Full Agenda and Speaker Profiles

FOR MORE INFORMATION AND TO REGISTER, GO TO NCBA 2024 ANNUAL MEETING WEBPAGE.

1:50 Welcome and Introductions

1:55 BREAKOUT SESSION:

The Increasingly Elastic JD: Unconventional Career Paths

Latasia A. Fields, North Carolina Department of Justice, Raleigh (Moderator)
Elizabeth A. James, North Carolina State University, Raleigh
Jose Luis, Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont, Charlotte
Chigozie Ogwuegbu-Stephens, Wells Fargo Bank, Charlotte

A law degree isn't merely a ticket to life in a law firm or the courtroom. The know-how acquired in law school creates a myriad of opportunities from C-suites of major corporations, to running non-profits, to careers in banking, finance, and journalism. Hear from a few of your brothers and sisters who have found career satisfaction a bit (or more) off the beaten path.
This session is not for CLE credit.
Location: Room W209AB

Current Views of the Judiciary and Judicial Independence in North Carolina, Part 2

J. Michael Bitzer, Catawba College, Salisbury
Christopher A. Cooper, Western Carolina University, Cullowhee
Mitch Kokai, John Locke Foundation, Raleigh
Joe Stewart, Independent Insurance Agents of North Carolina, Cary (Moderator)

Revisiting our conversation from 2022, another statewide poll of likely voters and a side-by-side poll of NC attorneys has been performed for the NCBA by Cygnal polling. The polling includes trust and confidence in the U.S. Supreme Court, North Carolina Appellate and non-appellate courts and views on judicial elections, partisan elections, the concept of judicial appointments, fairness, speed of justice, judicial resources and perceived influence on judiciary, among other related issues. The panelists discuss and share insights on the results as they are revealed and review how things have changed, or haven't, since 2022.
Qualifies for 1.00 MCLE General hour.
Location: Room W209CDEF

2:55 Break

3:00 BREAKOUT SESSION:

Diversity in the Judiciary: The Role of Representation in Equal Justice*

Former Judge Charles L. Becton, Durham
Ebony Freeland Bryant, North Carolina Bar Association, Cary (Moderator)
Shane T. Stansbury, Duke University School of Law, Durham
Judge Karlene S. Turrentine, North Carolina Office of Administrative Hearings, Raleigh (Moderator)
Judge James A. Wynn Jr., U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit, Raleigh

Through a review of a dynamic conversation about life and career between Chief Justice Henry Frye and Judge Allyson Duncan and a follow-up discussion, join us as we highlight the importance of diversity and representation on the bench in advancing equal justice.
Qualifies for 1.00 MCLE Ethics/Professional Responsibility hour.
Location: Room W209AB

Harnessing the Power of Artificial Intelligence: A Practical Guide for Lawyers^‡

Chase Hardy, Griffin Purnell, San Antonio, TX

Afraid of AI? Think it's an overhyped, hocus-pocus fad headed in the same direction as Betamax video and 8-track audio? Ignore it at your own peril. AI is already revolutionizing the practice of law in ways that seemed unimaginable just a short time ago. Chase Hardy doesn't just travel the country extolling AI's virtues from an ivory tower; he harnesses AI every day in his law practice to routinely make mincemeat of the best and brightest BigLaw throws at him. In this blazing-fast changing area, he provides up-to-the-minute practical guidance that allows you to dramatically improve—and simplify—how you practice law. Your clients will thank you later.
Qualifies for 1.00 MCLE Technology Training hour.
Location: Room W209CDEF

4:00 Break

4:05 BREAKOUT SESSION:

Hanging Out to Hanging Up Your Shingle: A Roadmap to Owning and Selling a Law Practice

Rachel M. Blunk, ShipBob Inc., Burlington (Moderator)
Trey Bright, Bright Law PLLC, Fayetteville
Harrison A. Lord, Lord & Lindley PLLC, Charlotte
Anna V. Stearns, Sneed & Stearns PA, Black Mountain
Camille Stell, Lawyers Mutual Liability Insurance Company of NC, Cary

