"The law is a jealous mistress and requires a long and constant courtship." That's as true today as it was when U.S. Supreme Court justice Joseph story said it in 1829. Imagine what some of the state's top lawyers would do were they to stray from their profession.

• Author: Murray, Arthur O.
• Position: COVER STORY

Jealous? Yes. All-consuming? No. That's what those receiving the most votes in this year's Legal Elite balloting say. While acknowledging constant pressure to keep abreast of changes in statutes and precedents, they think it's important to have outside interests. So this year, BUSINESS NORTH CAROLINA asked what they would have done had they not chosen the law and how those second guesses might relate to success in their first choice of a career.

John B. "Jack" Taylor would have been a high-school science or history teacher who coached football. "I get accused of teaching my clients, which I think is good for them and me," says Taylor, tops in construction law, who practices in Charlotte with Nexsen Pruet LLC. "If they're educated enough to recognize a problem, they'll call me and work it out." He has given dozens of construction-law seminars and published manuals on the topic.

Patrick Matus also favors teaching, but the Charlotte criminal-defense lawyer would combine it with being an outdoors guide. "What I really enjoy about practicing law is guiding people through the legal forest. Even on a traffic ticket, people are scared to death if they've never been to court before. I take a lot of time holding their hand and guiding them through the system." Matus, who practices with Essex Richards PA, says outside interests help lawyers relate to jurors--not to mention stay relaxed. "You can let this profession consume you. You're dealing with conflict all the time. It's important to have outside interests for stress relief."

Mark Davidson, a partner at Brooks, Pierce, McLendon & Leonard LLP in Greensboro, agrees that every lawyer needs a release. An avid motorcyclist in his free time, he might have been a Harley-Davidson dealer. "I spend a lot of time at my desk, staring at a computer or being on the phone, just being stationary," says the recipient of the most votes in business law. "Having something that helps you take a break from being office-bound is real important. You come back rejuvenated."

One of the strongest connections between possible career and actual one comes from Timothy G. Sellers of Sellers, Hinshaw, Ayers, Dortch & Lyons PA. The Charlotte real-estate lawyer would have been a contractor. "It's how I'm wired generally--to put pieces together." He installed drywall the summer after his first year of law school. "With drywall, the key is the framing behind it. You need precision to make sure the pieces fit, and there is low tolerance. That's the same with my practice, where you juggle concepts, documents and processes." Experience gives him perspective. "I've been involved in a lot of construction matters now. Having knowledge of how a product works is invaluable. The law is not an ivory-tower kind of thing. It's more effective when it comes in contact with real-life experience."

Even a would-be vet sees a connection to her practice in family law. "My own veterinarian is a first-class doctor, but he also has this wonderful bedside manner," says Lana Warlick of Jacksonville. "I deal with people going through a difficult time in their lives. While I deal primarily with the legal issues, I also spend time helping them cope. Picking a lawyer is a lot like picking a doctor or veterinarian. You not only want someone who is good but also is caring."

Taylor, Matus, Davidson, Sellers and Warlick are members of the ninth class of the Legal Elite. This year, for the first time, balloting was done electronically. The magazine mailed postcards last summer to each of the state's 19,762 active lawyers directing them to the ballot on the magazine's Web site, www.BusinessNC.com. What didn't change was the question the ballot asked: Of the Tar Heel lawyers whose work you have observed, whom would you rate the best in their fields?

Voters couldn't select themselves and could only pick members of their firms if they also chose people outside the firm in the same categories. Outside votes were given more weight. Lawyers who received the most make up the Legal Elite. This year, 603 were selected in 14 categories, slightly more than 3% of the state's active lawyers. Greensboro-based Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP had the most on the list with 24. Second was Pittsburgh-based K&L Gates LLP with 20.

LEGAL ELITE

2010 LAWYER LISTING

Antitrust

Jennifer K. Van Zant, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; Noel L. Allen, Allen and Pinnix PA, Raleigh; Catharine B. Arrow-wood, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Raleigh; Daniel G. Clodfelter, Moore & Vanc Allen PLLC, Charlotte; James L.S. Cobb, Wyrick Robbins Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Jason Evans, McGuireWoods LLP, Charlotte; Lisa Garrison, Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP, Greensboro; John Graybeal, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Raleigh; Denise Gunter, Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough LLP, Winston-Salem; Jonathan Heyl, Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP, Charlotte; Henry L. Kitchin Jr., McGuire Woods LLP, Wilmington; George L. Little Jr., Kilpatrick Stockton LLP, Winston-Salem; William Mayberry, McGuireWoods LLP, Charlotte; Michael T. Medford, Manning, Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh; Pressly Millen, Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC, Raleigh; Lawrence Moore III, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte; John M. Murchison Jr., K&L Gates LLP, Charlotte; Jeffrey E. Oleynik, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; Rebecca M. Rich, Duke University School of Law, Durham; George Sanderson III, Ellis & Winters LLP, Raleigh.

