Areas of Experience & Expertise:
Business / Corporations, Complex Business Disputes, Contracts, Debtor/Creditor, Employee Benefits, Employment, Estate Planning / Fiduciary Law, ERISA, Fraud, Housing Law, Insurance, Negligence, Real Estate / Commercial, Real Estate / Residential.
Education:
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University of North Carolina, J.D., with high honors, 1995
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NORTH CAROLINA LAW REVIEW, Executive Articles Editor; Order of the Coif
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Walter Clark Award (presented to top five students in graduating class)
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Duke University, B.A., cum laude, English, 1990
Experience:
2008-Present: Higgins & Owens, PLLC (formerly Higgins Law Firm, PLLC)
1996-2008: Kennedy, Covington, Lobdell & Hickman, LLP, (partner and associate)
1995-1996: Law Clerk to the Honorable Sam J. Ervin, III, then-Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
Awards & Recognition:
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Rated “AV Preeminent” by Martindale Hubbell Peer Review Ratings1
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Named “Charlotte Best Lawyers Litigation – Real Estate Lawyer of the Year” (2012)
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Listed in BUSINESS NORTH CAROLINA’s Legal Elite for Business Litigation (2012)
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Listed in The Best Lawyers in America in Commercial Litigation (multiple years)
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Listed in Super Lawyers in Business Litigation
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“Outstanding Recent Graduate,” awarded by the University of North Carolina School of Law(2004)
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Featured in North Carolina Lawyers Weekly, “Up and Coming Lawyers: Sally Higgins: Orchestrating the Good Fight” (August 2004)
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“Women in Business Achievement Award,” awarded by Charlotte Business Journal (2004)
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“40 Under 40,” awarded by Charlotte Business Journal (2003)
Selected Publications and Recognitions:
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Speaker, “Strategic and Procedural Considerations in State vs. Federal Practice,” presented by Mecklenburg County Bar (November 2011)
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Panelist, “Lawyer Life: Is That an Oxymoron?”, presented by Mecklenburg County Bar (April 2009)
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ERISA LITIGATION, contributing editor and author of chapter titled “Attorney Client Privilege and the Work Product Doctrine” (3rd ed. 2008)
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“401(k) Plan Litigation on the Rise”, NORTH CAROLINA LAWYERS WEEKLY, Carolinas’ Employment Law Directory (2008)
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“On the Rise: 401(k) Plan Fee Litigation,” ABA Health eSource (June 2007)
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Program Chair and Presenter, “Business Litigation Forum,” presented by Mecklenburg County Bar (February 2006)
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“Federal Civil Practice” chapter (co-author), North Carolina Bar Association’s General Practice Deskbook (3d ed. 2004; 4th ed. forthcoming)
Selected Professional & Community Involvement:
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Women Presidents Organization, Charlotte Chapter (2004-present)
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Mecklenburg County Bar: Centennial Committee Member and Co-Chair, Celebration of Community Service Task Force (2011-2012); Vice President (2003-2005); Board of Directors (2001-2005); Bar Leadership Institute (2002); Lawyers Teaching Justice, Founder and Chair (2001-2002)
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Community School of the Arts, Board of Directors (2004-2010); Executive Committee (2006-2010)
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Myers Park High School, School Leadership Team (2011-present)
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