2024-25 Officers and Board of Directors

Liaisons

Section Heads

Office

Committee Chairs

HENRY HARRIS ISAACSON

April 29, 1933 – June 27, 2024

Henry Harris Joel Isaacson died peacefully at Beacon Place in Greensboro on Thursday, June 27, 2024, after a brief illness.  He was 91 years old.  He loved his family and his community, and his impact on both will carry on for generations.

Henry was the younger of two children and was born to Ida Harris and Moses Lewis Isaacson of Greensboro on April 29, 1933.  He was predeceased by his parents and his sister, Sarah (Sally) Isaacson Gelb, of New York.

Henry loved his hometown and was a proud graduate of Greensboro Senior High School (now Grimsley Senior High School).  He graduated from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in 1955 and met his wife to be, Alice Diane Feder, while in college.  He worked as an usher at the Carolina Theatre to earn money to travel to see her on weekends while she was in school at Goucher College in Baltimore, Maryland.  They were married in August, 1954.  Henry graduated from the University of North Carolina School of Law in 1958 with honors and as a member of the North Carolina Law Review.  

After law school, Henry served as a Captain in the United States Air Force in the Judge Advocate General’s Corps (JAG), returning to his beloved Greensboro to practice law in 1961 with the firm of Block, Meyland & Lloyd.  In 1968, he joined the firm of Stern, Rendleman & Isaacson and practiced general corporate law with that firm until he started his own law firm in 1980.  His son, Marc Isaacson, joined him in 1983, and Henry practiced law with the firm of Isaacson Sheridan until December, 2022.  He was considered a leading land use attorney by the North Carolina Business Journal and was often recognized for his work.

Henry believed in public service, a legacy he passed on to his family.  Some of the organizations he served were the Greensboro Jaycees, where he was President in 1967, the Greensboro ABC Board (1980-1988), North Carolina State A & T University (1999-2007), International Civil Rights Museum & Center (Sit-In Movement, Inc.), among many others.  He was Chairman of the National Conference of Christians & Jews (now known as NCCJ) from 1975-1991, and he gratefully received that organization’s Citation Award in 2005.

During his work with his good friend, Stanley Frank, Henry developed a love of the Piedmont Triad International Airport and served on the PTI Authority Board beginning in 1999 and as the Chairman from 2003 through 2014.  He was involved in expanding the property of the Airport as a means to recruit various aviation businesses to the Triad Area, including FedEx and Honda Jet.  The Triad Business Journal recognized him for many years as among the most influential leaders in the Triad Area.  He received the North Carolina Bar Association Citizen Lawyer Award in 2010. 

Raised as a member of Temple Emanuel, Henry was committed to his Jewish faith and served as Secretary, Vice President and, from 1968-1970, as President of Temple Emanuel.

Family was the center of his world, and every Sunday night he held “family night’ with all of the children and grandchildren.  He is survived by his beloved wife of 69 years, Alice; his son and law partner, Marc Isaacson (Jill Wilson); his daughters, Gail Bernstein (Steve Bernstein), of Greensboro, North Carolina, and Carol Basile, of Columbus, Ohio; and, to his great pride, his eight grandchildren:  Sarah Castellano (Rob), Allison Isaacson (Arom Nadjmabadi), Robert Bernstein (Kristin), Charles Bernstein (Amanda), Katherine Bernstein, Andrew Basile (Melissa), Gabrielle Basile and Marco Basile; and two great-grandchildren:  George Bernstein and Roya Nadjmabadi.  

CHARLES WILLIAM SAUNDERS, JR.

August 28, 1942 – June 10, 2024

Charles William Saunders, Jr., of Greensboro, North Carolina, passed away at age 81 on Monday, June 10, 2024, at Heritage Greens Senior Living Center.

Charles was born in Rockingham County, North Carolina, to the late Charles W. Saunders, Sr. and Doris Jefferson Saunders on August 28, 1942.  He was a member of First United Methodist Church in Eden, North Carolina.

Charles served his country as a Lieutenant in the United States Army and graduated from Wofford College and the University of North Carolina School of Law at Chapel Hill.  He built a distinguished career at First Union Bank, later Wachovia and Wells Fargo, advising clients on financial planning as a trust officer.  He was a member of the North Carolina Bar Association and the Greensboro Bar Association.

Charles was very active, running marathons and pursuing outdoor adventures across the world.  He was involved with First Presbyterian Church in Greensboro as well as Holy Trinity Episcopal Church.

Charles committed himself fully to fostering youth and community development.  He was a board member of A & T State University, the Guilford Child Development Center, Greensboro Rotary, Senior Resources of Guilford, and North Carolina for Community and Justice.  Through a volunteer reading program, he met and mentored Trae White, who became a family friend.

