Will Graebe came to Lawyers Mutual in 1998 as claims counsel. In 2009, Will became the Vice President of the Claims Department and served in that role until 2019. After a two-year sabbatical, Will returned to Lawyers Mutual as claims counsel and relationship manager. In his role as claims counsel, Will focuses primarily on claims related to estates and trusts, business transactions and real estate matters. Will received his J.D. from Wake Forest University School of Law and his undergraduate degree from Stetson University. Prior to joining Lawyers Mutual, will worked in private practice with the law firm of Pinna, Johnston & Burwell.  

Leaning Into Change: Career Pivots to Meet Your Evolving Strengths and Interests

I have never been a big celebrator of my own birthdays. It is just another day of the year—another trip around the sun. I suppose that when I turned 16, it seemed like a big deal. I was able to drive. It gave me a new sense of freedom. Since then, I have not given much attention to turning a certain age. That changed this past year when I turned 60. There was something different about 60. I don’t think I can describe myself as middle-aged anymore. I might even qualify for free or discounted coffee at some restaurants. I can legitimately wear a shirt that says, “Old Guys Rule.”   Read More

Gratitude and Wellness

I love the feeling of receiving a genuine thank you note or email. When I am having a particularly stressful day or feeling a little down about something, a sincere expression of gratitude from a lawyer who I have helped in dealing with a malpractice claim can lift me up and out of my funk. But I have also foun… Read More

The Chicken Fax

We all have moments in our practice that we would rather forget. What follows is mine. I was an eager young associate who wanted to impress my client and the partners in the firm. We were handling a tax case that had something to do with inventory tax and the valuation of baby chicks. I had researched the IRS Tax Code, regulations, tax treaties, and IRS rulings and was confident that the IRS agent’s position was untenable. I wanted to display my legal prowess to my client, so I prepared a letter to the client explaining our superior position and the IRS agent’s incompetence.   Read More

 A Tribute To Jay Reeves

Jay Reeves has left the building. There will likely be no encores from Jay—at least for North Carolina lawyers. He has followed his personal legend and moved to South Carolina to write the baseball novel that has been stirring in him for years. The good citizens of Newberry will be lucky to have Jay. But we at Lawyers Mutual, as well as Jay’s followers, will sorely miss him. He has been an inspiration to so many of us over the years.   Read More

Using Mindfulness to Retrain Our Wandering Minds

We spend an enormous amount of time thinking about something other than what we are doing in the present moment. It is called mind-wandering and can be detrimental to our happiness and well-being.  A 2010 study by Harvard psychologists Matthew Killingsworth and Daniel Gilbert, discovered that the average person’s mind wanders 47% of the time (https://www.science.org/doi/10.1126/science.1192439). The study also found that, when people think about something other than what they are doing in the present moment, they tend to be less happy. Other studies have shown that mind-wandering and a lack of focus on a task can also lead to mistakes.   Read More

The Magic Pill of Exercise

What if I told you that there was a pill that you can take that will immediately boost your mood, lower your blood pressure, reduce your risk of diabetes and cancer, improve your focus and memory, reduce symptoms of anxiety and depression, reduce inflammation in your body, delay brain aging and neurodegenerative disease, and reduce negative symptoms of stress? You should also know that this pill would, if taken correctly, have little or no side effects. Would you take it? I’m guessing most would. Well, it is available. It’s just not available in pill form. But it is available in the form of physical exercise and movement. Read More

Whole Lawyer Wellness

Over the past year, I have been traveling across the state talking to lawyers about well-being. The response has been overwhelmingly positive. I have been deeply moved by the flood of emails, phone calls, and letters from insureds expressing their appreciation for the content. My commitment to lawyer well-being extends beyond Lawyers Mutual presentations and articles. I am also actively involved in providing written content for the Lawyers Assistance Program (LAP), and I've had the privilege of delivering programs with the LAP on well-being and resilience. The message we have received is clear. Our insureds are hungry for tools to help them deal with the sometimes-overwhelming stress of practicing law.   Read More

Meditation: What Is It and What Are the Benefits

Let’s face it, lawyers have a lot of stress in their lives. We deal with deadlines, angry and impatient clients, malpractice exposure, difficult opposing counsel, and expectations of perfection. Now, add to that list the COVID 19 pandemic, inflation and political turmoil and you’ve got a big heaping serving of stress stew.   Read More

Chasing the Tail of Happiness

Happiness is a hot topic in the self-help world. There are more than 20,000 books that have been published with “happiness” in the title. An entire industry has been built around the goal of happiness. But do we even know what we mean when we say we want to be happy, and should it be our ultimate goal? I would suggest that there is something far greater than simple happiness. That something is the concept of well-being.   Read More

Trust Accounts and Bank Failures: What You Need to Know

Recent bank failures have caused concerns for lawyers holding client funds in their trust accounts. Many of our insureds have contacted Lawyers Mutual to ask questions about their ethical and malpractice exposure and any steps that they can take to protect themselves and their clients.  Read More

Recovering from Mistakes

There exists in the legal profession an unrealistic expectation of perfection. I say unrealistic because I have not yet met a lawyer who has not made a mistake at some point in his or her career. The best lawyers make mistakes. If you practice long enough, you will make a mistake. This does not mean that you ar… Read More

Own Your Mistakes But Don’t Fall on Your Sword

If you practice law long enough, you are bound to make a mistake while representing a client. Some mistakes are harmless and immaterial. Other mistakes may be fatal to your client’s case. In between those two extremes are mistakes that cause your client to suffer some negative consequences or create the possibility of negative consequences in the future. What is required of you when you make a mistake depends on the nature and severity of the error. Failure to make appropriate and timely disclosure of errors can result in adverse disciplinary, malpractice and coverage consequences.   Read More

Keeping Your Clients in the Dark

What do you think is the number one complaint clients have about their lawyers? It is not lack of knowledge or competence. It is not even dissatisfaction with the outcome of a matter or the cost to the client.  A BTI Consulting Group Survey indicates that failure to keep a client adequately informed is far and above the number one complaint clients have.   Read More

Bang for Your Buck: Getting the Most Out of Your Lawyers Mutual Policy

My millennial children like to give me a hard time for not using all the features that my new I-phone offers. I talk, text, e-mail, take pictures, search the internet, and even ask Siri for directions. But did you know you can use your iPhone as a tape measurer or set different vibrations or tones for different callers. Read More

Duty to Report: Don’t Be an Ostrich

We have all heard the saying, “Don’t bury your head in the sand.”  It was once believed that ostriches buried their heads in the sand to avoid predators. The theory was that ostriches were so simple-minded that they thought that, if they couldn’t see their predators, then their pred… Read More