Community

In June of 2014, Mrs. Benton was elected as the president-elect of the North Carolina Bar Association at the annual meeting of the NCBA in Wilmington, North Carolina. During this year, she has worked with President Catharine Arrowood to build solid relationships with members of the General Assembly. Both President Arrowood and President-elect Benton believe that solid relationships will assist the members of the NCBA and the citizens of North Carolina as we work to bring greater awareness to the General Assembly concerning the lack of funding for the judiciary. Currently, the judiciary as the third co-equal branch of government receives 2.2% of our state’s budget. This is not enough. The NCBA has partnered with Chief Justice Mark Martin to bring this message to the General Assembly. In addition to this important work, there are numerous other programs and activities in which Mrs. Benton is continuing to provide leadership, including the most recent GRIT Program put on by the NCBA Women in the Profession Committee on April 2, 2015, at which President Arrowood and President-elect Benton were the keynote speakers sharing with 85 other women in the legal profession their successful growth mindset and grit.

On June 20, 2015, at the NCBA Annual Meeting at the Omni Grove Park Inn in Asheville, North Carolina, Mrs. Benton will be sworn in as the 121st president of the association. She will be the sixth woman, the fourth lawyer from Goldsboro, North Carolina, the first Campbell University School of Law graduate, and the first family law specialist to serve as president of the NCBA.

On March 6, 2015, Shelby Benton and Chrissy Smith participated in the NCBA 4All Public Service Day, which is an event during which 505 lawyers at eight call centers across North Carolina answered the legal questions of 9,896 citizens of North Carolina. Mrs. Benton and Mrs. Smith answered calls at Greenville, North Carolina, site.

Annette Phelps as the NCBA Paralegal’s Division Pro Bono Committee Chair participated with Chrissy Smith and the Wayne County Bar Association in the March 2015 Legal Feeding Frenzy to provide food for their local soup kitchen and raised over 267 lbs. of food.

 

 

In April of 2014, Annette Phelps participated at the Guilford Technical Community College Career Fair in Greensboro to represent the NCBA Paralegal Division and to bring awareness to the North Carolina Guardian Ad Litem Program.