Episodes

With February being CLE season at NCAJ, host Amber Nimocks welcomes Lauren Newton, an NCAJ leader who has helped develop popular CLEs, including the auto torts series. Lauren also discusses her involvement in other NCAJ initiatives, such as helping launch its Women’s Caucus. She describes serving as a delegate for the American Association for Justice (AAJ) and – if all that’s not enough – acting as an avid Instagram poster outside of her law practice. Visit the NCAJ’s event calendar to learn ab...

NCAJ President Kevin Bunn encourages attorneys to stay focused on advocating for vulnerable people and to resist any urge to check out because of frustration with the political climate. Bunn joins podcast host Amber Nimocks for a midterm chat. One of the first in his family to attend college, he reflects on how different his perspective and political beliefs might be but for attending UNC. He reminds listeners that, although people may have different perspectives, it doesn’t mean they can’t find...

NCAJ is losing a longtime member, but North Carolinians are gaining a judge on January 1, 2025. Sean Cole is passionate about service, his two constituents – the public and the Constitution – and the law. Also about having a sense of humor. Sean visits host Amber Nimocks for a retrospective on the various turns his life has taken. Twenty-four years ago, he was invited to interview for a plaintiffs’ firm but needed a friend to dig his car out of a snow drift so he could make the appointment. Thi...

Fresh from profiling Ben Whitley for NCAJ’s flagship publication, Amber Nimocks invites him on the podcast so listeners can hear the story of this winning PI lawyer at Whitley Law Firm and familiar face on WRAL. From watching his father help clients as a child to launching his own career at the firm’s satellite office to honing his marketing skills before TV cameras, Ben reviews his career and highlights one constant: commitment to community. Click here to read Amber’s “Hero Profile” of Ben in ...

Ian Mance has worked for almost 20 years on criminal and racial justice policy and litigation in North Carolina. His long-term projects include developing strategies for leveraging a database of law enforcement traffic stops in the state. Ian will offer a hands-on presentation about the database and its application in the courts at NCAJ’s upcoming Criminal Defense CLE. Twenty-five years ago, North Carolina was the first state to pass a law to create the database that logs enforcement patterns a...

Artemis Malekpour, a partner at Malekpour & Ball who specializes in strategic jury selection and solutions to case problems, previews the session she will lead at NCAJ’s November 7 CLE. The program will focus on evidence and pretrial motions, and attendees will participate in an interactive exercise on voir dire. In addition to laying out her CLE, Artemis joins host Amber Nimocks to share her insights on the importance of understanding jurors' perspectives and crafting trial themes based on the...

Emily Beeson didn’t know that she would pursue a legal career when she got her first position as a bilingual case manager, and then as a paralegal. But after she was in that role for a while, she realized “this is a great opportunity for growth.” Law school followed. Now with a decade of experience, she is the lead workers’ compensation lawyer for Ward Black Law. She’s also a 2023 graduate of the NCAJ Next Leadership Program. On October 18, she’ll share the wisdom she gained from being a parale...

Artificial intelligence is transforming how lawyers research the facts and laws pertaining to their cases, negotiate settlements with insurance companies, and strategize the best way to present a case, so those who don’t keep up with the technology will be left behind, best-selling author Brian Carter says in this conversation with NCAJ host Amber Nimocks. Carter is one of several AI experts who will speak at NCAJ’s upcoming Mountain Magic conference in Asheville Oct. 3-5. Go to www.ncaj.com/mo...

For North Carolina PI lawyers, the auto insurance landscape will change dramatically on July 1, 2025. Christopher Nichols, NCAJ’s Governmental Affairs Consultant, lays out the new rules of the road with host Amber Nimocks. Relying on his deep understanding of recent changes to the law, including Senate Bill 319, which was passed this summer, Chris describes how the law will affect personal injury lawyers and their clients. He offers a look into what’s in store come next July, starting with new ...

As a successful trial attorney, Raleigh native and solo practitioner Lex-Jordan Ibegbu credits the NCAJ NEXT Leadership program with helping him build a community of colleagues and mentors. With Voices of NCAJ host Amber Nimocks, Lex-Jordan “drops some gems” of inspiration for the next class of NEXT fellows. Collaborating with NCAJ, his goal is to positively affect the citizens of North Carolina “because that's what it's all about at the end of the day.” Tune in to hear how he does that through...

“The swingiest of swing, and the purplest of purple.” That’s North Carolina as we gear up for the hotly contested 2024 election season. In this episode of Voices of NCAJ, host Amber Nimocks welcomes seasoned political consultants Morgan Jackson and Paul Shumaker to the show to discuss North Carolina's political landscape ahead of the 2024 elections. Tune in as they discuss how media consumption is evolving so campaigns must find a way to adapt their strategies. Increasing voter turnout is crit...

Like it or not, law firms are businesses. Lawyers who own their own firms are business people as well as lawyers, but how can lawyers effectively handle the business side of their practice? In this episode of Voices of NCAJ, host Amber Nimocks speaks with experienced plaintiffs’ attorney Dan Bryson of Milberg Coleman Bryson Phillips Grossman, LLC, one of the largest and most successful plaintiffs’ firms in the country. Tune in as Amber and Dan discuss tips for building up a law firm from the bu...