Have you ever considered owning your own law practice? Listen to an interactive panel discussion led by Rachel Blunk; Camille Stell, who advises and assists lawyers as they contemplate buying or selling a practice, along with Trey Bright and Anna Stearns, who purchased existing practices; and Harrison Lord, who left the security of firm life to hang out his shingle. Wherever you may be in your career, learn from lawyers who have lived the dream of owning their own practice, and those who have guided their journey.
Qualifies for 1.00 MCLE General hour.
Location: Room W209AB

A Look At The Past and Future 125 Years of the NCBA

A. Todd Brown Sr., Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP, Charlotte
Kearns Davis, Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro
Scheree Gilchrist, Legal Aid of North Carolina, Raleigh
Erik Mazzone, Outmanage LLC, Raleigh (Moderator)

Panelists discuss and recognize the journey of the first 125 years of the NCBA, while focusing on what the next 125 years are likely to mean for the profession and require of the NCBA.
Qualifies for 1.00 MCLE General hour.
Location: Room W209CDEF

5:05 Adjourn

* Indicates portion providing Professional Well-Being credit
‡ Indicates portion providing Technology Training credit

Description

Contributors

Former Judge Charles L. Becton

Former Judge Charles L. Becton is an attorney, former judge of the North Carolina Court of Appeals, and former president of the North Carolina Bar Association (the first African American male to hold that post). In 2012–2013, he was the interim chancellor of North Carolina Central University following the retirement of Charlie Nelms. Then, shortly before he was due to complete that assignment, he was named interim chancellor of Elizabeth City State University following the retirement of Willie Gilchrist, effective July 1, 2013.

Governor Jim Hunt appointed Judge Becton to the North Carolina Court of Appeals in January 1981 to replace Richard Erwin. He was then elected to complete the remaining two years of the unexpired term in 1982 and elected in 1984 to a full eight-year term. He resigned in 1990 to go into private personal injury practice.

Judge Becton has also taught at the University of North Carolina School of Law and at Duke University School of Law.

A native of Morehead City, Judge Becton spent his formative years in Ayden. He earned his B.A. from Howard University, his J.D. from Duke University School of Law and his LLM from the University of Virginia School of Law.

Click here for more information about Judge Becton.
J. Michael Bitzer

J. Michael Bitzer is the Director, Center for NC Politics & Public Service, Leonard Chair of Political Science and a Professor of Politics & History at Catawba College in Salisbury.

A professor at Catawba since 2002, Michael's teaching interests are in American politics, public administration, public policy, and the law, courts and judicial process area. His research interests are in Southern politics, North Carolina politics, campaigns & elections, law, and judicial politics. In the 2011-2012 academic year, he served as the Swink Professor for Excellence in Teaching, the highest honor for classroom teaching at Catawba.

In 2021, Michael authored the book, Redistricting and Gerrymandering in North Carolina: Battlelines in the Tar Heel State, which explores the past 40 years of politics and litigation over one of the most partisan activities in American politics. In this study, he explores each decade, since the 1980s, of lawsuits and partisanship when it comes to drawing both congressional and state legislative district lines.

Michael is also the author of several book chapters on North Carolina politics, including The New Politics of the Old South: An Introduction to Southern Politics and The 2020 Presidential Election in the South. He also wrote a book chapter on The Simpsons and political culture and public opinion, based on a course, "Society & The Simpsons," which he taught for the Freshmen Seminar program. The book was awarded the 2009 Cawelti Award for Best Textbook/Primer on American popular culture by the Popular Culture Association.

Michael has been interviewed by local, state, national, and international news outlets on American politics and the politics of North Carolina, including The New York Times, The Washington Post, The Irish Times, The Raleigh News & Observer, The Charlotte Observer, ABC, NBC, Fox, CNN, MSNBC, the BBC, London Broadcast Company, France24, and the Australian Broadcast Corporation, among others. He also founded, manages, and writes for the political blog,Old North State Politics.

