Weaverville Arbitration & Mediation Lawyers

I represent individuals in all types of employment disputes, including discrimination, retaliation, whistleblower actions, severance negotiations, equal pay violations, sexual harassment and assault, non-compete contracts, labor rights, wage and hour violations, leaves of absence, workplace safety, and executive compensation matters.

I have won trial victories for clients in federal jury trials, state court trials, and arbitration. I have fought employers who discriminated against clients based on their race, gender, age, disability, national origin, sexual orientation, gender identity, and military service. I have fought back against retaliation based on our clients’ reports of unsafe working conditions, nuclear safety threats, and illegal overtime...

Fred Morelock received his bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1974 and his law degree from UNC in 1976. He then practiced as a trial attorney for ten years in the areas of criminal defense and family law litigation before being appointed to the bench. He joined Tharrington Smith in 2001.

In 1986, Mr. Morelock was appointed by Governor James G. Martin to a Wake County district court judgeship. He was reelected three times and served for fourteen years. In 1990, Mr. Morelock became the first judge in Wake County to become a Certified...

Attorney Trent Grissom is licensed to practice law in North Carolina & South Carolina. He has also been admitted to the federal courts in the District of South Carolina and the Eastern, Middle and Western Districts of North Carolina. Trent has also spent many years representing clients in general civil matters. He has tried cases involving personal injury, contract disputes, construction disputes, and Homeowners Association (HOA) matters. Trent is certified as a mediator for Superior court matters in North Carolina and Circuit Court matters in South Carolina.

Jaye Meyer is listed in the Best Lawyers in America® and North Carolina Super Lawyers®. Ms Meyer received the Super Lawyers award for Top 50 Women Lawyers in North Carolina from 2010-2014, and Top 100 Lawyers in 2011. She has been recognized by Business North Carolina magazine as one of the “Legal Elite” in North Carolina. Ms. Meyer is a Board Certified Specialist in Family Law, a Fellow in the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, and is certified as a Family Financial Mediator.

Ms. Meyer was admitted to the North Carolina Bar in 1990. She received her B.A. cum laude from...

Jeannette has 11 years of experience working in the insurance industry in claims handling. She has represented both plaintiffs and defendants and is bilingual in Spanish and English.

David P. “Paul” Hefferon was born in Lincolnton, North Carolina in 1954. He is married to Vera Hefferon and has three grown children. He was educated in the Charlotte-Mecklenburg Schools and earned his B.A. in History and Political Science at UNC-Charlotte in 1980. He is a 1982 graduate of the University of North Carolina School of Law. Paul is a member or former member of the North Carolina State Bar, the Mecklenburg County Bar, the North Carolina Bar Association, the American Association for Justice, and the North Carolina Academy of Trial Lawyers.

Paul has been practicing law in Charlotte since 1983...

Vicki Rowan represents employees, former employees and small business in Western North Carolina in employment disputes including: 1. EEOC charges and mediation; 2. Discrimination or harassment on the basis of age, disability, race, sex, color, religion and national origin; 3. Unemployment claims; 4. FMLA requests or retaliation; 5. ADA reasonable accommodations requests; 6. Retaliation on the basis of EEOC complaints, Workers' compensation claims, or Wage and Hour complaints; 7. Unpaid wages or commission. PLEASE call between 8:30 and 3:00 weekdays for a free screening.

Nahomi, who is of counsel to the firm, graduated from Barnard College, cum laude, in 1967, and from Columbia University Law School in 1971. Before joining the firm, she practiced in the area of trusts and estates with Davis, Polk and Wardwell in New York. Nahomi is listed in The Best Lawyers in America in the area of Labor and Employment. She currently practices as a mediator with an emphasis on employment benefits and employment discrimination cases.

Paul Mengert II is a graduate of Elon University School of Law. During his eight-plus years of practice, Paul has accrued significant experience as a litigator and has handled all aspects of family law cases, including custody and divorce. Paul has a keen eye for big picture problem solving and a genuine desire to help his clients achieve their goals. Attorney Mengert is a native of Greensboro. As a young man, Paul achieved the highest rank in Scouting, the Eagle Scout Award. Paul has experience in acting, singing, and debate. While at Elon, Paul excelled at national-level mock trial competitions as...

