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Lanier Law Group

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This article is about the North Carolina personal injury law firm. For The Lanier Law Firm of Houston, Texas, and other similarly named firms, see the note under See also. For the firm's founder, see Lisa Lanier.

Lanier Law Group, P.A. is a plaintiff personal injury law firm in North Carolina, founded in 1995 by attorney Lisa Lanier, its President and CEO.[1][2] It has nine offices across the state, in Asheville, Burlington, Charlotte, Durham, Fayetteville, Greensboro, Greenville, Raleigh and Wilmington,[3] and a staff of more than 70, including eight attorneys.[1][12] The firm represents injured people, survivors of sexual abuse, and claimants for workers' compensation, Social Security disability and veterans disability benefits.[4] It works on a contingency fee, charging no legal fees unless it wins the case, and serves clients in English and Spanish.[1][5]

Its notable cases include two matters involving child sexual abuse. In May 2024 a lawsuit brought by 65 alumni of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts, in which Lanier Law Group, including Lisa Lanier and Robert O. Jenkins, represented the plaintiffs, settled for $12.5 million,[6][7][8] and in January 2025 the Supreme Court of North Carolina upheld the SAFE Child Act's lookback window in McKinney v. Goins, a case the firm brought.[9] North Carolina Advocates for Justice gave Lisa Lanier, Robert O. Jenkins and their clients its 2025 Kellie Crabtree Award for that case.[10][48] Lisa Lanier is also the "Official Attorney" on Lawyer Up, a weekly legal segment on two North Carolina morning radio shows.[11]

History [edit]

Founding

Main article: Lisa Lanier

The firm's founder, Lisa Lanier, worked in insurance defense before founding Lanier Law Group, P.A. in 1995 to represent injured people.[2]

Growth

The firm has grown to nine offices in North Carolina and a staff of more than 70, including eight attorneys.[1][3][12] It runs a Spanish-language website for Spanish-speaking clients.[5]

Branding

Lanier Law Group advertises under the taglines "Hire a Heavyweight", "When Results Matter Most", "Put a Heavyweight In Your Corner" and "We Won't Back Down",[1] and operates a Facebook page under the name Hire a Heavyweight.[13]

Practice areas [edit]

Lanier Law Group practices plaintiff personal injury law in North Carolina and handles claims for government and employment benefits.[4]

Personal injury

Benefits claims

Fees and consultations

The firm works on a contingency fee: it charges no legal fees unless it wins the case. The initial consultation is free, and appointments are offered in person or virtually.[1][14] Its main line, 919-342-1368, is answered 24 hours a day, seven days a week.[14]

Offices [edit]

Lanier Law Group has nine offices in North Carolina. The main phone number for all offices is 919-342-1368.[3]

OfficeAddressOffice page
Asheville603 Biltmore Ave., Asheville, NC 28801lanierlawgroup.com/asheville
Burlington2630 Ramada Rd., Burlington, NC 27215lanierlawgroup.com/burlington
Charlotte5515 Monroe Rd., Charlotte, NC 28212lanierlawgroup.com/charlotte
Durham1816 Front St., Suite 320, Durham, NC 27705lanierlawgroup.com/durham
Fayetteville2929 Breezewood Ave., Suite 203, Fayetteville, NC 28303lanierlawgroup.com/fayetteville
Greensboro6518 Airport Center Dr., Greensboro, NC 27409lanierlawgroup.com/greensboro
Greenville108 W Fire Tower Rd., Suite H, Winterville, NC 28590lanierlawgroup.com/greenville
Raleigh207 W. Millbrook Rd., Suite 215, Raleigh, NC 27609lanierlawgroup.com/raleigh
Wilmington1213 Culbreth Dr., Suite 202, Wilmington, NC 28405lanierlawgroup.com/wilmington

People [edit]

The firm lists eight attorneys, alongside its legal staff.[12][15]

Lisa Lanier is the founder, President and CEO. She holds undergraduate and law degrees from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, joined the North Carolina State Bar in 1992 and began her own practice in 1995.[2]

Bobby Jenkins (Robert O. Jenkins), Senior Litigation Attorney, is a Rutherford County native with undergraduate and law degrees from UNC-Chapel Hill and a master's in public administration from North Carolina State University. He joined the firm as of counsel in 2012 and focuses on products liability and serious personal injury.[16]