Michael earned his B.A. in English from Erskine College, M.A. in History (focusing on modern American history, Southern US political history, and the history of Nazi Germany) from Clemson University and Ph.D. in American Government and Politics (United States) from the The University of Georgia. During his doctoral work from The University of Georgia's School of Public and International Affairs, he was the one of five graduate student recipients of the university's Excellence in Teaching Award.

Before working on his doctorate, Michael was a newspaper reporter and public affairs director at Clemson University.

Click here for more information about Michael.
Rachel Blunk

Rachel Blunk is Associate General Counsel (global employment and disputes) at ShipBob Inc. in Burlington.

Prior to her move in house Rachel was a partner at Michael Best & Friedrich LLP, focusing on business litigation and labor and employment.

Rachel's pro bono practice has been focused on LGBTQIA+ issues and advocacy.

Rachel earned her B.A. in Classics, with a concentration in Ancient Greek language, from Gustavus Adolphus College and her J.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Click here for more information about Rachel.
Trey Bright

Trey Bright is Managing Partner at Bright Law PLLC in Fayetteville. He is firmly committed to ensuring that the firm remains a leader in the North Carolina real estate community through a continued commitment to client service.

Upon graduation from law school, Trey practiced law in the Charlotte office of an international law firm where he routinely represented clients in commercial real estate finance, corporate finance, private equity, mezzanine financing and commercial lending transactions.

Trey earned his B.S. in Business Administration and Political Science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill as a member of the University’s Honors Program and the Kenan-Flagler Business School. He continued his education in Chapel Hill at the University of North Carolina School of Law where he served as the Managing Editor of the First Amendment Law Review.

Click here for more information about Trey.
A. Todd Brown Sr.

A. Todd Brown Sr. is a Partner at Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP in Charlotte. His practice focuses on complex business litigation and dispute resolution. He is managing partner of the firm's Charlotte office.

Todd has handled a broad variety of complex business litigation in federal and state courts over his 35 years of experience, with an emphasis on commercial disputes, business torts, catastrophic personal injuries, consumer lending, unfair competition, and trade secrets litigation. He has defended products liability claims in federal multi-district litigation and state court actions, and handled complex multifamily construction defect cases. He also has litigated complex employment matters involving executive-level exposure under Title VII, FLSA, and ERISA, as well as sexual harassment and wrongful discharge cases.

Todd was sworn in as president of the North Carolina State Bar in October 2023, after serving on the State Bar Council for nine years and as an officer for two years. Governor Cooper has nominated him to serve as a judge on the North Carolina Business Court.

Todd co-chairs the firm's Diversity and Inclusion Committee and its Talent Development Committee. He is a member of its Associates Committee and Screening Committee, and is a former member of its Executive Committee. He is also former co-head of the firm's commercial litigation practice group.

Todd earned his B.S. in Accounting from the University of South Carolina and his J.D. from the University of South Carolina School of Law.

Click here for more information about Todd.
Ebony Freeland Bryant

Ebony Freeland Bryant is the Director of Diversity & Inclusion at the North Carolina Bar Association in Cary. She supports the diversity and inclusion initiatives of the NCBA and celebrates and promotes the richness of diversity among NCBA members, volunteers and employees. She produces Habari, the bi-monthly D&I newsletter and intentionally looks for opportunities to platform issues of diversity, equity, inclusion, and belonging.

Formerly, Ebony served as the Director of Diversity Initiatives at Duke University School of Law. Prior to her work at Duke, she worked at the National Association for College Admission Counseling in Professional Development and at her alma mater, the University of North Carolina at Wilmington.

Ebony's professional activities include the creation and direction of the Duke PreLaw Fellowship Program, a 4-week residential pipeline program that ran for five years and exposed almost 120 underrepresented college students to the rigors and requirements of law school and a career in law. She has given presentations and trainings on implicit bias, privilege and building community. She has served on the LSAC Diversity, Equity & Inclusion Pipeline Programs Work Group, the Duke Law DEI Faculty Committee, and as the Information Officer for the LSAC Minority Network.

