News - Aug 1, 2008

John R. Wester '68 President-elect of N.C. Bar Association

Morehead Alumnus John R. (Buddy) Wester '68 was elected president of the North Carolina Bar Association (NCBA) on Saturday, June 21, at the NCBA Annual Meeting in Atlantic Beach. Buddy will serve a year as president-elect during the 2009-2010 term and will be installed as the 115th president on Saturday, June 27, 2009, at next year's 111th NCBA Annual Meeting in Asheville, N.C.

A Charlotte-based attorney, Buddy has spent his full legal career at Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson, where he is a partner specializing in complex civil litigation. Buddy has been the lead on several landmark cases, including Hyatt v. Barnhart--a statewide class action lawsuit contesting the termination and denial of social security benefits for disabled North Carolinians.

Buddy is a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation and the American College of Trial Lawyers. Buddy was also highlighted as one of North Carolina's best attorneys in the 2008 editions of The Best Lawyers in America, Chambers USA: America's Leading Lawyers for Business, Benchmark: Litigation, and the magazine North Carolina Super Lawyers.

While thanking the NCBA in his acceptance speech for "this high honor," Buddy also challenged his fellow members to collectively use their abilities to foster a better tomorrow.

"If we could harness the energy and talent assembled in this room this morning--if we could harness the energy and talent of our profession represented by those in this room this morning--who knows what we might see, together, in the days ahead."

For more information about Buddy's new role as NCBA president-elect, click here.