Press Release

Current North Carolina State Senator and Four Others Head To Womble Carlyle from Kilpatrick Stockton
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WINSTON-SALEM, NC--Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice, PLLC today announced the addition of five lawyers -- Peter Brunstetter, Jeff Lawyer, Michael Drye, David Broughton and Ryan Opel -- to the firm's Corporate and Securities and Tax Practice Groups in its Winston-Salem, NC office. All five attorneys come to Womble Carlyle from Kilpatrick Stockton LLP. 

"We are delighted that this team of outstanding lawyers has joined our firm," said Keith Vaughan, Womble Carlyle's managing member. "The addition of these lawyers will allow us to do an even better job of serving public and private corporations and other rapidly growing business organizations in the Triad and throughout the Southeast. These five attorneys bring nearly 70 years of combined experience in corporate and tax law that will further Womble Carlyle's reputation for providing extraordinary client service."

North Carolina State Senator Peter Brunstetter joins Womble Carlyle's Corporate and Securities Practice Group as a member. He will focus his practice on advising public and private corporations in the areas of business transactions, corporate and public finance, mergers and acquisitions, and health care.

Brunstetter was appointed Senator for North Carolina Senate District 31, Forsyth County, by Governor Mike Easley in May 2006 and went on to be elected in November 2006 without opposition. He also served, with distinction, as a member of the Forsyth County Board of Commissioners from 1991-2004, including a ten-year term as chairman.

Brunstetter is the immediate past chairman of the board of trustees of Novant Health, Inc. He is a member of the board of directors of Winston-Salem Business Inc. and the Winston Salem Alliance. At Kilpatrick Stockton, Brunstetter served as the firm's Deputy Managing Partner and as a member of the Executive Committee from 2001-2005. He served as a lieutenant in the United States Navy for four years and resigned his commission from the United States Naval Reserve as a lieutenant commander.

Brunstetter received his bachelor's degree in political science from Tulane University and his J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law where he was a member of Order of the Coif. He is admitted to practice law in North Carolina.

"We are very excited to join Womble Carlyle," said Peter Brunstetter. "I believe that our combined team brings a strong and unique blend of experience that will be a benefit to our new and existing clients and will serve us well as we assist them with their business matters."

Jeff Lawyer joins the firm's Tax Practice Group as a member. His practice is focused exclusively on tax matters for public and private clients, including federal and state tax planning for mergers and acquisitions, real estate transactions, joint venture formations, partnerships and choice of entity and financing. A significant part of Lawyer's practice focuses on tax planning for health care and other tax-exempt organizations, including planning business transactions and joint ventures with tax-exempt organizations. Lawyer practiced for six years as a certified public accountant with the Big 8 accounting firm Deloitte Haskins & Sells, now Deloitte and Touche. He is actively involved with the North Carolina John Muir Foundation, Earth Share of North Carolina, and Catholic Social Services. Lawyer is currently serving as chair of the Tax Section of the North Carolina Bar Association. He is listed in the 2007 edition of the Best Lawyers in America for Tax Law and was named as a 2007 North Carolina Super Lawyer by Law & Politics. He obtained his bachelor's degree in accounting, summa cum laude, from Florida State University and received his J.D., with highest honors, from Duke University School of Law where he was a member of Order of the Coif. He is admitted to practice law in North Carolina and before the United States Tax Court.

Michael Drye joins the firm's Corporate and Securities Practice Group as a member. He focuses his practice on advising public and private corporations in the areas of finance, mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, Securities Exchange Act reporting, secured and unsecured financing transactions and other business transactions. Drye worked as a certified public accountant with PricewaterhouseCoopers for six years prior to law school. Drye received his bachelor's degree in business administration, with honors, from the University of Central Florida and his J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law. He is an active member of the American Bar Association, the North Carolina Bar Association and the Forsyth County Bar Association. He is licensed to practice law in North Carolina.

David Broughton joins the firm's Corporate and Securities Practice Group as an associate. Broughton brings over eight years of investment banking, business and finance experience to his corporate law practice where he will focus in the areas of general corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, corporate finance and securities regulation. He is a member of the American Bar Association, North Carolina Bar Association and Forsyth County Bar Association. He serves on the Vestry and is actively involved with various committees at St. Paul's Episcopal Church in Winston-Salem. He received his bachelor's degree in economics and English from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law where he was co-founder and co-editor in chief of the North Carolina Banking Institute. He is admitted to practice law in North Carolina.

Ryan Opel joins the firm's Corporate and Securities Practice Group as an associate concentrating his practice in the areas of general corporate law, mergers and acquisitions, commercial contracts, corporate finance, corporate governance, securities regulation and franchising. He currently serves on the board of directors for the Piedmont Opera, Inc. and the Winston-Salem Symphony Association, Inc. Opel is actively involved with the American Bar Association, North Carolina Bar Association and the Forsyth County Bar Association. He obtained his bachelor's degree in psychology and politics, with honors, from Wake Forest University and his J.D., cum laude, from Duke University School of Law. Opel also obtained his masters in psychology from Duke University. He is admitted to practice law in North Carolina.

About Womble Carlyle
A full-service business law firm, Womble Carlyle ranks among AmLaw's 100 leading firms in the country and is a top law firm for companies doing business in the South Atlantic states. The firm is a recipient of the Thurgood Marshall College Fund Corporate Leadership Award, making Womble Carlyle the first law firm ever to receive the highest honor given to a business organization in recognition of its support of the Fund and its 45 member educational institutions.

Founded in 1876, Womble Carlyle operates in five states and the District of Columbia with more than 500 attorneys in ten offices located in Atlanta, GA; Greenville, SC; Charlotte, Greensboro, Raleigh, Research Triangle Park, and Winston-Salem, NC; Washington, DC; Tysons Corner, VA; and Wilmington, DE. Womble Carlyle is located in the South Atlantic and Mid-Atlantic regions and draws its client base from across the United States.