Beginning in 2020, Ebony served as the president of the UNCW African American Graduate Association and a member of the UNCW Chancellor's Renewal & Change Committee to assist in addressing the university's response to the events of 2020 and beyond.

Ebony earned her B.A. in English Language and Literature, with a minor in African American Studies, from the University of North Carolina Wilmington.

Click here for more information about Ebony.
Christopher A. Cooper

Christopher A. Cooper is the Robert Lee Madison Distinguished Professor and Director of the Haire Institute for Public policy institute at Western Carolina University in Cullowhee. His teaching interests are American politics; parties, campaigns and elections; election administration, state and local government, southern politics, research methods and public administration.

Christopher's research interests are American politics, state and local politics, southern politics, elections and North Carolina politics. He has received Western Carolina University's highest awards for research (University Scholar, 2011) and teaching (Board of Governors Teaching Award, 2013) and was named the 2013 North Carolina Professor of the Year by the Carnegie Foundation for the Advancement of Teaching.

Christopher is a frequent source for news stories about North Carolina and national politics and he has been quoted hundreds of times in a variety of media including the New York Times, Washington Post, New Yorker, Christian Science Monitor, Boston Herald, Al Jazeera, Charlotte Observer, Asheville-Citizen Times, The Hill, National Journal, Raleigh News and Observer, North Carolina Insider National Public Radio (All Things Considered and Morning Edition), USA Today, CNN, FOX News, WUNC, Blue Ridge Public Radio, WFAE (Charlotte) ABC News, and ESPN.com.

Christopher earner his B.A. from Winthrop University, M.A. from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville and his Ph.D. from the University of Tennessee at Knoxville.

Click here for more information about Christopher.
Kearns Davis

Kearns Davis is a Partner at Brooks Pierce in Greensboro. He founded the firm's white-collar defense and investigations practice in 2007. In addition to criminal defense, he handles a broad spectrum of federal and business litigation across North Carolina and around the country.

Kearns previously worked as an Assistant United States Attorney for the Middle District of North Carolina and as a Law Clerk to Fourth Circuit Chief Judge Sam J. Ervin, III.

Kearns served as President of the North Carolina Bar Association in 2016-17. He also served as Chair of the Criminal Justice Section, as Chair of the Young Lawyers Division, and as a frequent speaker on federal criminal and litigation practice.

Kearns earned his B.A., with honors, in History from Davidson College, M.A. from Duke University and his J.D., with honors, from University of North Carolina School of Law, where he was the Managing Editor of the North Carolina Law Review.

Click here for more information about Kearns.
Steven B. "Steve" Epstein

Steven B. "Steve" Epstein is a partner with Poyner Spruill LLP in Raleigh. He has been a civil litigator for over 30 years, primarily as a defense lawyer for companies sued for allegedly defective products or damages arising from allegedly improperly performed services. He has sub-specialized in fire loss claims, having been involved in hundreds of matters in which the cause of a fire was the central issue.

In 2014, after nearly 25 years in practice, Steve also migrated into the area of family law, where he now advises clients and represents them in litigation regarding separation and divorce, child custody and support, alimony, equitable distribution, and alienation of affection. He began practicing family law following his own lengthy odyssey through the family court justice system.

Steve is a frequent CLE presenter on a wide range of litigation topics and is a certified arbitrator and parent coordinator. He is also the author of three true crime thrillers, Murder on Birchleaf Drive (June 2019), Evil at Lake Seminole (June 2020), and Extreme Punishment (October 2022), all published by Black Lyon Publishing LLC.

Steve earned his B.A., with highest honors, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his J.D., with highest honors, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law.

Click here for more information about Steve.
Latasia A. Fields

Latasia A. Fields is an Assistant Attorney General with the North Carolina Department of Justice in Raleigh. She defends state agencies in wide variety of workers' compensation claims, ranging from injury by accident cases, occupational disease claims, catastrophic injuries, and death claims.

