2. James Ferguson was a partner in North Carolina’s first integrated law
firm, founded in 1968. By the 1970s, Ferguson had secured a place as a
leading civil rights attorney. His early cases included The Wilmington Ten
and the Teel case in Oxford, which became the subject of the book and
movie ‘Blood Done Sign My Name.’
‘I have been fortunate in my life that I have been able to work with great
advocates. I am fortunate that by chance I ran into Julius Chambers in
New York one day when I was getting ready to come back to North
Carolina and that he took a chance on bringing me into his practice.’
3. In the 1980s, Ferguson helped
lead efforts to teach trial
advocacy methods to lawyers
in South Africa. Here he is
pictured, left, with Bishop
Desmond Tutu, second from
left, and Godfrey Pitje.
‘One thing about trial lawyers
that I learned early on and still
learn every day is that good
lawyers never feel that they
know everything. They are
always looking for ways to
improve what they do, ways to
develop new strategies,
different ways to be
persuasive. That desire among
lawyers to be better than they
are led to the success of the
advocacy program.’
4. During his time working in South Africa, Ferguson made a
lasting impression on Nelson Mandela. Pictured here in
1994 are, from left, Janelle Byrd, Norman Chaskin, Steven
Hawkins (all NAACP Legal Defense Fund Staff), Pansy Tlakula
(South African Black Lawyers Association), Bill Lann Lee
(NAACP Legal Defense Fund), Ferguson, Mandella, Theodore
Shaw (NAACP Legal Defense Fund) and Komotso Moroko,
South African Black Lawyers Association.
The young man in the front is the son of Theodore Shaw.
‘We didn’t know exactly what we would be doing. They have
a different system of law there, and there had been no trial
advocacy program in South Africa at all when we went down
there. We had no idea whether the techniques of persuasion
we used here in America would be transferable to South
Africa but we knew we wanted to contribute to that struggle
if we could.’
5. Ferguson's work as an advocate
includes education efforts close to
home as well as around the world.
‘We still have issues of race, we still
have issues of equality, and we still
have issues of expression and
religious freedom. And we still have
issues of how we implement the
greatest constitution in the world,
how we make our society better,
and how we seek some justice for
the least empowered members of
our society.’
6. The NCBA's Litigation Section
honored Ferguson with its
Advocate’s Award last year. It
is among the myriad honors he
has received from a wide
variety of organizations.
‘It is a very special honor to me
coming from colleagues whom
I respect and who are involved
in advocacy. To have that
judgment made by them was a
particular honor, not to even
mention those who have come
before and gotten this award.
These are people who have
been my heroes – people I
have looked up to.’
7. ‘You would think after 48
years you have seen it all,
but I learn every day that
I haven’t. There is always
something new, always
something exciting every
day. People ask me every
day when am I going to
retire. The only answer to
that is when I come to
that point I hope I know
it. I don’t wake up every
day thinking how great it
would be if I didn’t have
to go to my office; I
wonder what will I do
when I can’t go.’
Photo courtesy
The Charlotte Observer.
