(RALEIGH, N.C.)—The North Carolina Bar Association (NCBA) has announced that Catharine Biggs Arrowood, Partner in the Raleigh office of Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, was elected president-elect of the organization on Saturday, June 22 at the NCBA Annual Meeting in Asheville, NC. Arrowood will serve as president-elect during 2013-2014 and will become president in June 2014.
In her capacity as president-elect, Arrowood will work with the president and executive director on behalf of the 17,500 members of the organization. The NCBA, founded in 1899, is a voluntary organization of lawyers, paralegals and law students dedicated to serving the public and the legal profession. The NC Bar Center in Cary serves as headquarters for the NCBA and the NCBA Foundation, Inc.
“Catharine has outstanding qualifications, including a strong background as a practicing litigator, long and active involvement as a member of the NC Bar, a commitment to public service and pro bono, and a strong history of leadership and management success,” said Mike Wells, the immediate past president of the NCBA and a partner at Wells Jenkins Lucas & Jenkins, PLLC.
“We are not at all surprised by the this latest honor for Catharine,” said Tom Griffin, Parker Poe’s Managing Partner. "She has the highest professional standards and the unwavering respect of her colleagues in our firm and the community at large. I have no doubt that Catharine will be an excellent and inspired leader of the NCBA. Our entire firm congratulates her."
“It is a tremendous honor to serve this important organization,” said Arrowood. “I recognize the significant role that the North Carolina Bar Association plays in promoting the administration of justice and the highest standards of integrity and professional competence.”
A native of Lumberton, North Carolina, Arrowood litigates and arbitrates for businesses and has considerable experience with regulated companies, while focusing on problem resolution that threaten the viability of an organization. Her clients include educational institutions, utilities, insurance companies, accounting and law firms, health care and biotech companies, banks and commercial aerospace companies.
As a member of the Panel of Neutrals for the American Arbitration Association and the International Centre for Dispute Resolution, she is a Certified Superior Court Mediator and regularly serves as an arbitrator. Past leadership includes serving on the NCBA Board of Governors and as chair of the Women in the Profession Committee. Arrowood is a past president of the Wake County Bar Association and the 10th Judicial District Bar, as well as a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. She has chaired its International Committee and currently chairs the North Carolina State Committee.
Recognized in 2011 by the NCBA as the recipient of the prestigious H. Brent McKnight Renaissance Lawyer Award, she is an alumna of the ABA’s Direct Women program. Since 2007, Arrowood has been ranked by Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers in General Commercial Litigation, listed in The Best Lawyers in America for ten consecutive years, and was named the “Lawyer of the Year” in Antitrust Law for 2013 by Best Lawyers. In addition, she has been named among the “Top 100 Lawyers” and the “Top 50 Female Lawyers” by North Carolina Super Lawyers for the past three years.
Prior to joining Parker Poe, Arrowood served as an associate attorney general, handling antitrust matters for the North Carolina Department of Justice. She received her JD in 1976 and her BA in 1973 from Wake Forest University.
About Parker Poe
Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP has 190 lawyers in five offices located in major markets across North Carolina and South Carolina. The firm provides legal counsel to large commercial and public organizations on litigation, corporate and regulatory matters. It is an award-winning leader in the use of technology to provide better and more efficient service to domestic and international clients. For more information, please visit www.parkerpoe.com.