Meet Your Education Law Section Chair!

Kim, a white woman with short brown hair, wears a black dress and a multi-colored beaded necklace.Maya, a white woman with brown hair, wears a floral blouse and black blazer.By Kim Davis and Maya Weinstein

Collins Saint, a Partner at Brooks Pierce McLendon Humphrey & Leonard LLP, is the current Chair of the NCBA Education Law Section. As a former educator and mental health practitioner, Collins helps schools, nonprofits, and individuals navigate complex legal challenges with clarity, strategy, and practicality.  Known for his work in education law, civil rights, and identity justice, Collins combines his deep legal knowledge with a trauma-informed, equity-centered approach to every matter he handles.  When not practicing law, you can find Collins exploring North Carolina’s waterways, hiking with his dog, or trying out new recipes from his weekend farmer’s market hauls.

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Unreimbursed Expenses of Employees and Partners

John, a white man with dark brown hair, wears a pale blue shirt, lime green and blue tie, and black suit. By John G. Hodnette

The 2017 Tax Cuts and Jobs Act included Section 67(h), which eliminated miscellaneous itemized deductions for tax years beginning after December 31, 2017. The 2025 One Big Beautiful Bill Act made that disallowance permanent. One such eliminated deduction is for unreimbursed employee expenses. They include expenses for transportation, travel fares, lodging away from home, business meals, continuing education courses, subscriptions and dues to professional materials and organizations, uniforms, job hunting expenses, and otherwise deductible home office expenses. To have been deductible, such expenses must not have been reimbursed or reimbursable by the business for which the employee worked. Under current law, however, unreimbursed employee expenses are simply nondeductible.

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Rethinking Civic Engagement: An Open Letter to the NCBA and YLD Members, Part I

Clare, a white woman with shoulder-length brown hair, wears a grey button-down shirt, black jacket and pearl earrings.Catherine, a white woman with brown hair, wears a white blouse and black blazer.By Clare Magee and Catherine Clodfelter

When we gather as lawyers, we have a chance to demonstrate organization and self-regulation that is respectful of the rules through which we organize, and respectful of each other. But to do that, we must first gather.

Last year, we served as the co-chairs of the Young Lawyers’ Division Civic Engagement Committee. Our task was straightforward on paper: encourage more lawyers — especially younger ones — to engage in civic spaces and activities across North Carolina. But in practice, we faced several hurdles, including low event attendance, lack of interest and limited engagement.

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New Job, New Opportunity for Growth

Huma, a woman with brown hair, wears a dark purple button-down blouse.Katherine, a white woman with blond hair, wears a white blouse and dark grey suit.By Huma Khursheed and Katherine Copeland

Hello NCBA Community,

We, Katherine Copeland and Huma Khursheed, are the new co-chairs of the Wellness Committee within the Young Lawyers Division of the North Carolina Bar Association. We look forward to serving you in this capacity. As a brief introduction, we met during the time that our judicial clerkship with Justice Allison Riggs overlapped. Since August, Katherine has started a new position as an Associate Attorney with Ballew Puryear, and Huma is currently within her first year of her judicial clerkship.

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Get to Know WIP Members Ashley Oldfield and Amy Schaefer

This month, we are excited to introduce two WIP members: Ashley Oldfield and Amy Schaefer!

Ashley Oldfield

Ashley, a white woman with brown hair, wears a black and white blouse and black blazer. What law school did you attend, and what was your graduation year?

Wake Forest University School of Law, 2020.

Describe what a typical workday is like for you.

If I don’t have a court appearance, I’m usually in my office doing research, writing briefs, or talking with clients.

Describe what you like to do outside of work.

Outside of work, I enjoy crocheting, baking, vegetable gardening, reading, and running.

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Judicial Deference: Recent North Carolina Supreme Court Decisions

Frank, a white man with brown hair and a beard, wears a blue shirt, grey tie and black suit.By Frank Trainor

This year the Supreme Court of North Carolina has released opinions addressing how courts in North Carolina treat administrative‐agency interpretations of statutes and regulations. The two cases are Savage v. N.C. Department of Transportation and Mitchell v. University of N.C. Board of Governors.

