Partner
Mike Grace opened his own law practice in 1981 and has been engaged in private practice and criminal defense in Winston-Salem for more than 30 years. He has been admitted to practice in federal courts throughout the United States. Mike and the firm Grace, Tisdale & Clifton are one of the two local firms who represent local law enforcement through the Police Benevolent Association.
Mike received his Juris Doctorate from Wake Forest University School of Law in 1977 and his Bachelor of Arts degree in History from the University of North Carolina at Asheville in 1974.
He has been admitted to practice in North Carolina since 1977. He is also admitted to practice in the U.S. District Court, Middle, Eastern, and Western Districts of North Carolina; the U.S. Court of Appeals; and the Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals. He currently serves as an adjunct professor for the Wake Forest University School of Law.
Prior to his work as a defense attorney, Mike worked as a staff attorney for Congressmen Lamar Grudger and Ike Andrews. By appointment of former President Jimmy Carter, Mike served as Special Assistant to the Attorney General in the U.S. Department of Justice.
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Membership & Awards
Mike is a member of the North Carolina Advocates for Justice, the Forsyth County Criminal Defense Trial Lawyers Association, the North Carolina Bar Association, the North Carolina State Bar, the Forsyth County Bar Association, and the American Inns of Court. He currently serves on the UNC Asheville National Alumni Council. In 2009 he received the Roy A. Taylor Distinguished Alumnus Award at UNC Asheville’s annual Distinguished Alumni Awards for his career as a lawyer in Winston-Salem, and he was inducted into the UNC Asheville Athletic Hall of Fame.
In 2015 Mike was appointed by the Chief of Justice of the Supreme Court to be a Commissioner on the Innocence Commission. He also currently serves on the Death Penalty Due Process Review Project Committee for the North Carolina Bar Association and the North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts Committee in search for a new Director.
Contact
- Location: Winston-Salem, North Carolina
- Phone: 888-441-8522
- Fax: 336-721-1176
- Email: mgrace@gtc-law.com
Areas of Practice
Bar Admissions
- North Carolina, 1977
- U.S. Federal Courts
- U.S. District Court Middle District of North Carolina
- U.S. District Court Eastern District of North Carolina
- U.S. District Court Western District of North Carolina
- U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit
Education
- Wake Forest University School of Law, Winston-Salem, North Carolina
- University of North Carolina, Asheville, North Carolina
Representative Cases
- State vs. Michael Hayes (1989)
- U.S. vs. Frank McClean (Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals)
- U.S. vs. Ernest Pitt (Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals)
Classes/Seminars
- Adjunct Professor, Wake Forest University School of Law
Honors and Awards
- Preeminent Criminal Defense Lawyers in North Carolina
- Roy A. Taylor Distinguished Alumnus Award, UNC Asheville’s annual Distinguished Alumni Awards, 2009 - Present
- UNC Asheville Athletic Hall of Fame
- Cofer Lifetime Achievement Award, Forsythe County Criminal Defense Trial Lawyers Association
Professional Associations and Memberships
- North Carolina Academy of Trial Lawyers, Member
- Forsyth County Criminal Defense Trial Lawyers Association, Member
- North Carolina Bar Association, Member
- North Carolina State Bar, Member
- Forsyth County Bar Association, Member
- American Inns of Court, Member
- UNC Asheville National Alumni Council
Past Employment Positions
- Congressmen Lamar Grudger and Ike Andrews, Staff Attorney
- Attorney General in the U.S. Department of Justice, Special Assistant