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Four Essex Richards Lawyers Named to 2010 Business North Carolina Legal Elite

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Four Essex Richards Lawyers Named to Business North Carolina Legal Elite

Four attorneys at Charlotte's Essex Richards, P.A. have been recognized in Business North Carolina's annual Legal Elite issue of January 2010 as being among North Carolina's best lawyers. They are: Pat Matus, in the field of Criminal Law; Norris Adams, in the field of Construction Law; and Woody Connette and Lou Lesesne, in the field of Employment Law.

The Legal Elite are chosen by ballot of North Carolina lawyers. Ballots are sent to 18,000 lawyers - to every member of the North Carolina State Bar living in North Carolina. The ballots ask: Of the Tar Heel lawyers whose work you have observed firsthand, whom would you rate among the current best in 14 different categories? Lawyers are not allowed to vote for themselves, and they can vote for others in their firm only if they vote for others outside the firm in the same category. The final list includes about five percent of the entire State Bar membership.

Matus was the top vote getter in the field of Criminal Law and was given a special profile by the magazine. Matus, a former District Court Judge practices in the areas of personal injury and general civil litigation, in addition to his criminal practice. He is also a certified mediator and serves as an arbitrator privately and for various organizations.

Norris Adams was selected in the field of Construction Law. He was one of the youngest attorneys to be selected. He practices in the areas of Construction Law and Land Use Regulation, as well as in ERISA and Personal Injury litigation.

Lesesne was the top vote getter in the Employment Law area several years ago and has been recognized in the Legal Elite every years since Business North Carolina began publishing the list. He has also been recognized for more than 10 years in Best Lawyers in America, including every issue since 1999, including the 2007 editions, in the field of employment law. He was named in 2006 and 2007 as one of the Top 100 North Carolina Super Lawyers.

Connette is known for his expertise in ERISA, a federal law governing employee retirement, disability, health and other benefits. He also practices in the related areas of complex personal injury and health law. He has also been recognized among "The Best Lawyers in America" and as a North Carolina "Super Lawyer."

Essex Richards, P.A. provides transactional and litigation services to individuals and business clients throughout North Carolina, including the Charlotte area. The firm provides services in the area of estate planning and probate, business law, general litigation, personal injury, criminal law and ERISA.

Norris Adams ERISA Litigation article published by American Bar Association

The American Bar Association Employee Benefits Section has published an article written by Norris Adams entitled "Challenging the Reliability and Import of Independent Medical Reviews in the Wake of Glenn v. MetLife."

American Bar Association Health Law Section publishes article by Woody Connette

The American Bar Association Health Law Section has published an article on comparative evvectiveness research, or evidence-based medicine, in its newsletter.

With a recession sweeping the country in early 2009, Congress and the Administration went looking for shovel-ready public works projects to fund with the $787 Billion American Reinvestment and Recovery Act ("ARRA"). Predictably, the money will support state and local government infrastructure projects like roads, bridges and public transit. Buried in the deck is a wildcard: a $1.1 billion allocation for comparative effectiveness research ("CER") to study what medical treatment modalities work best for which patients, and under what circumstances.

Connette's article explores the potential impact of this research funding on community medical practcie in the future. A copy can be found by following this link:

http://www.abanet.org/health/esource/Volume6/02/Connette.html

Three Essex Richards Lawyers Named to Best Lawyers in America 2010 Edition

John Daniel, Woody Connette and Lou Lesesne have been selected by their peers for inclusion in the upcoming 2010 edition of The Best Lawyers in America. John Daniel has been recognized for his expertise in Commercial Litigation. Lesesne and Connette have been recognized in the fields of in the specialties of Labor and Employment Law. Lesesne is one of a distinguished group of attorneys who have been listed in Best Lawyers for ten years or longer. Inclusion in Best Lawyers is based on a rigorous peer-review survey that has been developed and refined for nearly 25 years. The current edition is based on confidential evaluations by the top attorneys in the country. Best Lawyers also conducts thousands of telephone interviews with leading attorneys throughout its balloting process.

Norris Adams writes column on the dangers of driving while using a cell phone for Charlotte Observer

Hang up and drive! That is Norris Adams' message in a recent editorial column published by the Charlotte Observer.

Norris reported that, according to a 2006 National Highway and Transportation Safety Administration and Virginia Tech Transportation Institute study, nearly 80% of crashes and 65% of near-crashes involve some form of driver inattention, of which cell phone use is the most common, within 3 seconds before the crash.In North Carolina, it is estimated by the Highway Safety Research Center that an astounding 1,475 cell phone related crashes occur each year in this state alone.

Woody Connette chairs board of Easter Seals UCP of North Carolina

Woody Connette is serving a two-year term as Board Chair for Easter Seals/UCP, a statewide organization with over 1,500 employees providing services and supports for persons with disabilities in both North Carolina and Virginia. Easter Seals UCP (www.nc.easterseals.com) creates opportunities, promotes individual choice and changes the lives of children and adults with disabilities by maximizing their individual potential for living, learning and working in their communities.

Connette contines to serve on the emeritus board of the National Patient Advocate Foundation (www.npaf.org) following a two-year term as its board chair. The mission of NPAF is to assure access to quality healthcare by all Americans. It is actively involved in lobbying and health policy initiatives in Washington. Its sister organization, the nonprofit Patient Advocate Foundation (www.patientadvocate.org) offers direct help to patients nationwide, using trained patient advocates who work to resolve health insurance, Medicare and Medicaid coverage issues for people suffering from cancer and other serious or life-threatening illnesses. In 2009, the organization closed over 47,000 cases. The data gleaned from handling these cases is then used to support the health policy changes that we pursue through the National Patient Advocate Foundation.