After college I was an insurance adjuster for home owner and auto claims for 2 years before I went to law school. This was good training for my practice. After law school at The University of Tennessee I worked in insurance defense of all types of cases including auto accidents, workers compensation, contract/insurance disputes, wrongful death cases and other litigated issues. Worker's Compensation Accident and Injury cases have been to bulk of my practice for the last 15 years. I also handle auto/truck accident injuries associated with work. The remainder of my time I spend as a mediator of a variety...

I limit my practice to mediation and arbitration. Before I began limiting my practice, I focused especially on employment and personal injury litigation. Most of the time I represented employees, but I occasionally represented employers. Prior to focusing on employment and personal injury, I had a more general civil practice.

Todd M. Hess: Professional Engineer. Certified Financial Planner. Patent Attorney. NC Intellectual Property Mediator.

Todd Hess primarily concentrates his law practice in the North Carolina and South Carolina markets in all areas of intellectual property. He is additionally licensed to practice law in Georgia, and in federal court with the United States Patent and Trademark Office.

He brings over a decade of intellectual property experience to Barnwell Whaley, particularly in counseling start ups in the pharmaceutical and specialty chemical industries as well as the craft brewing industry.

Burton received his bachelor's degree from Harvard in 1971 and a Masters in Public Health degree from the University of North Carolina in 1974. After working as an administrator and consultant for rural health clinics in the mountains of North Carolina and Tennessee, he received his law degree, with high honors, from UNC in 1980. Before entering private practice in Raleigh in 1984, Burton was a trial attorney in the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice. He has served as President of the North Carolina Advocates for Justice, President of the American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina,...

I devote my practice to working with clients in family law matters, including premarital agreements, domestic partnership agreements, separation and property settlement agreements, qualified domestic relations orders, appeals, and litigation involving equitable distribution, alimony, child support and child custody. I understand the financial and emotional vulnerabilities of my clients, and I use my experience with alternative dispute resolution to resolve many disputes without litigation.

Kelly was born and raised in North Carolina, and currently lives in Hillsborough, North Carolina with her wife and daughter. Kelly has worked with the seriously mentally ill, at risk youth, troubled families, domestic violence aggressors and victims and as an intake counselor for a four county area in NC. She has extensive training as a mediator As an attorney, she has represented defendants with serious felony offenses through negotiated pleas or jury trials to verdict. She has represented a wide variety of clients in negotiated and litigated family law matters and believes that negotiation should always be pursued...

Bob began his career representing large companies in complex civil and construction litigation at large North Carolina law firms. Bob opened a solo practice to bring big firm legal services to small and mid-sized companies and individuals. Finding the right blend of old fashioned responsive service and cutting edge technology Bob has continued to represent some of the largest companies in North Carolina but is now able to bring affordable legal services to clients large and small.

L. Bryan Smith’s primary practice areas are family law, criminal defense, and personal injury. He is proud of his dedication and responsiveness to clients. Bryan attended Francis Marion College in Florence, South Carolina, earning a degree in political science. He then matriculated to Campbell University Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law for his juris doctor which he earned cum laude. After law school, Bryan was the founding member of a local law firm until he joined The Law Group as a partner.

Linda has devoted her entire legal career to helping families in crisis solve often difficult and deeply personal issues. She only practices family law. While Linda does have extensive trial experience, she is a firm believer that court is the last place a family law case should be resolved and prides herself on being a creative and solutions-oriented lawyer. Linda holds undergraduate degrees in history and education from the University of North Carolina-Asheville, where she graduated with distinction as a university scholar. Prior to practicing law, Linda was a North Carolina Teaching Fellow and taught high school history during...

Regina Sarkis is an experienced NY and NC labor & employment law and business attorney experienced in a variety of labor & employment law areas of practice including employment discrimination, wrongful termination, sexual harassment and ADA discrimination cases. She advises clients and business partners at all levels of leadership on a wide range of business, labor, and employment-related matters, including employee claims, wage & hour issues, non-compete and no-solicitation agreements, high-risk performance management issues, workplace safety, disability and medical leaves, reasonable accommodations, collective bargaining agreements, employee benefits and more.