Legal and real-world experience.

Celie Richardson has top academic credentials. She graduated from the University of North Carolina School of Law with honors. She was a member of the Board of Editors of the North Carolina Law Review. Her undergraduate degree, also from UNC, was with highest honors, and she is a member of Phi Beta Kappa. Her litigation experience is broad and deep:

Complex litigation.
Contracts. Writing new contracts and negotiation of terms. Review and analyzing existing contracts.
Claims for breach of contract, from $1,000 to $5 million.
Real estate disputes (commercial and residential), including claims in the sale process, fraud claims, property disputes, drainage, trespass, and other claims.
Homeowners and condominium association disputes, including enforcement of covenants, assessment claims and liens.
Environmental issues, including septic discharge.
Financial and lender disputes..
Insurance disputes, including unfair trade practices.
Professional malpractice.
Administrative and regulatory disputes.
Disciplinary actions by licensing boards.

In today’s legal system, most cases are resolved without a trial, through negotiation or mediation. Thus, Celie believes in positioning a case for a positive result for the client through these means by open communication about the client’s short-term and long-term interest, making the client aware of the possibilities and challenges in each of these processes, and thorough preparation. She has also found, however, that these processes work best in combination with aggressive prosecution or defense from the start and willingness to pursue a case to trial. Celie Richardson assists clients in avoiding or minimizing legal disputes (and thus mounting legal fees).

Realistic assessment and negotiation of disputes before suit is filed
Investigation of allegations of malfeasance by employees, to resolve or prevent conflicts
Preparing for termination of contracts in a way that avoids or minimizes disputes
Preparing for termination of employment, with the same goals
Reviewing and negotiating contract proposals to provide clients with a plain-English understanding of rights and obligations
Preparing contracts and other documents that clients understand

Recent cases include: a successful argument that a commercial transaction was not subject to arbitration in another country; obtaining revocation by the State of North Carolina of a permit for wastewater discharge issued in violation of the Clean Water Act; and resolving several complex cases involving compliance with restrictive covenants in a subdivision.

This legal experience is also combined with real world experience. Celie Richardson went to law school after a career in journalism and education. As a journalist, she was involved in public policy, economic development, and community issues. She has been also a department manager who hired and fired, reported to upper management, and dealt with organizational dynamics and politics. She has taught both teenage and adult college and community college students. She has taught basic literacy and math to employees of manufacturing firms.

In community work, Celie has worked with chambers of commerce, including visioning, issue analysis, and advocacy. She has been a member and boards of directors of nonprofit and church-related organizations and local government boards, including service as board and committee chairs, dealing with personnel, budgets, and payrolls as well as social issues. She served as president of the Orange County Bar Association in 2015, and she has served on the Administration of Justice and Lawyer Referral Service committees for the North Carolina Bar Association. Celie has experience throughout North Carolina. She is a native of Newton Grove, and she has lived in Metrolina (Charlotte area), the Triad, and the Triangle. Her practice includes urban and rural counties across the state.