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Specialization Award Recipients

The Board of Legal Specialization held its annual luncheon on Friday, April 16, 2010. Newly-certified specialists were recognized and the following awards were presented.

The James E. Cross Jr. Leadership Award is presented to a certified specialist who has taken an active leadership role in his/her practice area through presentations at CLE seminars, scholarly writings, participation in groundbreaking cases, or service to an established professional organization. This year, the award was presented to Charles T. Hall of Raleigh. Charles became a board certified specialist in social security disability law in 2006 after serving as the chair of the committee that launched that new specialty area. Charles is a well-noted expert in his practice area, having written a much-respected one volume treatise on the practice of social security disability law. Charles maintains a social security news blog which is known nationwide as a daily "must-read" for developments in the world of social security administration in general, and the practice of social security disability law in particular. Charles undertakes these projects with one intention: to make his colleagues better at representing the disabled, and for that he is particularly deserving of this award.

The Howard L. Gum Service Award recognizes a specialty committee member who consistently excels in completing committee tasks. The eight specialty committees are the lifeblood of the specialization program. They are responsible for evaluating every application for certification, including peer references, and writing and grading the examinations. The recipient of the Howard Gum award is highly dedicated to legal specialization, donates his/her time to committee responsibilities, and responds to the needs of the State Bar staff and the board in exemplary fashion. Kate Mewhinney of Winston-Salem is this year's recipient. Kate first became a board certified specialist in elder law in 1995 through the National Elder Law Foundation; since that time she has been a leader in elder law in North Carolina. She is known statewide as the director of the Elder Law Clinic at Wake Forest School of Law. Kate spearheaded the effort to create a North Carolina specialty in elder law. That goal was fully realized this past year as the first group of elder law specialists was certified in November. Kate is one of those rare people who has the gift of making hard work look easy. She led the way cleanly and efficiently through the morass of national and state specialization rules to a sensible, timely, and successful result. Her graceful persistence made board certification of elder law specialists in North Carolina a reality.

The Sara H. Davis Excellence Award is presented to a certified specialist who exemplifies excellence in his/her daily work as a lawyer and serves as a model for other lawyers. Special consideration is given for a long and consistent record of handling challenging matters successfully; for sharing knowledge and experience with other lawyers; for earning the respect and admiration of those with whom the lawyer comes into contact in his daily work; and for high ethical standards. At the April luncheon, the award was presented to W. Timothy Haithcock of Goldsboro. Tim became a board certified specialist in workers' compensation law in 2000. He is well known by his partners, colleagues, and adversaries as a lawyer with tremendous skill and the highest of ethical standards. It is not unusual for Tim to take a case that others have turned down; he does so frequently when he sees an injured worker in need. He also regularly assists other lawyers handling complex cases both by providing advice and also by joining as associate counsel. Tim is exceptionally trustworthy both personally and professionally, and the consummate professional as well as husband and father. His partners share that he reminds them by words and deeds daily that honesty, hard work, generosity and ability—in that order—are hallmarks of a professional lawyer.

Congratulations award winners!