Charles is survived by his wife, Victoria Vanstory Saunders; his step-daughters Kelly Youngken Smith (Rob) of Arlington, Virginia, and Abigail Youngken Compton (Matthew) of Arlington, Virginia; four grandsons; niece Deb Stewart of Raleigh, North Carolina, and nephews Barry Gillespie of Geneva, Alabama, Tim Gillespie of Raleigh, North Carolina, and Bradley Gillespie of Acworth, Georgia.  His parents and his sister, Ann Gillespie, precede him in death.

The 24th Judicial District is pleased to share that the following members were inducted in the North Carolina Pro Bono Honor Society for pro bono service in 2023. The Pro Bono Honor Society was established to recognize the invaluable contributions of legal professionals who volunteer their time and expertise to ensure that justice is accessible to all. Members of the society are celebrated not only for their dedication to pro bono. The North Carolina Pro Bono Honor Society celebrates those attorneys who have met their professional responsibility enshrined in Rule 6.1, increasing access to justice for those in need. The Society allows the North Carolina legal profession to celebrate the importance of attorney volunteerism and to encourage colleagues and peers to get involved. work but also for upholding the highest standards of the legal profession. 

North Carolina Rule of Professional Conduct 6.1 encourages North Carolina attorneys to provide at least 50 hours of pro bono legal services each year to those who are unable to pay. Attorneys licensed in North Carolina (or attorneys who provide services under North Carolina Pro Bono Practice Status) who report at least 50 hours of pro bono legal service (i.e. activity under NC RPC 6.1(a)) in a year will be inducted into that year’s cohort of the North Carolina Pro Bono Honor Society and receive a certificate from the Supreme Court of North Carolina recognizing their valuable contributions to the people of North Carolina.

**denotes Greensboro Bar Association members also inducted into the Herb Falk Society for providing in excess of 75 hours of pro bono service under the NC Rules of Professional Conduct.

This year’s honorees have collectively contributed hundreds of hours of pro bono service, assisting individuals and families with legal challenges ranging from housing and employment to immigration and family law. Their efforts have had a profound impact on the lives of countless residents in North Carolina and our community, reinforcing the principle that access to justice should not be limited by one’s financial circumstances.

For more information about the North Carolina Pro Bono Honor Society or to learn how you can get involved, please visit https://ncprobono.org/honorsociety/. 

Camille Stell
is President and CEO of Lawyers Mutual Consulting & Services. Continue this conversation by contacting Camille at camille@lawyersmutualnc.com

Nothing hinders the growth of law firms more than owners who won’t allow associates or non-equity partners to move into roles of law firm ownership. Is your firm suffering from this condition?

The Cost of Replacing an Associate

There are many studies that project the cost of replacing employees. A 2017 NALP Update on Associate Attrition reports the costs of replacing an associate as between $200,000 and $500,000. That may sound like a lot of money to replace an associate making $75,000 annually, but the scenario below probably sounds familiar.

Once the associate announces they are leaving, the office manager posts the job on LinkedIn, Indeed, and law school job posting websites. Once the laborious work of collecting and reviewing resumes results in narrowing the search to a few top candidates, interviews begin. Depending on your firm’s hiring process, the candidate may meet with the firm owner, the attorney running the team where the associate will work, along with some of the other partners who are concerned with new hires being a good cultural fit. It is not uncommon for the interview process to last several months while trying to accommodate schedules. Once the firm selects their candidate, the new hire usually needs to provide at least two weeks’ notice. After their start date, allow at least 6-12 months before a new team member is acclimated to the law firm and fully busy with billable work.

It’s not hard to see how much lost revenue the firm accumulates during this time.

Why Delaying Retirement Stagnates Law Firm Growth

Many partners are convinced that their turnover has to do with higher salaries down the street rather than what is happening in their own firm. When you have hired an excellent associate, trained, and nurtured them, it can be difficult to see them leave. It can also leave a bitter taste at the thought of going through that time-intensive process again. 

Time after time I’ve asked leaving associates and non-equity partners why they left. It’s less often for the new salary than it is that they cannot see a future for themselves in the firm. The owner(s) simply won’t let anyone else in the ownership rank. While you as the firm owner may say to yourself that you are hiring and training the firm’s next generation leadership and ownership, that’s not the message you project. From the associate’s perspective looking in, the view is clear – the firm is yours; the decisions are yours, and the clients are yours. When you decide to let go is a decision made by you at the time you are ready to make it. 