Sean Cole is just one of many all-stars on the bill at NCAJ’s May 3 Proving Causation In Auto Trials CLE. The importance of opening statements cannot be overstated. In fact, cases can be won or lost during opening statements. A great opening statement must be well prepared but still allow the attorney to adapt to new information. In this episode of Voices of NCAJ, host Amber Nimocks speaks with veteran plaintiffs’ attorney Sean Cole of The Law Offices of Sean Cole to discuss the importance of ...

“When someone lies to me . . . there's a reason they're lying. And for me, I think it's part of my ethical responsibility as a lawyer to expose someone.” In this episode of Voices of NCAJ, host Amber Nimocks interviews Alex Charns, a criminal defense attorney in Durham who has written a book about the FBI's secret tapes on the Supreme Court of the 1960s and his decades-long battles to access them. After being inspired by David Garrow's book on FBI tactics against Martin Luther King Jr., Charns ...

“We're all working professionals that have busy lives, but sometimes we really crave that connection that comes from being in person. There's really no one-size-fits-all model for CLE, but I think we have the ability to offer people a lot of different options.” In this episode of Voices of NCAJ, host Amber Nimocks speaks with guest Anna Kalarites, NCAJ Education Vice President and partner at Pishko Kalarites Lawyers. Amber and Anna discuss major shifts in continuing legal education, NCAJ's effo...

“There’s no shame in being broke.” Sam McGee, a self-proclaimed broke lawyer, knows the feeling and wants to give other lawyers the tools to avoid ethics violations when money gets tight. In this episode of Voices of NCAJ, host Amber Nimocks previews the upcoming “Ethics Hot Issues'' CLE program with Sam McGee, Legal Affairs Counsel at NCAJ, Of Counsel with the Wilder Pantazis Law Group, and CLE panelist. Many ethics violations stem not from greed, but from financial pressures, something many ...

The practice of personal injury law is evolving rapidly. The sit-down, in-person meeting with a client to sign documents is no longer the default. Instead, when you get that call, you need to act fast and be able to meet the client wherever you need to, whether it is over text message, email, Zoom, or even at their house. In this episode of Voices of NCAJ, host Amber Nimocks and seasoned personal injury attorney Meredith Hinton discuss the upcoming program "Learning from the PI Pros." This CLE,...

“I love doing that kind of work. I think it really can make a big difference, one, in the lives of people, and then two, in holding wrongdoers accountable.” In this episode of Voices of NCAJ, host Amber Nimocks speaks with Carma Henson, one of the four panelists for NCAJ’s Medical Malpractice “Back to the Basics” CLE. Carma is a partner at Henson Fuerst, where her practice focuses on nursing home litigation. She currently serves as NCAJ’s Membership Vice President and the Vice Chair of the Amer...

In this episode of Voices of NCAJ, host Amber Nimocks welcomes three guests, NCAJ Executive Director Shannon Leskin, NCAJ Lobbyist Philip Isley and NCAJ Government Affairs Consultant Chris Nichols, to discuss how they helped NCAJ achieve some key legislative goals during the 2023 Long Session of the North Carolina General Assembly. NCAJ is dedicated to supporting and furthering the rights of plaintiffs’ attorneys and criminal defense attorneys and their clients. One way we do this is through ou...

The pandemic really took a toll on the criminal defense practice. Not being in the courtroom as often, not being in contact with other attorneys, not sharing information and skills – the learning gap has grown for both newer criminal defense attorneys as well as experienced practitioners. It’s time to fix that by attending the “Criminal Defense: Back to Basics and Beyond” CLE on Dec. 8 at NCAJ headquarters in Raleigh. Register at ncaj.com/events. In this episode of Voices of NCAJ, host Amber Ni...

Any lawyer trying cases in front of a jury today needs to attend the NCAJ Caps on Damages 2023 CLE on Nov. 3 at NCAJ headquarters in Raleigh. Register at ncaj.com/events. In addition to focusing on the caps, it’s about how to practice in the post-COVID era and how to present damages to a jury. In this episode of Voices of NCAJ, host Amber Nimocks speaks with Kristen Beightol, a founding partner at Edwards Beightol, LLC, and co-chair of the program. The all-star lineup of speakers includes Burto...

The skills and knowledge paralegals will bring back after attending the NCAJ Fall Conference for Paralegals 2023 are well worth the day away from the office. In this episode, Amber Nimocks interviews Megan Jankowski, a paralegal at Henson Fuerst, about the upcoming Fall Conference for Paralegals 2023 which takes place on October 13, 2023 at the NCAJ headquarters in Raleigh, North Carolina. The conference will focus on topics such as the eCourt system, medical record requests, ethics, and more, ...

“While things have moved slowly in the past, I strongly believe that since the court entered this leadership order…we're going to see things happen and move much, much quicker.” Mona Lisa Wallace, co-lead counsel for the Camp Lejeune Justice Act litigation team, joins Voices of NCAJ host Amber Nimocks to offer updates on the litigation and a preview of NCAJ’s upcoming CLE. A hundred thousand claims have already been filed under the year-old act, which aims to bring justice to veterans and civil...

Michael Bertics - longtime NCAJ member, partner at Lennon, Camak and Bertics, PLLC, and board certified specialist in worker’s compensation law - joins podcast host Amber Nimocks for a discussion of the upcoming “Quirky Issues in Workers’ Comp” CLE. Michael’s presentation this year, “Declawing the Labor Market Survey: Declawing Cats Is Inhumane. Declawing Vocational Experts is Good Lawyering, so Let’s Sharpen Your Voc Expert Declawing Tools!” is a hot topic in workers’ comp. Michael stresses th...