The North Carolina High Point Regional Mock Trial Competition was held on Saturday, February 4, 2023, at the Guilford County Courthouse in High Point.  Eight teams from various high schools across the state competed for the Regional Championship and the opportunity to compete at the state level.  Thank you to the following members for dedicating their time to the growth of our young leaders at the competition:

Eric Richardson

Jonathan M. Parisi

The Honorable Bill Davis

Molly Hilburn-Holte

Eloise McCain Hassell

The Honorable Robby Hassell

Abigail Seymour

Melvin Holland

Jon Wall

Kermit Robinson

Charlisa Powell

Kathryn Corey

Catherine Stalker

Brenda Brewer

MICHAEL DAVID MEEKER

June 13, 1947 – January 31, 2023

Michael David Meeker (“Mike”) passed away unexpectedly on January 31, 2023, at the age of 76.  Mike was born on June 13, 1947, in Asheville, North Carolina, to Paul and Edna Meeker.  Mike was their only child and grew up in a home of immense love and high expectations.  His father was a successful entrepreneur and his mother was a constant source of encouragement for her son, instilling in him the need for appropriate conduct and accountability.

As a small child, Mike grew up in the back room of his parents’ grocery store until they purchased a modest home in front of the Asheville Boarding School.  A neighbor, who was a member of the faculty of the school, noticed how bright and capable young Mike was and offered to provide him with a scholarship at the prestigious school.  Mike was a very shy and introverted student, but he excelled in his academics and was admitted to the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill where he earned both a Bachelors and Juris Doctor degree.  While at UNC, he pledged and was a lifelong brother of Delta Upsilon Fraternity.  Passionate about his alma mater, Mike was a true Tarheel and great representative of the University.  There he cultivated a network of lifelong friends whom he met year after year for football games back on the UNC campus.  He was such an avid Carolina basketball fan that he would record the games only to watch if he knew the Tarheels had won the game.

After graduation from law school, Mike started a family and moved to Greensboro for a job opportunity at the firm of Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard.  The focus of his practice was on construction law and complex commercial litigation.  He practiced law with the same firm for his entire career as an equity partner before becoming of counsel.  Mike won a number of $1+ million judgments and arbitration awards throughout the Southeast, including the largest monetary judgment ever awarded and paid in a North Carolina construction case.  He was recognized by his peers multiple times for inclusion in Business North Carolina’s “Legal Elite” (2005, 2006, 2009, and 2011).  He continued his 46-ear successful career until 2019, when he decided to retire to focus on the things he enjoyed most in life including cooking, travelling, photography and spending time with his family.  He divided his time between Greensboro and a mountain home in Roaring Gap, North Carolina, that he masterfully renovated. 

Mike will be greatly cherished and missed by his family and friends.  He is survived by his wife, Connie Meeker of Greensboro; sons, Michael A. Meeker (Raquel) and Mark C. Meeker (Emily) of Charlotte; grandchildren Aidan, Hudson, Gavin, Hunter, and Hayden; stepdaughter, Lauren Ritch of Raleigh; cousin, Fay Odum (Everette) of Savannah, Georgia; and numerous other cousins in the Asheville area and elsewhere.

Camille Stell is President and CEO of Lawyers Mutual Consulting & Services. Continue this conversation by contacting Camille at camille@lawyersmutualnc.com or 800.662.8843.

Alabama family lawyer Leigh Daniel felt her work was taking a toll.  She felt dissatisfied and miserable. In searching for resources to help, she found the work of author Mike Dooley and became inspired to create the law practice she truly wanted. She became intentional about her path to happiness and positivity, and it wasn’t long before referrals and business followed from clients who were also searching for a better experience. According to an article in Forbes, Leigh also managed to triple her income by promoting a positive and peaceful approach to divorce.

Benefits of Positivity

The Mayo Clinic says positive thinking offers many benefits, ranging from increased life span to better coping skills during hardships and times of stress. 

Having a positive culture in your workplace can reduce stress, increase productivity, improve client relationships, improve decision-making, and motivate others. 

The upside of developing a culture of positivity for your law firm is that everyone benefits from team members to clients.

Science of Positivity

Barbara Fredrickson, a psychology researcher at the University of North Carolina published a landmark paper on positive thinking. Professor Fredrickson theorizes that positive emotions broaden your sense of possibilities and open your mind, which in turn allows you to build new skills that provide value to your life. 