I get it. You worked hard to be in that position. But it is completely unrealistic to think that the next generation of law firm owners is going to be content to wait forty years to have a voice. The flip side of that coin is that often the lawyers who self-select to remain associates or non-equity partners have made a lifestyle decision that works for them. When you decide in October that you will retire in December and you look to the twenty-year non-equity partner, they have no interest in taking over the firm. You have lawyers to serve the clients, but those lawyers aren’t prepared for a path to equity partnership because you were clear by your actions that you weren’t looking for equity partners.

Transitioning Ownership

It is a different process to hire your next-generation owner than it is to hire associates who may or may not stay with the firm. Hiring next-generation owners means talking about their goals and career path from the beginning of the hiring process and throughout their career development. 

Today’s lawyers are looking for clear steps to ownership. Developing a plan, with defined milestones and clear expectations will go a long way in ensuring your associates remain loyal to the firm. Continued conversations about their development and career goals, along with your input on timeline for ownership helps manage everyone’s expectations.

Plan Your Exit Strategy

Many law firms make the mistake of never discussing retirement or succession until a named partner gets close to what some in the firm would consider “retirement age”. If you wait for this to happen, the discussion is always personal. It’s not about creating a succession plan for the firm; the discussion becomes centered around when the named partner is stepping back.

A likely next step in the conversation is for the senior partner to talk about a 5-7 year “wind-down” while in fact, the other partners think the past few years have been your “wind-down”. You’ve already lessened your workload and billable hours, yet you continue to remain in the largest office and use the most support staff keeping overhead high while your revenues are decreasing.

As you have likely seen for yourself, there is no easy way to address this topic.

Prepare for Life after Law

When I can talk with senior partners about what succession planning or retirement looks like for them, I tell them it’s easier to move towards something than to leave something precious behind. Your firm that you built from the ground up is precious to you. It has provided for you and your family. It has given you meaning, purpose, and relevance. It has provided a livelihood for your employees and has changed the lives of countless clients across decades. Of course, it is hard to walk away.

Because of the work and sweat equity you put into building the firm, you may not have had time for hobbies or outside interests. Your friend circle may consist of your work colleagues and your professional friends. What will you do every day if you don’t go to the office – perhaps the same office you have been going to almost every day for forty years?

As you dare to consider life after law, begin to examine new opportunities. As a lawyer, you are probably well-known and well-respected in your community. There are many boards or community organizations that are looking for motivated board members. Teaching and mentoring may be a part of the job that you loved, how about exploring how to use those skills in a different educational setting such as middle school or high school kids.

Perhaps it’s time for you to become a student again. The Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (OLLI) offers classes in universities across the state for adults who are interested in learning for the joy of learning without exams or grades. UNC-Asheville offers a weekend program that attracts attendees from across the country, the Creative Retirement Exploration Weekend (CREW), as well as Paths to Creative Retirement. My husband and I participated in the Paths to Creative Retirement program at the suggestion of Hank Teich, a lawyer with Grimes, Teich & Anderson in Asheville. We had a great experience with about twenty other attendees who were ready to explore their next act.

Many of you have heard me say that the book Designing Your Life: How to Build a Well Lived Joyful Life by Bill Burnett and Dave Evans was a great help to me as I explored my transition into succession planning, law firm compensation, and path to partnership consulting.

Exploring new paths is challenging. We aren’t always sure where the path will lead or what is around each new corner. But planning for retirement will make the chances much greater that no matter where you end up, you will enjoy the journey.

Resources

Creative Retirement Exploration Weekend – Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (unca.edu)

Paths to Creative Retirement – Osher Lifelong Learning Institute (unca.edu)

Younger Next Year – Turn back your biological clock

Home – Designing Your Life

Camille Stell is the President of Lawyers Mutual Consulting & Services and the co-author of the book, RESPECT – An Insight to Attorney Compensation Plans available from Amazon. Continue this conversation by contacting Camille at camille@lawyersmutualconsulting.com or 800.662.8843.

In 2023, the GBA raised over $19,000.00 for the benefit of Legal Aid of NC.  

The GBA is now seeking sponsors for its 2024 NC Legal Aid Fundraiser to expand its impact in our community. Your sponsorship will ensure vital legal services reach those in need, fostering justice and equality for all. Partner with us to gain valuable recognition while helping individuals and families navigate their legal challenges.

Discover the sponsorship options below and join us in championing access to legal representation.

Click HERE to sponsor today!

Save the Date! The Business & Corporate Law Section of the GBA will hold a networking lunch on October 1, 2024 at Syngenta’s corporate offices. Come meet with colleagues and learn more about pro-bono opportunities available to corporate counsel. A detailed invitation will follow. To RSVP in advance, please contact Ben Edwards at ben.edwards@lfg.com.