James Elliot Ferguson II
| James Elliot Ferguson II | |
|---|---|
| Born | October 10, 1942 Asheville, North Carolina |
| 🏫 Education | Law School : Columbia University 1967 |
| 🎓 Alma mater | Central University 1964 |
| 💼 Occupation | |
| 👩 Spouse(s) | Barbara Truman Ferguson |
| 👶 Children | Jay Ferguson, Taj Ferguson, and Kali Ferguson |
| 👴 👵 Parents |
|
James Elliot Ferguson II is a founding partner of the firm Ferguson, Stein, Chambers, Gresham and Sumter, P.A. and has served as President of the firm since 1984.[1][2] He served for more than 15 years as General Counsel and member of the National Executive Committee of the American Civil Liberties Union[3]
Early Life
He was born in Asheville, N.C., and by the time he was in high school, he was one of the few leaders of local citywide desegregation efforts.[4] He co-founded North Carolina’s first integrated law firm in Charlotte in the 1960s with Julius Chambers and Adam Stein. It led the litigation team in the landmark Wilmington Ten case in the 1970s[5][6], established a legal training program in Apartheid-era South Africa in the 1980s[7], and obtained official declarations of innocence for the Wilmington Ten and Darryl Hunt in the 2000s and 2010s[8].
Career
While still in high school James E. Ferguson II worked with fellow students to form the Asheville Student Committee On Racial Equality (ASCORE). It’s believed that ASCORE was the only group of its kind at that time, and as its first President Ferguson attended the founding meeting of the Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee in Raleigh, North Carolina in 1960[9]. He went on to become Student Body President at North Carolina College for Negroes, now known as North Carolina Central University, receiving his degree in 1964[10]. Ferguson continued his academic career at Columbia University Law School graduating in 1967 and settling in Charlotte as a founding member of North Carolina’s first integrated law firm. After three short years in practice, Mr. Ferguson led the defense in the Wilmington Ten. This case involved America’s first political prisoners of conscience, as declared by Amnesty International[11]. Forty years later he secured Pardons of Innocence for each of the defendants[6]. Beginning in 1986 during the Apartheid era, Ferguson has served as Co-Founder, Coordinator, and faculty member of the Trial Advocacy Program for Black Lawyers of South Africa[12]. Ferguson can be seen in “The Trials of Darryl” on HBO, a documentary on Darryl Hunt, for whom Mr. Ferguson won a judicial declaration of innocence after Hunt spent nearly 20 years in prison following a wrongful conviction of rape and murder[13]. Ferguson recently obtained commutations, from death sentences to life imprisonment, in the four cases decided under North Carolina’s Racial Justice Act, the only law of its kind in the nation. In 2018 Mr. Ferguson filed and resolved a police misconduct action against the City of Asheville. He is now working with experts as well as local leaders and residents.
Notable cases
- Blood done sign my name - Oxford, NC (Henry D Marrow)
- Wilmington 10: 10 individuals falsely accused of arson received recompense in the Appeals Court after years of imprisonment, many had passed away before innocence was proven
- Charlotte Three: 3 Black Men falsely accused of arson were convicted, and their sentences were eventually commuted
- Apartheid in South Africa.[12]
- Brown vs. Board of Education of Topeka, KS
- Various malpractice and civil rights cases
Recognition
James Ferguson II spoke with a Davidson audience about a career that started in high school by helping desegregate parks and libraries and spanned decades as a lawyer championing the movement[14].
Ferguson has been included in every edition of The Best Lawyers in America. He was featured in The National Law Journal as one of the top ten litigators in the country. He was featured in the Charlotte Observer as “The Lawyer Lawyers Come to See”. He has been recognized as a Super Lawyer by Super Lawyers Magazine. He is a member of the coveted Inner Circle, a group of 100 of the best plaintiff lawyers in the country.[15]
References
- ↑ Campbell, Nicole. "Exploring The Life, Legacy And Unfinished Work Of Julius L. Chambers". WUNC91.5. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
- ↑ "Lawyer's Firm In School Case". The Charlotte Observer. April 26, 1972. p. 24 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ "JAMES E. FERGUSON, II". innercicle.org. The Inner Circle of Advocates. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
- ↑ Smith, Janice (March 23, 1978). "He's happy with civil rights label". The Charlotte News. p. 11 – via Newspapers.com.
- ↑ Janken, Kenneth (January 2015). "Remembering the Wilmington 10". The North Carolina History Review. 92 (1): 48. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
- ↑ 6.0 6.1 King, Wayne. "Wilmington 10". The New York Observer. New York Times. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
- ↑ "JAMES E. FERGUSON II 2011 JULIUS L. CHAMBERS DIVERSITY CHAMPION". Mecklenburg County Bar Association. Mecklenburg County Bar Association. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
- ↑ Rao, Anita. "Life and Death After Exoneration". WUNC91.5. North Carolina Public Radio. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
- ↑ "With All Deliberate Speed: School Desegregation in Buncombe County" (PDF). University of North Carolina Asheville. Center for Diversity Education at the University of North Carolina Asheville. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
- ↑ "SGA Presidents" (PDF). North Carolina Central University. North Carolina Central University. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
- ↑ "Amnesty International" (PDF). Amnesty International Publications. Amnesty International Report 1977: 163. 1977. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
- ↑ 12.0 12.1 "The Story of NITA International: South Africa". Nita.org. National Institute of Trial Advocacy. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
- ↑ Wilson, Patrick. "Murder, Race, Justice: The State vs. Darryl Hunt". Journal Now. Journal Now. Retrieved 18 June 2020.
- ↑ "James Ferguson II Recounts a Lifetime Fighting for Justice". davidson.org. Davidson College. Retrieved 20 July 2022.
- ↑ "JAMES E. FERGUSON, II". innercicle.org. The Inner Circle of Advocates. Retrieved 25 July 2022.
External links
- Super Lawyers Article on James Elliot Ferguson II
- Inner Circle article on James Elliot Ferugson
- An interview with James Ferguson at the University of North Carolina Charlotte
- Charlotte Post article on James Ferguson
- WBTV Article on James Ferguson, Julius Chambers, and Geraldine Sumter's Law office
- Charlotte Mecklenburg Bar Association article on James Ferguson
- Recent article from Davidson University
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