Barbara "Bonnie" Weyher '77 took the oath of office as the new president of the North Carolina State Bar, becoming the second woman to hold the position. She was sworn in by the Hon. Sarah Parker, chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court, during a ceremony in downtown Raleigh on Wed., Oct. 21. She succeeds John B. McMillan of Raleigh.
Weyher is a founding partner of Yates, McLamb & Weyher, L.L.P., a civil defense law firm based in Raleigh. She brings to the bar's presidency a long history of serving on its governing council and as an officer. Prior to her election to the council, Weyher chaired the Grievance Committee, Ethics Committee and the Authorized Practice of Law Committee and has served on the Executive Committee, Issues Committee and Publications Committee.
The bar is the state agency that regulates more than 20,000 lawyers who are licensed to practice in North Carolina. One of the bar's key responsibilities is the investigation and prosecution of lawyers who violate its code of ethics for lawyers. Additionally, Weyher has been active in the North Carolina Bar Association, chairing the Litigation Section (2005-06). She served as president of the Wake County Bar Association in 1997.
"I have been privileged over the years to be involved with the North Carolina State Bar and have a great respect for the organization and its members," said Weyher. "In the coming year, we will be exploring ways to increase the number of women and minority lawyers on the State Bar Council. A number of mandatory bars in the country have taken proactive measures to encourage more minority and women lawyers to participate and we will first be looking at these programs to see what has worked and what has not."
Weyher is a 1973 graduate of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where she earned a bachelor's degree in journalism. She graduated in 1977 from the UNC School of Law and served as a staff member of the North Carolina Law Review.
Weyher practiced law in New York City before returning to North Carolina in 1979 to join the Raleigh firm of Young, Moore, Henderson & Alvis. In 1983, she became a founding partner of Yates, McLamb & Weyher, where she has since practiced along with her husband and law partner Dan McLamb.
-October 23, 2009