Prior to joining the Attorney General's Office in 2022, Latasia spent three years representing insurance carriers, third party administrators and self-insured employers across industries. She enjoys zealously advocating for her clients all across the state.

Latasia earned her B.A. in Political Science from Furman University and her J.D. from Campbell University Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law.

Click here for more information about Latasia.
Scheree M. Gilchrist

Scheree M. Gilchrist is the Chief Innovation Officer at Legal Aid of North Carolina (LANC) in Raleigh. In this position, she oversees the development of a sustainable, strategic plan for innovation that will improve access to justice for clients and improve the way staff works to deliver services. She is also the Director of the LANC Innovation Lab, the first of its kind in a Legal Aid program nationwide, where she oversees an interdisciplinary team in their mission to collaborate, develop, and implement ideas that allow legal services to be delivered more efficiently to North Carolinians.

Scheree is on the board for NC Equal Access to Justice Foundation. She has experience with the American Bar Association (Law Practice Division and Science and Technology Law) and the North Carolina Bar Foundation (Future of Law Subcommittee and the Civic and Community Engagement and the Communications Subcommitee). She's has aslo been active with the Wake County Bar Association, NC Low Income Energy Affordability Collaborative, Arts Together, Inc. and the NC Coastal Pines Girl Scouts.

Scheree earned a B.S. in International Relations and a Bachelor of Laws from the University of the West Indies, Jamaica and her LL.M. from Duke University School of Law.

Click here for more information about Scheree.
Chase Hardy

Chase Hardy is an attorney with Griffin Purnell in San Antonio, TX.

Chase understands that a journey through our judicial system can be intimidating. The fear of the unknown can creep into every crevice of a person's life. This is why Chase has dedicated his life to understanding the intricate and nuanced workings of our judicial system. A continual thirst for knowledge and years of traditional schooling has crafted Chase into a truly zealous advocate for everyone he represents. He believes deeply in the wisdom of the jury and is proud to take a case to verdict.

Chase earned his B.B.A. in Finance from Baylor University and his J.D. from Baylor University School of Law. He clerked for two prominent San Antonio Plaintiff's and Defense firms and had the honor of working with Justice Patricia O. Alvarez of the Fourth Court of Appeals.

Click here for more information about Chase.
Nan E. Hannah

Nan E. Hannah is proud to be a member of Hannah Sheridan & Cochran LLP, a firm which she helped found in 2013.

Following in the footsteps of her father, who was a founder of the construction law section, Nan was destined for a career in the field. A native of Greensboro, Nan served a two-year stint as a research assistant at the North Carolina Supreme Court, then she spent a short time practicing insurance defense, which proved an effective training ground for civil litigation. For the past 20+ years, Nan helps clients in the construction industry with lien, bond and collection matters, as well as creditors rights in bankruptcy, and dispute resolution. Nan is a certified mediator in the North Carolina Dispute Resolution Commission's Superior Court Mediation Program.

Armed with a B.A. in Physical Education from Furman University and a M.S. in Education from Baylor, and before attending law school, Nan spent seven years teaching high school social studies while coaching basketball, and track and field, at Taylor High School in Katy, TX, then at James B. Hunt High School in Wilson. In 1989, Nan was named girls' basketball co-coach of the year for the Big East 3A Conference.

Nan currently volunteers with the North Carolina Bar Association, the Wake County Bar Association and the Taylor Family YMCA and is an elder at White Memorial Presbyterian Church. Among the volunteer opportunities afforded by the NCBA was to chair the "Retiring with Dignity Task Force", which is now known as the Transitioning Lawyers Commission. Today's presentation is part of that group's work.

Click here for more information about Nan.
Jason M. Hensley

Jason M. Hensley began his service as Executive Director of the North Carolina Bar Association (NCBA) and the North Carolina Bar Foundation (NCBF) in January 2017. Previously, he served as in-house counsel for Bernhardt Furniture Company in Lenoir, NC – one of the largest and oldest privately owned furniture manufacturers in the United States. Jason advanced in responsibility at Bernhardt, beginning as Corporate Counsel in 2002 and becoming General Counsel, Corporate Secretary and Director of Real Estate in 2015.

