|
Alan Thornburg appointed to N.C. Court of Appeals
By Rose Hooper
A Jackson County native and Sylva-Webster High School graduate has been appointed to the N.C. Court of Appeals.
Gov. Mike Easley last week announced the appointment of Asheville attorney Alan Thornburg to the state appellate court.
Thornburg will be sworn in at 4 p.m. Friday, Feb. 27, in the fifth-floor courtroom of the Buncombe County Courthouse in Asheville by his father, U.S. District Court Judge Lacy Thornburg.
Alan Thornburg
"My father is a model of what a judge should be - tough, fair and civil,” said Thornburg.
The younger Thornburg fills the seat vacated by Chief Judge Sid Eagles, who retired Jan. 31.
"I am honored that the governor has placed his confidence in me,” said Thornburg, adding that he is "of the opinion that judges should bring no agenda to the bench, but rather a good understanding of the law and a dose of common sense.
"My personal relationship and work with Judge Sam Ervin III have been an inspiration to me,” said Thornburg, who served as law clerk to the late Ervin, a judge on the U.S. Court of Appeals, 4th Circuit.
A member of the law firm of Patla, Straus, Robinson and Moore of Asheville, Thornburg said he is "pleased that someone from our mountains will be filling this vacancy.”
"Alan Thornburg is an accomplished attorney with a wealth of experience and strong understanding of the law,” said Gov. Easley. "I am confident that he will be an outstanding addition to the court.”
The 37-year-old former legislative aide to the late U.S. Sen. Terry Sanford is a 1985 graduate of Sylva-Webster High School. He graduated from Davidson College in 1989 and received his law degree from Wake Forest University School of Law in 1996.
He is a member of the 28th Judicial District Bar, N.C. Bar Association and American Bar Association. His practice areas are civil litigation, planning and administration of estates.
Thornburg was appointed in 2001 to the N.C. Board of Transportation, a position he will resign prior to taking his seat on the Court of Appeals.
He is Chairman of the Board of Directors of the University of North Carolina at Asheville Foundation, Inc., a member of the Council of Advisors Executive Board at Warren Wilson College Environmental Leadership Center and a member of the WNC Communities Board of Directors.
Thornburg, the son of Lacy and Dottie Thornburg of Webster, is married to Sarah Sparboe Thornburg. The couple has a 21-month-old son, Sam, and is expecting a second child in June.
|
