Ward and Smith Promotes New Leaders

Ward and Smith, P.A. is pleased to announce several changes in firm leadership.  The changes were implemented to address opportunities identified by internal succession planning, and support attorneys who are interested in taking on new leadership and management positions, in addition to their full-time law practice.

The changes include:

  • Greenville personal injury attorney Lynwood Evans will become the firm's Litigation Practice Section Leader.  Lynwood represents the interests of people who are injured, or families who have experienced the injury or death of a loved one.  Asheville commercial litigator Bill Durr was the previous litigation Practice Section Leader, and successfully guided one of the firm's largest sections for 12 years.  Bill was recently elected to serve on the Board of Directors of Asheville's Downtown Association.
  • Wilmington litigator Jeremy Wilson succeeds Lynwood Evans as leader of the Personal Injury Practice Group.  He has extensive experience litigating claims for wrongful death, serious personal injury, and a broad range of civil litigation before state and federal courts, including cases involving vehicle accidents, professional malpractice, premises liability, products liability, and class actions, among other areas. 
  • Real Estate attorney Drake Brinkley will serve as the Greenville office Team Leader. Drake works with entities and individuals in transactions involving commercial real property.  He also represents developers and investors in all aspects of the land development process, including obtaining land use and zoning entitlements. Drake's civil engineering background provides practical assistance to clients throughout real estate transactions.  He is an accredited Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design associate (LEED AP). 
  • Wilmington trusts & estates attorney Matt Thompson will join the firm's "Libby Ward" Committee, which helps the firm maintain continuity of professional relationships in order to better serve our clients.  He is certified by the North Carolina State Bar as a Board Certified Specialist in Estate Planning and Probate Law. 

Co-Managing Director Ken Wooten said, "This announcement is just another example of how we practice what we preach both in terms of succession planning and promoting mid-career attorneys.  We have created the internal systems necessary to train, coach, and elevate our attorneys who are hungry for growth and development." 

Wooten continues, "On the other end of our attorney career path, we founded the Libby Ward Committee to help maintain client relationships in a multi-generational environment.  This committee was inspired by and named in honor of David Ward's father, David Livingstone 'Libby' Ward.  Libby helped build the firm by modeling how one should transition both the knowledge of the practice of law and the deeply satisfying client relationships that evolve over the course of a career."

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