The North Carolina Bar Association (NCBA) is the

voluntary Voluntary may refer to: * Voluntary (music) * Voluntary or volunteer, person participating via volunteering/volunteerism * Voluntary muscle contraction See also * Voluntary action * Voluntariness, in law and philosophy * Voluntaryism Volunt ...

(non-mandatory)

bar association A bar association is a professional association of lawyers as generally organized in countries following the Anglo-American types of jurisprudence. The word bar is derived from the old English/European custom of using a physical railing to separ ...

of the

U.S. state In the United States, a state is a constituent political entity, of which there are 50. Bound together in a political union, each state holds governmental jurisdiction over a separate and defined geographic territory where it shares its sover ...

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

. NCBA membership is voluntary and tax money is not involved in its support. In contrast, the

North Carolina State Bar The North Carolina State Bar (NCSB) is the state agency charged with regulating the practice of law in the U.S. state of North Carolina. In contrast, the North Carolina Bar Association is a voluntary association. History NCSB was established in ...

and the North Carolina Board of Law Examiners are state agencies.

Overview

The NCBA is a voluntary organization of lawyers,

paralegals A paralegal, also known as a legal assistant, or paralegal specialist is a professional who performs tasks that require knowledge of legal concepts but not the full expertise of a lawyer with a license to practice law. The market for paralegals ...

and law students. The NCBA is led by the NCBA Board of Governors and a president, who serves a one-year term. Some of the members of the Board of Governors also serve on the Board of Directors for the NCBA Foundation, Inc. The NCBA is a 501(c)(6) trade organization; the NCBA Foundation is a 501(c)(3) charitable organization. The NCBA is divided into thirty-one sections focusing on different areas of legal practice, such as bankruptcy, criminal justice, and labor law. The organization also provides a lawyer referral service and provides legal education resources.

History

The first NCBA Annual Meeting was held July 5–7, 1899 in

Morehead City, North Carolina Morehead City is a port town in Carteret County, North Carolina, United States. The population was 8,661 at the 2010 census. Morehead City celebrated the 150th anniversary of its founding on May 5, 2007. It forms part of the Crystal Coast. His ...

. There have been four more presidents than annual meetings: Platt W. Walker of Charlotte, the first president, served his term prior to the first annual meeting; Hamilton C. Jones (1904) and T.L. Caudle (1929) died in office; and Linville K. Martin (1942) resigned when he was called into military service during World War II. The NCBA Foundation was established in 1960, and the NCBA Foundation Endowment was later established in 1987.

Distinct from the North Carolina State Bar

The NCBA is a service organization for legal professionals providing continuing legal education, legislative advocacy, and practice management support. The State Bar, meanwhile, regulates the practice of law and is a separate organization. William M. Storey, who served as executive vice president and secretary of the NCBA for 26 years, spoke about the establishment of the State Bar and the Board of Law Examiners:

"In 1903 the Association requested the General Assembly to grant to the lawyers of the State the responsibility for examining, licensing and disbarring members of the profession. By 1915 the Association was successful in securing from the General Assembly authorization to create a board of legal examiners which consisted of the Chief Justice and two Associate Justices of the Supreme Court – thus relieving the Association from the burden of attempting to handle the admission matters. By 1932, the Association had agreed that an incorporated bar established by legislative enactment was necessary to control the examination, licensing and disbarment of attorneys and to prevent the unauthorized practice of the law. A bill was drawn by the North Carolina Bar Association and the 1933 General Assembly enacted Chapter 210 of the public laws. It was ratified on April 3, 1933, creating the North Carolina State Bar."

The distinction between the NCBA and the NCBA Foundation is described by Allan B. Head, who led the NCBA and the NCBA Foundation from 1981 to 2017, as follows:

"In 1960, the N.C. Bar Association established its own Foundation. The primary reason to establish the Foundation was to conduct education, research and public service projects of the North Carolina Bar Association. However, the Association, a 501(c)(6) professional association, also established this 501(c)(3) tax-exempt charitable entity for tax purposes. For instance, in connection with the establishment of the Foundation, the Association, in 1960, was completing its first bar center and there were a number of gifts, land and cash contributions made to the Foundation which as charitable contributions qualified for tax deductions. This would not have been possible for a 501(c)(6)."

NCBA Foundation

The NCBA Foundation owns the N.C. Bar Center and the NCBA is a tenant. The current home of the NCBA and the NCBA Foundation opened in August 1994 and is the third N.C. Bar Center. The original N.C. Bar Center at 1025 Wade Ave. in Raleigh was constructed and occupied in 1962; the second N.C. Bar Center at 1312 Annapolis Drive in Raleigh was purchased and occupied in 1983.

References

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Organizations established in 1899 1899 establishments in North Carolina Organizations based in Cary, North Carolina