McMillan v. South Carolina Department of Agriculture

We granted certiorari to review a Court of Appeals decision which upheld an order of a special referee granting respondents a recovery from the Warehouse Receipts Guaranty Fund (the Fund) and awarding them attorneys fees. 1 McMillan v. S.C. Dep’t of Agric., 364 S.C. 60, 611 S.E.2d 323 (Ct.App.2005). Petitioner South Carolina Department of Agriculture (SCDA), the Fund’s administrator, contends the Fund is not liable to respondents. We agree and reverse.

FACTS

Respondents, cotton farmers, brokered their cotton to Sea Island Trading Company (Sea Island). Their cotton was stored in the Hampton…