Sam J. Ervin IV, of counsel at Brooks Pierce, has been certified as a specialist in Utilities Law by the North Carolina State Bar Board of Legal Specialization (NCBLS).
The NCBLS was created by the North Carolina State Bar in 1983 to provide a method for qualified attorneys to become certified as specialists in the law. The North Carolina State Bar, an agency of the State of North Carolina, certifies lawyers as specialists in designated practice areas as a service to the public. The program assists members of the public in the selection of legal counsel by identifying lawyers who have demonstrated special knowledge, skill and proficiency in certain areas of law. The program also gives lawyers a credible way of making their expertise known to the public and other lawyers. Its standards for the specialty of utilities law include practice before or representation in matters relative to the North Carolina Utilities Commission, Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC), and related state and federal regulatory bodies as well as continuing legal education programs that are focused on subject matter involved in practice before the Commission or related state and federal regulatory bodies.
Ervin brings his nearly 18 years in private practice and more than 23 years’ experience as a public servant to his work in assisting clients with a variety of regulatory and litigation-related matters. Before joining Brooks Pierce, he served as an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of North Carolina for eight years, as a Judge of the North Carolina Court of Appeals for six years, and as a Commissioner of the North Carolina Utilities Commission for nine and a half years. During his time as a Utilities Commissioner, he served as Chair of the Subcommittee on Nuclear Issues and the Committee on Electricity of the National Association of Regulatory Utilities Commissioners and as a member of the board of the Organization of PJM States. During his time in private practice, Ervin handled a wide variety of civil, criminal, and administrative matters and participated in many civil and criminal jury trials and numerous civil and criminal appeals to the North Carolina Court of Appeals and the North Carolina Supreme Court.
To learn more about the NCBLS, click here.