Prior to becoming Executive Director of the NCBA, Jason served in voluntary leadership positions with the NCBA, including Chair of the Corporate Counsel Section and as a member of the NCBA Board of Governors. He also served as a Commissioner on the Technology Committee of the recent North Carolina Commission on the Administration of Law and Justice.

Jason is a 1999 graduate in Operations Management from Appalachian State University (where he was the top graduate of the Walker School of Business); a 2002 graduate of the School of Law of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (where he served as Student Bar Association President); and he received an MBA from University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 2014.

Click here for more information about Jason.
Elizabeth A. James

Elizabeth A. James is the Director in the Office of International Services at North Carolina State University in Raleigh.

Elizabeth has over 20 years experience advising international students and scholars on immigration and academic matters and running visa compliance programs at several flagship institutions in the U.S.

Elizabeth is a frequent presenter at the state, regional, and national levels for NAFSA: Association of International Educators, and co-authored an article for the American Immigration Lawyer's Association publication Immigration Options for Academics and Researchers.

After law school, Elizabeth exclusively practiced immigration law at a national law firm for four years before returning to higher education.

Elizabeth earned her B.A. in Psychology from the University of Evansville, Masters in Higher Education from Indiana University Bloomington and her J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law.

Click here for more information about Elizabeth.
Mitch Kokai

Mitch Kokai is Senior Political Analyst for the John Locke Foundation. It is a free-market, state-policy-oriented think tank based in Raleigh.

Mitch joined Locke in December 2005 after working for four years as chief state government reporter at the News 14 Carolina television channel. Before television, he spent seven years leading local radio news departments in Whiteville, Chapel Hill, and Raleigh.

Mitch writes a weekly column for Locke's CarolinaJournal.com. He also offers commentary regularly on radio and television, including PBS North Carolina's "Front Row" program.

Mitch earned his B.A. in Journalism and Mass Communication from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill.

Click here for more information about Mitch.
Harrison A. Lord

Harrison A. Lord is a managing member of Lord & Lindley PLLC in Charlotte. His practice focuses on fiduciary litigation with an emphasis on closely held businesses, shareholder disputes, trust and estate litigation, and business law and commercial litigation. Harrison is also a certified Superior Court mediator and devotes a substantial portion of his practice to mediation and other forms of alternative dispute resolution.

Harrison is a trial lawyer. In that role, he's tried cases before judges and juries all over North Carolina. But first and foremost, Harrison is a problem solver. His focus is always on getting the best result for his clients and helping them find the solution that works for them and their business. Sometimes that means a trial. Oftentimes, though, the best result requires a more creative solution. Whenever possible, Harrison helps his clients make good business decisions, so they can avoid disputes in the first place.

Harrison is a member of the North Carolina Bar Association, Mecklenburg County Bar, International Association of Defense Counsel and the Litigation Counsel of America Fellow.

Harrison earned his A.B., double majoring in Classics and History, from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his J.D., with honors, from Washington University School of Law.

Click here for more information about Harrison.
Jose M. Luis

Jose M. Luis is the Chief Operating Officer at Goodwill Industries of the Southern Piedmont in Charlotte. He joined Goodwill in 2021 and is responsible for the strategic leadership and operational oversight of Goodwill's business enterprises, including donated goods (retail stores, e-commerce, transportation and salvage, and donation sites), research and development of new business enterprises, real estate development, facility operations, health and safety, technology and risk management.

Jose brings more than 22 years of experience to Goodwill, having held a variety of legal, land acquisition and development roles for organizations such as Family Dollar Stores Inc., PulteGroup, AMH Development LLC, and Forestar Group Inc. As VP of Real Estate Development for Family Dollar Stores Inc., Jose played a key role in the $10 billion merger of Family Dollar and Dollar Tree, including working on due diligence, implementation of contractual and governmental requirements, divestiture of more than 300 stores and the successful business integration of the two Fortune 500 companies. He also managed the multi-million dollar acquisition, construction, relocation, renovation, disposition, financing and leasing of thousands of real estate assets while at Family Dollar.

