Elizabeth A. "Liz" Stanek

Joan has over thirty years of experience in eminent domain and condemnation law and has taught seminars to other lawyers on how to handle condemnation cases involving commercial property. She has a wide range of experience in federal district court, federal bankruptcy court, and many state court systems. Joan has been inducted as a Lifetime Member of the Million and Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forums for obtaining multiple recoveries for her clients in excess of One Million Dollars. She ha...

Steven Bader is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Appellate Practice. Steven, who practices law in Raleigh, North Carolina, has been recognized since 2025. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Steven is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Steven maintains a varied practice focusing on representing workers who have been injured on the job and people who have been injured due to the negligence of others. His practice also includes representing consumers who have been harmed by unfair or deceptive business practices. Steven started his legal career with the office of the North Carolina Attorney General, where he worked primarily defending the state of North Carolina in workers’ compensation cases, before deciding to join Ma...

Brodie D. Erwin is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Employment Law - Management and Litigation - Labor and Employment. Brodie D., who practices law in Raleigh, North Carolina, has been recognized since 2023. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Brodie D. is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Art DeBaugh focuses his practice on trademarks , marketing/advertising/promotions issues, copyrights, trade dress, trade secrets, and business and corporate matters. As a North Carolina State Bar certified specialist in trademark law, Art has more than 25 years of experience protecting clients' intellectual property . Prior to joining Bell, Davis & Pitt in 2013, Art served as a partner in two law firms in the Research Triangle area. Prior to that, Art was chief counsel – intellectua...

Mike has been practicing law with Martin & Jones for more than 20 years and his practice focuses on representing individuals suffering from asbestos-related diseases including malignant mesothelioma, lung cancer and asbestosis. His clients include workers who were occupationally exposed to asbestos in industrial settings such as power plants, chemical plants, railroads, shipyards, paper mills and other manufacturing facilities. Mike has represented clients from states all over the United ...

Matthew Duncan is a top attorney recognized by Best Lawyers in the practice area(s) of Employment Law - Management and Litigation - Labor and Employment. Matthew, who practices law in Raleigh, North Carolina, has been recognized since 2026. This recognition is based on an exhaustive peer-review survey, reflecting the high esteem in which Matthew is held by other top lawyers in the same geographic and legal practice area.

Shirley M. Diefenbach is a partner/member of the law firm of Walker, Lambe, PLLC, where she primarily practices in the areas of Estate Planning, Elder Law and Trust & Estate Administration. Ms. Diefenbach is also the managing partner of the Trust & Estate Administration department within the law firm. For over forty years, Walker Lambe, PLLC has served its clients, in the areas of Estate planning, Trust Administration, Probate, Taxation, Estate and Trust Disputes, Planning for childre...

Ted Smyth has been litigating insurance and tort cases for 31 years in all State and Federal Civil Courts in North Carolina. He has been listed as a Super Lawyer in North Carolina's Super Lawyers Magazine for 2006, 2008-2013(Insurance Law). He has been named to Woodard/White's "The Best Lawyers in America" for Insurance Law(2007-2013), Commercial Litigation(2009-2013), Personal Injury Litigation(2009-2013) and Bet-the-Company Litigation(2010-2013). He is active in the Wake County Bar, as the ...

Jack Cummings is counsel in the Federal Tax Group of Alston & Bird in Raleigh and Washington, D.C. He served as IRS associate chief counsel (corporate) and chair of the Corporate Tax Committee of the ABA Section of Taxation. His books include The American Jobs Creation Act of 2004 (with Robert Hanson), The Supreme Court’s Federal Tax Jurisprudence published by the American Bar Association in 2010 and The Supreme Court, Federal Taxation and the Constitution , published by the America...