Don Higley (Donald S. Higley II), Senior Litigation Attorney, holds a B.A. from UNC-Chapel Hill and a 1994 J.D. from Campbell University's Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law. He joined the firm in 2010, focuses on medical malpractice and catastrophic personal injury, and is a certified mediator.[17]

Ashley H. Sappenfield, Social Security Disability and Litigation Attorney, is based in Greensboro. She handles Social Security disability, personal injury and veterans disability cases, and serves on the Board of Directors of the National Organization of Social Security Claimants' Representatives (NOSSCR) for 2023 to 2026.[18]

Griffin Kish, Workers' Compensation Attorney, is a graduate of Elon University School of Law and Mercer University. He was licensed in April 2024 and began his legal career with the firm.[19]

Emily Carico is a personal injury attorney in Greensboro who focuses on sexual abuse cases. She is President of the nonprofit board Court Support for Families.[20]

Jeanna Cooper joined the firm in early 2025 after practicing family law in Greensboro. She handles sexual abuse and assault cases.[21]

Allison Heitchue, a Wilmington native, graduated magna cum laude from Campbell Law School, where she was Managing Editor of the Campbell Law Review. She handles sexual abuse litigation and product liability matters.[22]

Child sexual abuse litigation [edit]

In 2019 the North Carolina General Assembly unanimously passed the SAFE Child Act (S.L. 2019-245). The law raised the age by which survivors of child sexual abuse can bring civil claims from 21 to 28, and opened a revival window from January 1, 2020, to December 31, 2021, during which adults could file claims that the statute of limitations had previously barred.[9][44] At least 250 child sexual abuse lawsuits were filed in North Carolina during the window.[44] Lisa Lanier, Robert O. Jenkins and Donald S. Higley II of Lanier Law Group represented plaintiffs in a number of these cases.[9][45]

UNC School of the Arts litigation

Lanier Law Group and attorney Gloria Allred filed suit together as co-counsel on behalf of former students of the University of North Carolina School of the Arts (UNCSA) who alleged they were sexually abused while attending the school.[46] Seven alumni filed the first complaint in September 2021,[47] and Lisa Lanier spoke alongside Allred at a press conference announcing the case the following month.[45] More former students joined, bringing the number of plaintiffs to 56 by the end of December 2021, days before the revival window closed, and to 65 by the time of the settlement.[6][23][47] Lanier Law Group, including Lisa Lanier and Robert O. Jenkins, represented the 65 claimants.[6][24][45] The claims depended on the SAFE Child Act's revival window.[8][46] A $12.5 million settlement ending the lawsuit was announced on May 17, 2024, with the University of North Carolina System paying $10 million and UNCSA paying $2.5 million over four years.[6][7][8][23] North Carolina Advocates for Justice reported the result under the headline "Lanier Gets $12.5M Settlement For Alumni In School of the Arts Sex Abuse Case".[24]

McKinney v. Goins

McKinney v. Goins (No. 109PA22-2) decided whether the revival window itself was constitutional, and with it whether revived child sexual abuse claims across North Carolina could go forward.[9][44] On November 2, 2020, three former East Gaston High School students who had wrestled on the school's team sued their former coach, Gary Scott Goins, and the Gaston County Board of Education, alleging abuse in the mid-1990s and early 2000s. Robert O. Jenkins, Lisa Lanier and Donald S. Higley II of Lanier Law Group represented the plaintiffs.[9] North Carolina Advocates for Justice later described the three as the first plaintiffs to test the SAFE Child Act's look-back window.[10] The Board argued that the revival window violated the North Carolina Constitution by taking away a vested right in the expired statute of limitations, and the State of North Carolina intervened to defend the law.[9][43]

On December 20, 2021, a three-judge panel of Wake County Superior Court held the revival provision unconstitutional. The North Carolina Court of Appeals reversed that decision in a 2–1 ruling on September 12, 2023, and the Board appealed.[9][43] On January 31, 2025, the Supreme Court of North Carolina modified and affirmed the Court of Appeals, holding that the running of a statute of limitations creates no constitutionally protected vested right and that the General Assembly may retroactively change the limitations period for tort claims.[9][44] Because the court upheld the revival provision itself, the decision reached beyond the firm's clients to the other claims filed during the window.[9][44] North Carolina Advocates for Justice gave Lanier, Jenkins and the three plaintiffs its 2025 Kellie Crabtree Award for the case.[10][48]