Jose earned his B.A. from Florida State University and his J.D. from the University of Miami School of Law.

Click here for more information about Jose.
Erik Mazzone

Erik Mazzone is the Principal of Outmanage LLC, a law practice management advisory firm helping individual and institutional clients. He is a writer, consultant and professor on law practice management and legal technology.

Erik is also an adjunct professor at the UNC and NC Central law schools and a practice management advisor to Lawyers Mutual Liability.

Previously, he was a long-time NCBA employee, first as the founding Director of the Center for Practice Management and later as the Senior Director of Membership Experience.

Erik graduated from Boston College Law School. After graduating, he worked in the litigation department of large corporate law firms in Boston and Raleigh. He then shifted to practice in an innovative, technology-forward family law firm in Raleigh. As an attorney and later as managing shareholder, Erik helped to steer the firm through years of double-digit revenue growth as well as geographic and personnel expansion from one office with four attorneys to three offices with a multi-disciplinary client services team of nearly twenty lawyers, accountants, and mental health professionals.

Click here for more information about Erik.
Chigozie Ogwuegbu-Stephens

Chigozie Ogwuegbu-Stephens is a Senior Vice President and Senior Risk Officer at Wells Fargo in Charlotte. He is a results-driven risk management professional with 20+ years of experience across the banking, law, and military sectors.

As SVP and Senior Risk Officer at Wells Fargo, Chigozie excels in identifying, assessing, and controlling technology and information security risks. His expertise extends to communication and collaboration with stakeholders at all levels. A former U.S. Army Intelligence Officer, he brings adaptability and leadership to his roles.

Chigozie earned his B.A. in Economics and German from Middlebury College, J.D. from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law and his M.B.A. from Wake Forest University School of Business.
Shane T. Stansbury

Shane T. Stansbury is the Robinson Everett Distinguished Fellow in the Center for Law, Ethics, and National Security and a Senior Lecturing Fellow in Law at Duke University School of Law in Durham. H

Shane served for more than eight years as Assistant United States Attorney in the Southern District of New York (SDNY), where he led some of the office's most sensitive and noteworthy prosecutions in the areas of terrorism, cybercrime, espionage, money laundering, international public corruption, and global weapons trafficking. Among his many accomplishments at SDNY were the successful prosecutions of Alfonso Portillo, the former President of Guatemala, for money laundering relating to his receipt of millions of dollars in bribery payments; Minh Quang Pham, a former associate of Anwar al-Awlaki and key operative for al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), for terrorism offenses; Xu Jiaqiang, for his theft of highly sensitive source code with the intent to benefit the Chinese government; and Rafael Garavito-Garcia, for his role in orchestrating an international weapons-and-narcotics trafficking scheme that extended to the highest levels of the Guinea Bissau government, including the head of the Armed Forces. He served in a number of other capacities at SDNY, including as Acting Deputy Chief of Appeals and as SDNY's representative in the Department of Justice's National Security Cyber Specialists Network, a group of prosecutors focusing on cyber threats to the national security. He is the recipient of numerous awards for his work as a prosecutor, including the Attorney General's Distinguished Service Award and the Federal Law Enforcement Foundation's Prosecutor of the Year Award.

Prior to becoming a federal prosecutor, Shane was a litigator at WilmerHale where he focused on international litigation and arbitration, foreign anti-corruption investigations, and white-collar criminal matters. He also represented members of Congress and others in defending the constitutionality of the Bipartisan Campaign Finance Reform Act before the Supreme Court.

Shane clerked for the Honorable M. Margaret McKeown of the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals and the Honorable Robert W. Sweet of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.

Shane earned his J.D. from Columbia Law School, where he was Articles Editor for the Columbia Law Review; his M.P.A. from Princeton's Woodrow Wilson School of Public and International Affairs; and his A.B. from Duke.

