 FIRM HISTORY
The firm had its beginning on October 4, 1886, when Zeb Vance Walser of Davidson
County was admitted to the Bar of North Carolina and began to practice law in
Lexington. Since that time, this practice has been continued by him, his
partners and successors without interruption.
Zeb Walser was an active member and leader of the North Carolina House of
Representatives beginning in 1888, and continuing in the State Senate in 1891.
By 1895, Zeb returned to the House of Representatives, serving as Speaker of
that body. By 1896, Zeb was elected Attorney General of North Carolina, and
further served as the official Reporter for the Supreme Court of North Carolina
in 1900, which position involved the digesting and publishing of all opinions of
the State Supreme Court. Zeb continued both his local law practice and political
involvement, and served as Theodore Roosevelt’s state campaign manager in 1912.
Had “Teddy” Roosevelt won when he ran on the Bull Moose ticket, it was
speculated that Zeb would have been appointed Attorney General of the United
States. Zeb was a charter member of the North Carolina Bar Association, founded
in 1899, and served as its vice-president. He was also North Carolina’s delegate
to the first meeting of the American Bar Association at its founding at Saratoga
Springs, New York.
In 1919, Zeb’s son, Don A. Walser, joined the firm upon passing the North
Carolina Bar examination at age 19. Don was joined in 1953 by Walter F.
Brinkley, who is currently the firm’s senior partner. Following his father’s
footsteps, Gaither S. Walser joined the firm in 1957. Charles H. McGirt became
the firm’s fourth member in 1961, followed by G. Thompson Miller in 1972. D.
Clark Smith, Jr., became a member of Brinkley Walser in 1978, and Stephen W.
Coles joined in 1981. David E. Inabinett came into the firm in 1996, Stephen
D. Barnhill joined in 1998, April Craft joined in 2001 and Bradley Hunt joined
in 2003. Brad K. Overcash joined the firm on July 30, 2007 as an associate. On
April 1, 2008, the firm merged with Smith Law Firm of Lexington, NC and added RB
Smith, Jr. as "of counsel" and Ryan V. McNeill as an associate. Over the last 100+ years, many of the firm’s members
have been active in the organized Bar, with Don having served as president of
the North Carolina Bar in 1952, with Walt having served as president of the North
Carolina Bar Association in 1974, and Clark serving as president of the North
Carolina Association of Defense Attorneys in 2002-2003 and President-Elect of
the North Carolina Bar Association in 2005-2006. Others have continued
the firm’s tradition of active involvement in the organized Bar, serving on the
North Carolina Bar Association’s Board of Governors, Legal Aid, the North
Carolina Board of Law Examiners, the American College of Trial Lawyers, and the
North Carolina Association of Defense Attorneys. The firm also boasts a
distinguished member of the North Carolina General Practice Hall of Fame, to
which Walter Brinkley was named in 1995. Three of the firm's attorneys, Mr.
Brinkley, Mr. Smith, and Mr. Coles, are listed in Woodward/White's The Best
Lawyers in America. Two of the firm's attorneys, Walter Brinkley and Clark
Smith, are fellows in the American College of Trial Lawyers. Clark Smith and
Stephen Coles have been named to the inaugural edition of North Carolina Super
Lawyers.
Though Brinkley Walser, PLLC, enjoys a colorful and distinguished past, the
firm prides itself in remaining current both in the law and the resources
available to research and determine the best course of representation for its
many clients. As Brinkley Walser enters the third century in which it has
practiced law, it looks forward to serving an even broader, more diverse range
of individual and corporate clientele in North Carolina.
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a
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