Negative emotions do the opposite. Building skills for future use is irrelevant when your brain is seeing danger and your fight-or-flight response kicks in.

Path to Positivity

Negativity is contagious, but so is optimism. I’m view myself as an optimist – most days my glass is overflowing. That is because most of the time, I intentionally choose to see the day in that way. On the days I fall into office gossip or fretting about deadlines, I’m as gloomy as the next person. But the gloom weighs me down. My preference is to see the world through rose colored glasses. So, I set positivity as my default.

That may not work for you. So here are five tips to create your own path to positivity.

1. Look for small wins. It’s great to celebrate a successful financial quarter or a big court win, but it is equally important to keep your eyes open daily for something worth celebrating. I delight in positive comments from clients about the peace of mind they feel after a consulting call. Or a positive email about an article I wrote, or a compliment on an outfit I wore to work. These small moments make me smile and keep me encouraged during the day.
2. Encourage others. I love to spread positive vibes. I’ll compliment a new haircut or when IT went above and beyond to help me with a tech problem. Seeing others smile is contagious and I hope they will carry it forward and the office environment will feel uplifted.
3. Be intentional. Let’s assume that most of us want to be a part of something bigger. Leigh was helping her clients get divorced – solving their legal problem. But in a way that was making her firms and clients miserable. She set out on a path of intentionality to make family law less of a Hunger Games experience than a collaborative effort to move into the next season of life with hope and optimism.
4. Take time off. Work is busy and it’s hard to get away, but you will benefit from taking time off. Even a staycation affords you the chance to change your daily scenery and constant attachment to technology. You will feel more creative, refreshed, and energized when you return after some time away.
5. Use a positive vocabulary. Swearing seems more accepted in our society today. Studies suggest that swearing activates evolutionary structures inside the right half of our brain and that when we swear, our heart rate rises, activating the amygdala and the fight-or-flight response. And the rising heart rate can help us to alleviate pain – hence the midnight swearing when we stub our toe. Swearing also allows us to express strong emotions without resorting to punching someone. However, my personal experience is when I clean up my language, I clean up my emotions. When I avoid swear words and stop ruminating in my anger or frustration, it passes quicker. A positive vocabulary could lead to more positivity in your daily experience.

Law Life is complex, but it doesn’t have to be miserable. It is possible to change your mindset – and even the direction of your law practice – to a path towards positivity.

Camille Stell is the President of Lawyers Mutual Consulting & Services and the co-author of the newly published book, RESPECT – An Insight to Attorney Compensation Plans available from Amazon. Continue this conversation by contacting Camille at camille@lawyersmutualconsulting.com or 800.662.8843.

Jennifer Bowden
R. Steve Bowden and Associates
Endorser: Jarvis T. Harris

Mallory Rae Ward
Guilford County Public Defender’s Office
Endorser: Janet McCauley-Blue

Alston Slay
Motley Rice, LLC
Endorser: Emily J. Meister

Timisha Henley
CR Legal Team, LLP
Endorser: Marcus A. Shields

Ian Edward Vance
Virginia Legal Aid Society
Endorser: Cordon Smart

Kara Neaton
Legal Aid of North Carolina
Endorser: Brian P. Hogan

Marcus Allen Shields, President of the Greensboro Bar Association

Greetings Members,

February was a busy month for the Greensboro Bar Association.   We had a fantastic Annual CLE that was well attended. Thank you to President-Elect Gerald Walden, Jr. for putting on a well-rounded and informative CLE.  Our Young Lawyers Section is busy and actively engaged in the community.  If anyone is interested in the YLS Kickball Team, they are accepting new participants.  We want to thank Corporation of Guardianship for their informative presentation at our recent February member meeting.

Remember to make sure your cup is full so that you can be the best version of you for your clients and others!

Don’t forget to submit your Herb Falk Society Application to be recognized for your pro bono contributions to the community and our profession.  Get a head start on your 2023 pro bono hours as there are many upcoming ways to get involved.   We will dedicate the Habitat House to the deserving family on March 4, 2023, at 10AM.  We hope to see our members there to support our mission of service.

As always, I want to thank each of you for your continued support of the mission of the Greensboro Bar Association.   I hope that everyone will commit to remembering to practice self-care on a regular basis.  Remember to make sure your cup is full so that you can be the best version of you for your clients and others!

Sincerely,

Marcus Allen Shields

President, Greensboro Bar Association 2022-2023