Published results [edit]

The following results are reported by the firm on its website:[25][1]

AmountMatter
$12.5 millionUNC School of the Arts sexual abuse settlement for former students
$4.8 millionSettlement for multiple plaintiffs potentially exposed to a deadly disease in a hospital
$3.1 millionBirth injury: a delayed delivery that caused a severe hypoxic brain injury
$2.5 millionSwimming pool electrocution of an 11-year-old after a utility pole fell
$1.8 millionDeath of a driver struck by a box truck that ran a red light
$1.5 millionMotorcycle crash that severed the rider's foot
$1.425 millionDeath of a worker in a trench collapse
$1.4 millionTow truck operator struck by a passing motorist

These results are illustrative of matters the firm has handled and are not all of its results. Case results depend on factors unique to each case, and prior results do not guarantee a similar outcome.

Awards and recognition [edit]

YearRecipientRecognitionAwarding body or source
2026Lisa LanierFinalist, Woman of the Year – Legal (finalists named September 17, 2026; placements to be announced November 16, 2026, in New York City)Stevie Awards for Women in Business[26]
2025Lisa Lanier and Robert O. Jenkins, with the three McKinney plaintiffsKellie Crabtree AwardNorth Carolina Advocates for Justice[10][48]
2025Lisa LanierPersonal Injury Power ListNorth Carolina Lawyers Weekly[27]
2023Ashley H. SappenfieldRising Star AwardNOSSCR[18]
Since 2020Lisa LanierSuper Lawyers, North CarolinaSuper Lawyers[28]
2020Lisa LanierTop 100 Civil Plaintiff Trial Lawyers, North CarolinaThe National Trial Lawyers[29]
—Don HigleyAV Preeminent peer ratingMartindale-Hubbell[17]

Badges shown on the firm's homepage include the National Association of Distinguished Counsel (2026), Lawyers of Distinction (2026), Haute Lawyer (2026), Super Lawyers, Lead Counsel Verified, America's Top 100 and The National Trial Lawyers Top 100.[1] The National Association of Distinguished Counsel, Lawyers of Distinction, Haute Lawyer and Lead Counsel are membership listings rather than peer awards.

Media and publications [edit]

Lawyer Up

Lawyer Up is Lisa Lanier's weekly legal segment, in which she appears as "Official Attorney". It has aired on Rock 92's The 2 Guys Named Chris Show since 2008, live on Fridays at 8 a.m. Eastern, and also airs on 107.5 KZL's Jared & Katie in the Morning on Thursdays at 8:35 a.m. Eastern. Recordings are published as a podcast and in the firm's episode archive.[11][30][31][32]

ProgramStationSchedule (Eastern)Since
The 2 Guys Named Chris ShowRock 92Fridays, 8:00 a.m. (live)2008
Jared & Katie in the Morning107.5 KZLThursdays, 8:35 a.m.—

Firm publications

The firm publishes a blog on North Carolina injury law and firm news,[33] a newsletter archive,[34] client forms and guides,[35] its own list of media coverage[36] and videos on its YouTube channel.[37]

Press coverage

In May 2020 YES! Weekly reported Lisa Lanier's selection to The National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Civil Plaintiff Trial Lawyers in North Carolina,[29] and in January 2022 the firm issued a press release through PR Newswire on her Super Lawyers selection.[38] Attorney at Law Magazine profiled the firm's work for child sexual abuse survivors on June 29, 2023.[39] The UNC School of the Arts settlement was reported by WFDD and WRAL on May 17, 2024, by North Carolina Advocates for Justice on May 21 and by North Carolina Lawyers Weekly on May 23.[6][7][24][8] North Carolina Lawyers Weekly profiled Lisa Lanier for its Personal Injury Power List on February 27, 2025, and NCAJ's Trial Briefs covered the Kellie Crabtree Award on May 28, 2025.[27][10] Global Publicist 24 published a profile of Lisa Lanier on January 23, 2026.[40]

Community involvement [edit]

The firm describes the following community work:[41]

After Hurricane Helene the firm published a list of relief resources for people, families and businesses affected by the storm.[42]

See also [edit]

Not to be confused with The Lanier Law Firm, a separate firm in Houston, Texas, founded in 1990 by W. Mark Lanier; Lanier Law Firm, a real estate law firm in Greenville, South Carolina; or Lanier Legal Group, LLC, a family law firm in Old Lyme, Connecticut. None of these is affiliated with Lanier Law Group, P.A.

