Mike has more than 30 years active trial experience before the Industrial Commission and North Carolina courts. He has investigated and defended hundreds of workplace injury and occupational disease claims, including complex multi-party mass occupational disease claims involving allegations of exposure to respiratory hazards as well as dermal exposure to industrial solvents. He has appeared in numerous cases before the North Carolina appellate courts and has appeared in the civil defense of third-party lien claims. Mike also has experience in risk control, litigation and claim management, market conduct examinations and has experience commissioning and supervising claims audits for self-insured employers. He is a North Carolina State Bar Certified Specialist in Workers’ Compensation, a Certified North Carolina Superior Court Mediator and an accredited Veterans Administration benefits attorney.
Mike has been invited to appear before the North Carolina General Assembly Joint Legislative Committee on Small Business and Economic Development and the House Committee on Insurance to speak on issues affecting higher costs for employers and insurance carriers. He has lectured for the North Carolina Occupational Safety & Health Education Resource Center, School of Public Health, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill; the National Asbestos & Environmental Training Institute; the North Carolina Association of Self-Insured Employers; the National Business Institute; and, the Institute of Business Law, California State University, Los Angeles.
Mike graduated in 1983 (a very good year) from North Carolina State University with a degree in political science with a law and political philosophy concentration. He graduated from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill School of Law in 1986. Mike is rated AV® Preeminent™ by LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell reflecting the highest rating for legal knowledge, analytical capabilities, judgment, communication and experience in his area of practice with very high ethical standards and he has been nominated by his peer attorneys for inclusion in the North Carolina Super Lawyers from 2009 to 2017.
Mike has been a member of the North Carolina and Federal Bar (Eastern District of North Carolina) since 1986. He is also a member of the North Carolina Bar Association and the North Carolina Association of Defense Lawyers.