Prior to the Supreme Court pronouncements this year, judicial review of administrative decisions and interpretations of statutes and regulations had been performed de novo, as required by the North Carolina Administrative Procedure Act. Spoiler alert: it still is.

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Remembering Steve Horowitz, 1990-1991 Chair of the Tax Section

Chris, a white man with a shaved head, wears a white shirt, blue tie and black jacket. By Chris Hannum

It is with deep sadness that we share the news of the passing of Steven (“Steve”) Horowitz, a former Chair of our Section (1990–1991) and a respected presence in the North Carolina tax bar for more than five decades. His loss is felt across our professional community, especially by those who practiced with him, learned from him or served alongside him in leadership of this Section.

Steve practiced tax law for more than 56 years, beginning as a trial attorney with the Office of District Counsel of the IRS in Greensboro, and later in private practice in Gastonia and Charlotte. He earned his B.A. and J.D. from the University of Florida and his LL.M. in Taxation from NYU.  Those who worked with Steve remember him as a fierce advocate for his clients and a calm, steady colleague. He set a high standard for preparation and integrity — qualities that influenced many practitioners in this Section, myself included. His contributions to the Tax Section and our profession are immeasurable.

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NCBA IL&P Blog Post — CLE Program Nov. 21, 2025

Phil, a white man with brown hair and glasses, wears a blue shirt and black blazer.By Phillip Chritton

Navigating the “New Normal” in Immigration, Global Compliance, and Tariffs and Trade (While Helping Clients Still Get Things Done!)  

Behind the daily headlines — trade and tariffs, new U.S. visa policies and changes in DOJ enforcement and cross-border business practices — North Carolina lawyers need up-to-date information to advise their clients. This CLE program will help. We’ve assembled a team of expert international attorneys from across the state, ready to dissect the issues and give practical guidance to navigate today’s international and cross-border legal environment.

Register for the event online. This program is timely and helpful for lawyers in #privatepractice, #inhousecounsel, and #compliance professionals.

Speakers include: Susan Carr, Eric Cottrell, David Garrett, Randall A. Hanson, David Robinson, Patrick Togni, and Phillip Chritton.

North Carolina Bar Association (NCBA) International Practice Section members get a *discounted rate.*

Included Sessions

  • Immigration Practice in 2025: What’s Changed (and What Hasn’t)
  • Global Compliance and Investigations: Implications of Recent DOJ Policy Announcements
  • Cross-Border Transactions: Lessons From the Field for Today’s Global Business Environment
  • U.S. Trade and Tariffs Policy: Where Do We Go From Here?

Agenda

View the full program agenda.

Speakers

  • Susan W. Carr, Kongsberg Digital Inc., Raleigh
  • Phillip Chritton, former UPS Deputy General Counsel-International, Raleigh
  • Eric H. Cottrell, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Charlotte
  • David J. Garrett, Maynard Nexsen, Raleigh
  • Randall A. “Randy” Hanson, Womble Bond Dickinson LLP, Greensboro
  • David S. Robinson, Maynard Nexsen, Raleigh
  • Patrick J. Togni, King & Spalding LLP, Charlotte and Washington, D.C.
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Have a Project? A Lawyer’s Guide to Vetting Contractors in North Carolina

Christian, a white man with brown hair, wears a white shirt, dark blue tie, and black suit.By Christian Lunghi 

Hiring the wrong contractor can turn a project into a headache or a lawsuit. The steps below are simple, practical checks you can do to lower your risk. They’re not foolproof and don’t guarantee a perfect job, but they can help you catch the big red flags. Use this as a checklist to confirm the basics, and if something feels off, talk to a construction lawyer before you sign. A little homework now is almost always cheaper than a mess later.

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What’s Blowing Your Mind: AI-driven Threats

By Alex Pearce

Artificial intelligence is transforming not only how organizations operate, but how they’re attacked. In this latest “What’s Blowing Your Mind” video, Alex Pearce, a partner in Wyrick Robbins’ Privacy and Data Security group, discusses emerging AI-driven threats — from data leakage and model poisoning to next-generation phishing — and why traditional incident response plans must evolve to meet them.

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