Six Nexsen Pruet Attorneys Named Among North Carolina's "Legal Elite"

GREENSBORO, NC - Business North Carolina magazine has named eight attorneys from Nexsen Pruet Adams Kleemeier to its list of the profession's "Legal Elite," an honor bestowed by the publication on just 3 percent of the state’s lawyers.

The six, who were recognized in the publication’s January issue, include:

• M. Jay DeVaney, a Member in Greensboro, for real estate law;
• R. Harper Heckman, a Member in Greensboro, for construction law;
• Benjamin A. Kahn, a Member in Greensboro, for bankruptcy law;
• Christine L. Myatt, a Member in Greensboro, for bankruptcy law;
• David A. Senter, a Member in Greensboro, for construction law; and
• Richard W. Wilson, a Member in Charlotte, for construction law

"This recognition is special both to the firm and to the lawyers who earned it," said Leighton Lord, chairman of the board of Nexsen Pruet. "On the one hand, it underscores our legal team’s experience in areas vital to business. At the same time, because it is a survey of peers, I think it demonstrates a high level of professional respect earned by these attorneys."

In developing the list, Business North Carolina sent 17,336 ballots to every licensed lawyer living in the state, asking one question: "Of the North Carolina lawyers whose work you have observed firsthand, whom would you rate among the current best?" Respondents were asked to select attorneys in 12 business-related fields. Only 495 earned "elite" status.

Jay DeVaney is a Board Certified Specialist in Real Property Law - Business, Commercial, and Industrial Transactions by the North Carolina State Bar.  He focuses his practice in the areas of commercial real estate, land-use litigation, and legal malpractice defense. DeVaney is a member of the American College of Real Estate Lawyers Board of Governors and a fellow of the American College of Mortgage Attorneys. He is also a former chair of the North Carolina Bar Association’s Real Property Section and a former member of the Board of Governors. He is listed in Best Lawyers in America for real estate law; was named a North Carolina "Super Lawyer" in a Law & Politics survey; and is a member of Outstanding Lawyers of America.

Harper Heckman practices in the areas of lien, bond, construction law, and civil litigation. He is a former chair of the North Carolina Bar's Construction Law Section and is the current Chair of the Contract Documents Steering Committee of the American Bar Association's Forum on the Construction Industry. Additionally, he has been included in the Triad Business Journal's "40 Leaders Under Forty" and was named a North Carolina "Super Lawyer" in a Law & Politics survey.

Ben Kahn is a Certified Specialist in Business and Consumer Bankruptcy Law by the Board of Legal Specialization of the North Carolina State Bar. He focuses his practice is the areas of bankruptcy law, litigation, and corporate law. He has represented creditors' committees, individual secured and unsecured creditors, guarantors, lessors, debtors, trustees, and others in numerous bankruptcy cases under Chapters 7, 11, 12 and 13 of the U.S. Bankruptcy Code.

Beth Langley concentrates her practice in matters involving employment discrimination, employment law litigation, civil rights litigation, ERISA litigation, employment dispute prevention, covenants against competition, trade secrets, and business litigation. She is a former chair of the Labor and Employment Section of the North Carolina Bar.

Christy Myatt chairs the firm's bankruptcy and creditor rights group. She is a Certified Specialist in Bankruptcy Law by the Board of Legal Specialization of the North Carolina Bar and in Business Bankruptcy Law by the American Bankruptcy Board of Certification. She chairs the North Carolina Bar's Bankruptcy Section; is a former chair of the Bar's Board of Legal Specialization and Business Law Curriculum Committee; and was named a North Carolina "Super Lawyer" in a Law & Politics survey.

Tonya Powell is a Board Certified Specialist in Real Property Law: Business, Commercial, and Industrial Transactions by the North Carolina State Bar. She concentrates her practice in the areas of commercial real estate transactions and secured financing. Additionally, she is a member of the North Carolina Bar's Real Property Section and former president of the Greensboro Bar Association's Real Property Section.

David Senter chairs the firm's construction practice group. He concentrates his practice in the areas of construction and surety, commercial litigation, and commercial collections. He is a member of the Governing Committee of the American Bar Association's Construction Forum and is a past member of the council of the North Carolina Bar’s Construction Law Section. He is also a member of the Forum on the Construction Industry, the Tort and Insurance Practice Section, and the Litigation Section of the ABA, and is listed in Best Lawyers in America for construction law and was named a North Carolina "Super Lawyer" in a Law & Politics survey.

Richard Wilson is a trial lawyer whose principal areas of practice are commercial litigation, construction law and litigation, bankruptcy law, creditors' rights law, and real property litigation. He is a past chairman of the North Carolina Bar's Construction Law Section and a member the Litigation and Bankruptcy Sections, and is listed in Best Lawyers in America for construction law.

Nexsen Pruet Adams Kleemeier, PLLC is one of the largest law firms in the Carolinas, with more than 170 attorneys and offices in Charlotte and Greensboro, N.C. and in Columbia, Charleston, Greenville, Hilton Head, and Myrtle Beach, S.C. Nexsen Pruet Adams Kleemeier provides a broad range of legal services to the business community and represents companies and other entities in local, state, national, and international venues.