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John H. Waller, Jr. was born on October 31, 1937 in the small rural town of Mullins, South Carolina. He was the only child of J. Henry Waller (deceased) and Elnita R. Waller. Upon completion of public schools in Mullins, he sought higher education at Wofford College in Spartanburg, South Carolina. In 1959, after graduation from Wofford with an A.B. degree in psychology, the idea of furthering his education in the area of law first presented itself. That idea had to be delayed due to his military obligation. He reported to Fort Knox, Kentucky, as a second lieutenant and was discharged from active service the next year. Through years of reserve and national guard service, he was finally discharged as a Captain.
Upon leaving active military service, he enrolled in the Law School at the University of South Carolina in 1960 and received a JD degree in 1963. After passing the bar exam, he "hung out his shingle" in his hometown of Mullins the same year and engaged in the general practice of law.
In 1967, while a single practitioner, he sought and was elected to the SC House of Representatives, where he served for five (5) terms. In 1968, as a freshman legislator, he was given the Distinguished Service Award by the Municipal Association of South Carolina. In the 1973-74 session he was elected as Assistant House Majority Leader and was also elected to the State Reorganization Committee. In the 1975-76 session, he was elected as House Majority Leader.
While involved in the practice of law, as well as representing Marion County in the South Carolina House of Representatives, he was also involved in local activities. He was and is a member of the Methodist Church, a Mason, a Shriner, past secretary of the Jaycees, a charter member and first president of the Mullins Rotary Club, and a charter member of the first Board of Directors responsible for organizing and developing Pineland Country Club. In 1976, instead of offering for re-election to the SC House of Representatives, he ran for a seat in the South Carolina Senate and was successful. While in the fourth year of that senate term, he ran for the position of Circuit Court Judge for the Twelfth Judicial Circuit to fill an unexpired term. He was elected and qualified on June 6, 1980.
While a circuit judge from 1980 to 1994, he was also a member of and later chairman of both the Circuit Court Judges Advisory Committee and the Judicial Standards Committee. In 1994 a vacancy became available on the South Carolina Supreme Court. Having aspired to this honor, he was elected on May 11, 1994, to fill that seat. On June 29, 1994, he was qualified as a Justice of the South Carolina Supreme Court where he sits today.
Justice Waller has four children - John H. Waller, III, Melissa Waller Spearman, Ryan Meares Waller and Rand Ellis Waller.
