REGISTRATION OPEN
2026 North Carolina Chapters Conference
Please join the North Carolina Lawyer Chapters for our annual statewide conference!
Friday, October 2, 2026
Renaissance Raleigh North Hills Hotel
4100 Main at North Hills St
Raleigh, NC 27609
CONFERENCE PRICING
Student Member: $40
Member: $100
Non-Member: $175
CLE
CLE credit in North Carolina expected.
REGISTRATION DEADLINE AND REFUNDS
Registration will close at 5:00 p.m. Eastern on Monday, September 28, 2026. This is also the deadline to receive a refund for a cancellation. No refunds will be given after the deadline has passed.
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9:30 a.m. - 10:15 a.m.
Registration & Breakfast
2026 North Carolina Conference
10:15 a.m. - 10:30 a.m.
Welcome Remarks
2026 North Carolina Conference
10:30 a.m. - 11:30 a.m.
Panel I: Supreme Court Candidate Forum
2026 North Carolina Conference
Raleigh, NC
Description
Featuring:
- Hon. Anita Earls, Associate Justice, Supreme Court of North Carolina
- Hon. Sarah Stevents, Former North Carolina State Representative
11:30 a.m. - 1:15 p.m.
Luncheon and Keynote Panel: The Bench, Newly Defined: Perspectives from Recently Seated District Judges
2026 North Carolina Conference
Raleigh, NC
Description
Featuring:
- Hon. David A. Bragdon, Judge, U.S. District Court, Middle District of North Carolina
- Hon. Lindsey A. Freeman, Judge, U.S. District Court, Middle District of North Carolina
- Hon. Matthew E. Orso, Judge, U.S. District Court, Western District of North Carolina
- Hon. Susan C. Rodriguez, Judge, U.S. District Court, Western District of North Carolina
- Moderator: Hon. James C. Dever III, Judge, U.S. District Court, Eastern District of North Carolina
1:30 p.m. - 2:45 p.m.
Panel II: The Supreme Court and Election Law: Redistricting, Voting Rights, and Election Integrity
2026 North Carolina Conference
Raleigh, NC
Description
With the 2026 midterms approaching, the Supreme Court's docket has been full of election law disputes. Last term, the Court clarified the requirement of a strong inference of discrimination for racial gerrymandering claims under Section 2, and that the federal election-day statutes don't bar State's from counting mail ballots received after election day--not to mention decisions on candidate standing and expenditures coordinated between political parties and candidates. This term the Court is set to address efforts to secure voter rolls against noncitizen registration. This panel will explore the impact of these decisions, and the future of redistricting and election-integrity litigation.
Featuring:
- Gilbert Dickey, Partner, Consovoy McCarthy PLLC
- Prof. Derek T. Muller, Professor of Law, Notre Dame Law School
- Robert M. Overing, Principal Deputy Solicitor General, Alabama Office of the Attorney General
3:00 p.m. - 4:15 p.m.
Panel III: The Leandro Legacy: Education, Separation of Powers, and the North Carolina Constitution
2026 North Carolina Conference
Raleigh, NC
Description
The Leandro case, in a landmark ruling in 1997, determined that every North Carolina student has a fundamental right under the North Carolina Constitution to receive a sound basic education. Over the next three decades, the case generated an ongoing conflict between the North Carolina General Assembly and the courts which branch has the power to make that determination and the resulting appropriations. That conflict reached a turning point in April 2026, when the Supreme Court of North Carolina, in a 4–3 opinion, held that the judiciary lacks the authority to compel the legislature to appropriate funds for education. This panel will explore the Leandro legacy, the separation of powers issues presented in the case, and the public policy issues behind, and presented by, the right to “the privilege of education” as set forth in Article I, Section 15 of the North Carolina Constitution.
Featuring:
- Jeanette Doran, I. Beverly Lake, Jr. Chair in Constitutional Studies and Chief Legal Officer, John Locke Foundation
- Ann McColl, Co-Founder, The Innovation Project and Author, EducationNC
- Sarah Parshall Perry, Vice President & Senior Legal Fellow, Defending Education
4:15 p.m. - 4:30 p.m.
Closing Remarks
2026 North Carolina Conference
4:30 p.m. - 5:30 p.m.
Reception
2026 North Carolina Conference