Frank H. Sheffield, Jr.

Biography

Mr. Sheffield is leader of the Environmental Practice Group.  He has more than 30 years experience in environmental matters, including agricultural operations.  Mr. Sheffield's professional career includes state and local government, environmental consulting, and private law practice.  His law practice encompasses federal and state environmental law and regulation, air quality and water quality permitting, compliance counseling, and contaminated property issues.  Mr. Sheffield has advised numerous agricultural operations, from individual farmers to large agribusiness producers, on a range of environmental and regulatory issues.  He also has represented various agricultural clients in court, including receiving a unanimous North Carolina Supreme Court decision declaring that local government regulation of swine operations is preempted by state law.  Mr. Sheffield also was part of the legal team that successfully challenged a hastily-adopted county moratorium on a new swine operation in which the moratorium was declared unconstitutional and lost income was paid to the operator.  He is the former mayor of Hillsborough, North Carolina (1983-1987), and a former chair of the Environmental Law Section of the North Carolina Bar Association.  Mr. Sheffield has been rated by his peers as being "preeminent" in his fields of law.

Admitted to Practice

• North Carolina, 1989
• Texas, 1974
• All state courts in North Carolina
• All state courts in Texas
• United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
• United States District Court for the Eastern and Middle Districts of North Carolina

Honors and Distinction*

• The Best Lawyers in America,1995-2012
• "Legal Elite," Business North Carolina, 2005 and 2007-2012
• "Super Lawyer," North Carolina Super Lawyers, 2009-2012

Education

• J.D., The University of Texas School of Law, 1974
• B.A., The University of Texas at Austin, 1968

Professional and Community Affiliations

• American Agricultural Law Association
• American Bar Association — Section: Environment, Energy and Resources (past committee vice chair)
• North Carolina Bar Association — Sections: Environment, Energy & Natural Resources Law (past chair); Government and Public Sector; Zoning, Planning and Land Use
• North Carolina Ports Advisory Council (chair)
• Texas State Bar — Section: Environmental and Natural Resources Law

* Please see the following websites for an explanation of the membership standards for the following recognitions: www.bestlawyers.com; www.businessnc.com/legalelite; and www.superlawyers.com/north-carolina.