Legal Elite – Litigation 2014

Michael J. Byrne
Byrne Law PC, Raleigh

My first job was with my uncle’s landscaping company. If the job had a title, it was “worker.” Workers dug holes and pushed wheelbarrows filled with nursery plants, dirt, mulch or sod and then put everything where the foreman said. The most memorable day was a stormy morning followed by an afternoon of hauling and laying wet sod on a half-foot of mud.

Vita: Born Aug. 31, 1969, in Paterson, N.J.; bachelor’s degree from University of Notre Dame and law degree from UNC Chapel Hill.

Why he chose to specialize in this field: Litigation, particularly complex litigation, was a good fit for the things I like to do. I’ve always loved learning new things, solving puzzles and writing, and I have something of a competitive side as well. When you find something that fits your likes, you tend to do it more passionately. As a litigator, I have the amazing opportunity 
to help people while doing the things I love.

Passions: Running, golf, yoga, reading, politics, gardening and cooking.

What he’d be if not a lawyer: I have a fantasy of operating a family farm and writing essays and fiction on the side.

Favorite place: Glacier National Park in Montana. Our national parks in the West are all remarkable, but Glacier has the best hiking along with spectacular views, natural beauty and wildlife.

Heroes: Other than my parents, probably my great-grandparents on both sides. All of them came to this country from Ireland or Germany with very little to their names. They had a degree of courage and tenacity that is hard to match.

Don’t ask him to: Dance.

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LITIGATION

D. Erik Albright, Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP, Greensboro
Corby C. Anderson, Nexsen Pruet LLC, Charlotte
Mark E. Anderson, McGuireWoods LLP, Raleigh
J. Dennis Bailey, Wall Esleeck Babcock LLP, Winston-Salem
Allison J. Becker, Yates, McLamb & Weyher LLP, Raleigh
John T. Benjamin Jr., The Law Office of John T. Benjamin Jr. PA, Raleigh
Jonathan A. Berkelhammer, Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP, Greensboro
J. Daniel Bishop, Erwin, Bishop, Capitano & Moss PA, Charlotte
Walter E. Brock Jr., Young Moore and Henderson PA, Raleigh
Drew Brown, Benson, Brown & Faucher PLLC, Greensboro
Daniel K. Bryson, Whitfield Bryson & Mason LLP, Raleigh
John Buford, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro
Daniel G. Cahill, Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh
A. Todd Capitano, Erwin, Bishop, Capitano & Moss PA, Charlotte
Robert M. Chandler, Hull & Chandler PA, Charlotte
Edward G. Connette III, Essex Richards PA, Charlotte
B. Joan Davis, Howard, Stallings, From & Hutson PA, Raleigh
Michael D. DeFrank, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh
Fred W. DeVore III, DeVore Acton & Stafford PA, Charlotte
Alan W. Duncan, Van Laningham Duncan PLLC, Greensboro
Donalt J. Eglinton, Ward and Smith PA, New Bern
E. Bradley Evans, Ward and Smith PA, Greenville
Doug Ey, McGuireWoods LLP, Charlotte
Stephen D. Feldman, Ellis & Winters LLP, Raleigh
Reed N. Fountain, Young Moore and Henderson PA, Raleigh
David E. Fox, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Morrisville
Mel J. Garofalo, Hedrick Gardner Kincheloe & Garofalo LLP, Charlotte
James B. Gatehouse, Rayburn Cooper & Durham PA, Charlotte
Charles George, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh
Chris Graebe, Graebe Hanna & Sullivan PLLC, Raleigh
J. Douglas Grimes, Hedrick Gardner Kincheloe & Garofalo LLP, Charlotte
Dan M. Hartzog, Cranfill Sumner & Hartzog LLP, Raleigh
George W. Hendon, Adams Hendon Carson Crow & Saenger PA, Asheville
John P. Higgins, Additon, Higgins, Pendleton & Ashe PA, Charlotte
Adam Horner, Hamilton Stephens Steele & Martin PLLC, Charlotte
Justin D. Howard, McGuireWoods LLP, Raleigh
John N. Hutson Jr., Howard, Stallings, From & Hutson PA, Raleigh
Charles M. Ingram, Ingram & Ingram, Kenansville
J. Christopher Jackson, Wood Jackson PLLC, Raleigh
Robert King III, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro
David F. Kirby, Kirby & Holt LLP, Raleigh
Mark Kutny, Hamilton Stephens Steele & Martin PLLC, Charlotte
Kenny Lautenschlager, Johnston, Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte
E. Hardy Lewis, Blanchard, Miller, Lewis & Isley PA, Raleigh
Sara R. Lincoln, Lincoln Derr PLLC, Charlotte
Chris Loebsack, Caudle & Spears PA, Charlotte
Jeffrey A. Long, Bray & Long PLLC, Charlotte
Robert R. Marcus, Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP, Charlotte
Jean S. Martin, Rhine Martin Law Firm PC, Wilmington
John D. Martin, Cranfill Sumner & Hartzog LLP, Wilmington
Joseph P. McGuire, McGuire, Wood & Bissette PA, Asheville
Andrew K. McVey, Murchison, Taylor & Gibson PLLC, Wilmington
Steven A. Meckler, Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick LLP, Charlotte
Michael T. Medford, Manning, Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh
W. Gregory Merritt, Harris, Creech, Ward and Blackerby PA, New Bern
Jason A. Miller, Miller Law PLLC, Raleigh
Leslie C. Packer, Ellis & Winters LLP, Raleigh
K. Alan Parry, Walker Lambe Rhudy Costley & Gill PLLC, Durham
Jim Phillips Jr., Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro
Lonnie M. Player Jr., The Law Offices of Lonnie M. Player Jr. PLLC, Fayetteville
Mark Prak, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Raleigh
Toniann Primiano, Horowitz & Primiano PLLC, Charlotte
Joel R. Rhine, Rhine Martin Law Firm PC, Wilmington
Alice Carmichael Richey, Alice Carmichael Richey PLLC, Charlotte
James M. Roane III, Roane Law, Greensboro
Jonathan D. Sasser, Ellis & Winters LLP, Raleigh
Patricia P. Shields, Hedrick Gardner Kincheloe & Garofalo LLP, Raleigh
Curtis J. Shipley, Ellis & Winters LLP, Greensboro
Kerri L. Sigler, Wait Law PLLC, Winston-Salem
Christopher G. Smith, Smith, Anderson, Blount, Dorsett, Mitchell & Jernigan LLP, Raleigh
Don Strickland, Law Office of Donald R. Strickland, Durham
Benjamin N. Thompson, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh
Walter Tippett Jr., Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Raleigh
Scott M. Tyler, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte
Cynthia L. Van Horne, Poyner Spruill LLP, Charlotte
Allison O. Van Laningham, Van Laningham Duncan PLLC, Greensboro
F. Marshall Wall, Cranfill Sumner & Hartzog LLP, Raleigh
Judson A. Welborn, Manning, Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh
Dixie T. Wells, Ellis & Winters LLP, Greensboro
John R. Wester, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte
W. Swain Wood, Wood Jackson PLLC, Raleigh
David C. Wright III, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte