Smith Anderson Lawyers Named Among North Carolina's Legal Elite

Raleigh - Smith Anderson is pleased to announce that Henry A. Mitchell, Jr., Carl N. Patterson, Jr. and Walter R. Rogers, Jr. are ranked among North Carolina's best lawyers in their areas of practice in the January, 2002, issue of Business North Carolina magazine. Lawyers were selected for inclusion among the "Legal Elite" by votes from their peers - more than 6000 members of the North Carolina Bar Association - based on 10 practice specialties.

Henry A. Mitchell, Jr. is recognized as one of North Carolina's best corporate counsel. Mitchell represents banking and insurance clients as well as domestic manufacturers and foreign-owned companies principally located in the Research Triangle Park. He currently serves as General Counsel to the Governor's Business Council, an advisory body to the Governor comprised of CEOs of major North Carolina companies. He formerly served as Deputy General Counsel of the Export-Import Bank of the United States.

Mitchell is Chairman of the Board of Lawyers Mutual Liability Insurance Company of North Carolina, a member of the Board of Wachovia Bank (Central Region - N.C.) and of Schleicher & Co. of America, Inc. He is a director of the North Carolina Citizens for Business & Industry. He is a former member of the Board of Law Examiners of the State of North Carolina and of the Board of Visitors of Wake Forest University School of Law. He formerly served as Director/Trustee of the North Carolina Museum of Art and the North Carolina Symphony. Mitchell is also a Fellow of the American Bar Foundation, past president of the American Counsel Association, and is active in the Wake County, North Carolina and American Bar Associations.

Carl N. Patterson, Jr. is listed as one of North Carolina's best litigation attorneys. Patterson has broad experience in the resolution of all types of business disputes. He has represented financial institutions in defense of breach of fiduciary duty, breach of duty of good faith, lender liability, and consumer class action claims. He has represented issuers and purchasers of securities, officers, directors, lenders, and professional advisors in securities fraud cases. He has also regularly represented buyers and sellers in disputes arising out of sales of businesses and buyers and sellers of goods and services. He led Smith Anderson's litigation team in what has been described as the most complex litigation ever seen in the federal court in eastern North Carolina. He regularly counsels clients in risk identification, evaluation, avoidance, and management in a variety of corporate contexts.

Patterson has served as Chairman of the Raleigh Area Davidson College Alumni Admissions Program, and as Chairman of the Young Lawyers Division of the North Carolina Bar Association. He is an active member of the American Judicature Society and the Wake County, North Carolina, and American Bar Associations.

Walter R. Rogers, Jr. is ranked among North Carolina's best tax and estate planning attorneys. Rogers regularly represents a variety of clients in matters involving federal, state and local taxation and in business transactions with tax implications. He is regularly involved with tax planning for businesses, individuals, trusts and estates, as well as with resolving tax controversies and advising tax-exempt organizations in matters of formation and operation. His practice also includes assisting individuals with estate planning and advising executors, trustees and beneficiaries in matters of estate and trust administration. His work in business transactions involves not only acquisitions and dispositions of business enterprises, but also assisting corporations, partnerships and limited liability companies with matters of formation and operation. He has written and lectured on various tax subjects including partnership taxation, tax-free exchanges, mergers and acquisitions, tax-exempt organizations, and estate and trust planning and administration.

Rogers is a member of the North Carolina, Georgia and Virginia Bars. He has served as chairman of the Tax Section of the North Carolina Bar Association. He is also a member of the Kiwanis Club of Raleigh. He is a director of the Food Bank of North Carolina, Inc. and the Philharmonic Association, Inc. He is a past director of the A. J. Fletcher Foundation, the Raleigh Chamber Music Guild and Wake County Communities in Schools.

Smith, Anderson, Blount, Dorsett, Mitchell & Jernigan, L.L.P. is a full -service law firm located in Raleigh, North Carolina.

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