Click here for more information about Stan.
Anna V. Stearns

Anna V. Stearns is Owner and Managing Partner at Sneed & Stearns PA in Black Mountain. Her practice is focused in the areas of real property, estate planning and administration, and civil litigation.

Anna formerly served as Chief of Staff and General Counsel to Chief Justice Cheri Beasley before returning home to the mountains to take the reigns from her long-time mentor, Ronald Sneed.

Anna earned her A.A. from Asheville Buncombe Technical Community College, B.A. in Political Science from the University of North Carolina Asheville and her J.D. from Campbell University Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law.

Click here for more information about Anna.
Camille Stell

Camille Stell serves as President and CEO of Lawyers Mutual Consulting & Services in Cary. She is a frequent author and speaker on the topics of ethics and professionalism, succession planning, marketing and business development and law firm trends of the future.

She works with lawyers and law firms in business development and marketing coaching, strategic planning and succession planning. She has facilitated law firm retreats and coaching sessions for law firms of all sizes whether small North Carolina firms, regional firms, as well as global law firms. She has facilitated ABA Women Rainmaker workshops for hundreds of women attorneys in North and South Carolina. She has facilitated "Future of the Profession" workshops for a consortium of law firm recruiting professionals and law school career service office professionals. She is an organizer of the newly created Legal Innovators Meetup in the Triangle.

Camille has thirty years of experience in the legal industry including law firm experience as a paralegal and as a recruiting and marketing professional. In her capacity as a marketing professional, Camille was responsible for building the profile of the Triangle offices of K & L Gates (formerly Kennedy Covington), coaching attorneys, developing marketing strategy and client targeting plans for the office as well as individual practice groups.

She is a graduate of Meredith College and the Meredith College Paralegal Program and recently completed a term on the Meredith College Alumnae Board.

Click here for more information about Camille.
Judge Karlene S. Turrentine

Judge Karlene S. Turrentine is a Administrative Law Judge at the NC Office of Administrative Hearings in Raleigh. She was appointed and sworn in on December 15, 2020.

Prior to being appointed, Judge Turrentine was a partner in Kitchen & Turrentine PLLC, specializing in administrative and constitutional law affecting municipal and quasi-municipal government, business law and litigation. Before that, she served for seven years as the Warren County Attorney and general counsel to all County departments.

Prior to going into private practice, Judge Turrentine clerked for two years at the North Carolina Court of Appeals for the Honorable Robert C. Hunter, Retired ("Mountain Bob") and the Honorable James A. Wynn (now of the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals).

Judge Turrentine earned her B.A., magna cum laude, in English Literature from North Carolina Central University and her J.D. from North Carolina Central University School of Law, both in five years.

Click here for more information about Judge Turrentine.
Judge James A. Wynn Jr.

Judge James A. Wynn Jr. is a Judge on the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit, having been appointed by President Obama in 2009 and confirmed by Senate acclamation in 2010. In the 20 years before his federal judicial career, he served as a judge on the North Carolina Court of Appeals and briefly as a justice on the Supreme Court of North Carolina.

Judge Wynn began his legal career as a military lawyer in the U.S. Navy JAG Corps, where he served for 30 years (four years active and 26 years reserve). For six of those years, he served as a military trial judge.

Judge Wynn earned his B.A. in Journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, J.D. from Marquette University Law School and his L.L.M. in Judicial Process from University of Virginia School of Law.

Description

Contributors

Former Judge Charles L. Becton

J. Michael Bitzer

Rachel Blunk

Trey Bright

A. Todd Brown Sr.

Ebony Freeland Bryant

Christopher A. Cooper

Kearns Davis

Steven B. "Steve" Epstein

Latasia A. Fields

Scheree M. Gilchrist

Chase Hardy

Nan E. Hannah

Jason M. Hensley

Elizabeth A. James

Mitch Kokai

Harrison A. Lord

Jose M. Luis

Erik Mazzone

Chigozie Ogwuegbu-Stephens

Shane T. Stansbury

Anna V. Stearns

Camille Stell

Judge Karlene S. Turrentine

Judge James A. Wynn Jr.