit challenging the town’s funding of $600,000 toward the re-dredging of Harbour Town Yacht Basin in Sea Pines, a private residential and resort gated community on the south-end of Hilton Head. The marina, as well as the resort itself, is a major tourist destination for the town. The town has appealed the case to the South Carolina Supreme Court.
“To me, the water is public, it belongs to the state. I see that case not much different than a public highway,” Alfred said.
A second lawsuit, levied by the town, challenges a service fee imposed by the Beaufort County Sheriff’s Office for police services. The SC Supreme Court heard oral arguments for the case on May 19. Coltrane has represented the town in both cases.
“If we are not careful in a number of things, we can end up generating lawsuits against the town,” Alfred said. “... There’s always a lot going on in both litigation and in real estate.”
Ward’s resignation and ethics investigation
Ward came under scrutiny in late 2024 after a citizen complaint raised questions about the county’s purchase of land belonging to Ward’s parents. An independent investigation into the allegations concluded that Ward did not violate the county’s conflict of interest policy.
Here’s what we know about the matter.
In February 2024, Beaufort County acquired a 1.8-acre property at Barrel Landing road through its Rural and Critical Lands Preservation Program, a county program to protect land “using taxpayer dollars secured through a bond referendum.”
The property is located at the intersection of U.S. 278 and S.C. 170 and is surrounded on all sides by county-owned property that, according the investigation report, the county purchased in September 2000 through the same program.
The complaint, dated Oct. 15, 2024 raised questions about the purchase. Ward’s parents purchased the property in December 2021 for $290,000, and Ward received limited power of attorney to execute the purchase on their behalf, according to the investigation report.
In April 2023, Ward’s parents applied to sell the land to the county’s lands preservation program. The sale closed in February 2024 for $434,000, a gain of $144,000 for them.
The county engaged Ashley Story of White & Story, LLC of Columbia, to conduct an independent investigation into the facts around the land purchase.
In January 2023, Ward notified the Passive Parks Departments of her relationship to the property owners and informed the department that “she could have no part of those discussions because of this relationship,” according to the investigation report.
The report says she had previously informed the county administrator of the conflict in person before 2023, but did not memorialize it in writing until August 1, 2023. Ward was not present during any planning meetings or executive sessions related to the purchase, and “was not aware” or whether the county council had been “informed directly of her involvement,” the report says.
The investigation concluded that Ward was “not involved in identifying properties for purchase” through the Rural and Critical Lands Preservation Program, and that she had not violated the county’s ethics policy.
The Packet reached out to Ward for comment on her appointment and her previous resignation.
In a statement, Ward replied, “I am grateful for the opportunity to work for the Town of Hilton Head Island Council and be a part of a great team that makes up the town staff.”
When asked about the ethics investigation, Alfred said he had a “vague recollection” of reading about it in The Island Packet, and said it did not come up during the hiring process.
“I don’t know anything about it,” Alfred said. “I don’t expect to get involved with it.”
This story was originally published June 11, 2026 at 8:31 AM.