BANKRUPTCY

Christine Myatt, Nexsen Pruet LLC, Greensboro; Shelley K. Abel, Rayburn Cooper & Durham PA, Charlotte; Lou Agosto, Wells Fargo & Co., Charlotte; David R. Badger, David R. Badger PA, Charlotte; Paul Baynard, Rayburn Cooper & Durham PA, Charlotte; John Bircher III, White & Allen PA, New Bern; William E. Brewer, The Brewer Law Firm, Raleigh; Daniel C. Bruton, Bell, Davis & Pitt PA, William-Salem; William E. Burton III, Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP, Greensboro; Joseph Newton Callaway, Battle, Winslow, Scott & Wiley PA, Rocky Mount; Garland Cassada, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte; Langdon M. Cooper, Mullen Holland & Cooper PA, Gastonia; Brian Darer, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Raleigh; Albert F. Durham, Rayburn Cooper & Durham PA, Charlotte; David Eades, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; Paul A. Fanning, Ward & Smith PA, Greenville; Michael P. Flanagan, Ward & Smith PA, Greenville; Kiah T. Ford IV, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Charlotte; Kenneth M. Greene, Carruthers & Roth PA, Greensboro; Joseph W. Grier III, Grier Furr & Crisp PA, Charlotte; Stephen Gruendel, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; James H. Henderson, James H. Henderson PC, Charlotte; Jason Hendren, Hendren & Malone PLLC, Raleigh; A. Lee Hogewood III, K&L Gates LLP, Raleigh; Stephani Humrickhouse, Nicholls & Crampton PA, Raleigh; Charles Ivey III, Ivey. McClellan, Gatton & Talcott LLP, Greensboro; William P. Janvier, Everett, Gaskins, Hancock & Stevens LLP, Raleigh; Gerald A. "Jeb" Jeutter Jr., Jeutter Law Offices, Raleigh; R. Keith Johnson, R. Keith Johnson PA, Stanley; Benjamin Kahn, Nexsen Pruet LLC, Greensboro; R. Bradford Leggett, Allman Spry Leggett & Grumpier PA, Winston-Salem; James S. Livermon III, Povner Spruill LLP, Rocky Mount; John R. Miller Jr., Rayburn Cooper & Durham PA, Charlotte; William P. Miller, Roberson, Haworth & Reese PLLC, High Point; Travis W. "Tom" Moon, Hamilton Moon Stephens Steele & Martin PLLC, Charlotte; Jeffrey E. Oleynik, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; George Mason Oliver, Oliver & Friesen PLLC, New Bern; Walter W. Pitt Jr., Bell, Davis & Pitt PA, Winston-Salem; J. William Porter, Parker Poe Adams & Bernstein LLP, Charlotte; Robert Hugh Pryor, McGuireWoods LLP, Charlotte; Travis P. Sasser, Cary; David Schilli, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte; John H. Small, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; William C. Smith Jr., Manning, Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh; Richard D. Sparkman, Richard D. Sparkman & Associates PA, Angier; Richard M. Stearns, Kinston; Trawick H. Stubbs, Stubbs & Perdue PA, New Bern; William B. Sullivan, Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC, Winston-Salem; Lisa Sumner, Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh; Gene B. Tarr, Blanco Tackabery & Matamoros PA, Winston-Salem; David M. Warren, Poyner Spruill LLP, Raleigh; Richard S. Wright James, McElroy & Diehl PA, Charlotte; Samuel T. Wyrick III, Wyrick Robbing Yates & Ponton LLP, Raleigh; Constance Young, Johnston, Allison & Hord PA, Charlotte.

BUSINESS

Mark Davidson, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard LLP, Greensboro; Michael R. Abel, Schell Bray Aycock Abel & Livingston PLLC, Greensboro; H. Heath Alexander, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; E. Kent Auberry, Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP, Greensboro; John W. Babcock, Wall Esleeck Babcock LLP, Winston-Salem; David D. Beatty, Myers Bigel Sibley & Sajovec PA, Raleigh; J. Daniel Bishop, Bishop, Capitano & Moss PA, Charlotte, Curtis C. Brewer IV, K&L Gates LLP Raleigh; Patrick S. Bryant, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte; Christopher B. Capel, Smith, Anderson, Blount, Dorsett, Mitchell & Jernigan LLP, Raleigh; Kenneth G. Carroll, Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC, Raleigh; Kent F. Christison, K&L Gates LLP, Raleigh; Neil C. Cooksey, Smith, Cooksey & Vickstrom PLLC, Charlotte; W.B. Rodman Davis, Hagan Davis Mangum Barrett Langley & Hale PLLC, Greensboro; Ernest S. DeLaney III, Moore & Van Allen PLLC, Charlotte; G. Stephen Diab, Murchison, Taylor & Gibson PLLC, Wihnington; J. Scott Dillon, Carruthers & Roth PA, Greensboro; William B. Gwyn Jr., Manning, Fulton & Skinner PA, Raleigh; John C. Hine, Baddour, Parker & Hine PC, Goldsboro; Steven A. Hockfield, Erdman Hockfield & Leone LLP, Charlotte; Cyrus M. Johnson Jr., Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC, Charlotte; Frances B. Jones, BB&T Corp., Charlotte; Stephen M. Lynch, Robinson, Bradshaw & Hinson PA, Charlotte; Harrison L. Marshall Jr., McGuireWoods LLP, Charlotte...