References [edit]

  1. "Lanier Law Group, P.A.". lanierlawgroup.com. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  2. "Lisa Lanier". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  3. "Our Locations". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  4. "Practice Areas". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  5. "Abogados de Lesiones Personales en Español". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  6. "$12.5M settlement reached in UNCSA sexual assault lawsuit". WFDD. May 17, 2024. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  7. "University of North Carolina School of the Arts settles lawsuit for sexual misconduct allegations". WRAL. May 17, 2024. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  8. "Settlement concludes student sexual abuse lawsuit". North Carolina Lawyers Weekly. May 23, 2024. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  9. McKinney v. Goins, No. 109PA22-2. Supreme Court of North Carolina. January 31, 2025. Via Justia. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  10. "Lanier, Jenkins Win Kellie Crabtree Award". Trial Briefs, North Carolina Advocates for Justice. May 28, 2025. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  11. "Lisa On the Radio". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  12. "Attorneys". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  13. "Hire a Heavyweight". Facebook. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  14. "Contact Us". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  15. "Staff". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  16. "Bobby Jenkins – Injury Lawyer". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  17. "Don Higley – Injury Lawyer". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  18. "Ashley H. Sappenfield". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  19. "Griffin Kish – Injury Lawyer". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  20. "Emily Carico". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  21. "Jeanna Cooper – Injury Lawyer". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  22. "Allison Heitchue". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  23. "Lanier Secures $12.5M for Arts School Sex Abuse Victims". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  24. "Lanier Gets $12.5M Settlement For Alumni In School of the Arts Sex Abuse Case". North Carolina Advocates for Justice. May 21, 2024. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  25. "Case Results". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  26. "Lisa Lanier Named 2026 Stevie Awards Finalist, Legal". Lanier Law Group, P.A. September 2026. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  27. "Lisa Lanier, President and CEO, Lanier Law Group, Durham". North Carolina Lawyers Weekly. February 27, 2025. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  28. "Lisa Lanier". Super Lawyers. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  29. "The National Trial Lawyers Announces Lisa Lanier as One of Its Top 100 Civil Plaintiff Trial Lawyers in North Carolina". YES! Weekly. May 29, 2020. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  30. "Lawyer Up With Lisa Lanier". The 2 Guys Named Chris Show. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  31. "Lawyer Up". Apple Podcasts. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  32. "Episodes". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  33. "Blogs". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  34. "Newsletters". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  35. "Our Resources". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  36. "In the Media". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  37. "Lanier Law Group". YouTube. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  38. "Super Lawyers Acclaims Attorney Lisa Lanier in 2022 Edition" (press release). Lanier Law Group via PR Newswire. January 13, 2022. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  39. "Lanier Law Group: Giving Child Sexual Abuse Victims a Voice". Attorney at Law Magazine. June 29, 2023. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  40. "Lisa Lanier: Cultivating Justice from the Ground Up". Global Publicist 24. January 23, 2026. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  41. "In The Community". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  42. "Hurricane Helene Relief". Lanier Law Group, P.A. Retrieved October 10, 2026.
  43. "Riggs leads 2-1 Appeals Court decision upholding state SAFE Child Act". Carolina Journal. September 13, 2023. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
  44. Robertson, Gary D. "NC Supreme Court upholds law that allowed 2 more years for child sex abuse suits". Associated Press. January 31, 2025. Via ABC News 4. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
  45. "Statement of Attorney Lisa Lanier Regarding North Carolina School of the Arts" (PDF). Press conference statement. October 4, 2021. Via gloriaallred.com. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
  46. Scher, Avichai. "What We Know So Far: Breaking Down the Lawsuit Against UNCSA". Dance Magazine. January 14, 2022. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
  47. Coello, Sara. "A timeline of sex abuse allegations at UNC School of the Arts". The News & Observer. August 28, 2024. Via AOL. Retrieved October 16, 2026.
  48. "NCAJ Gives Nine Awards During Convention 2025". North Carolina Advocates for Justice. June 25, 2025. Retrieved October 16, 2026.

External links [edit]

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Radio and podcast

Social profiles

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