Our team

Jason R. Harris
Christopher J. Welch
Trevor J. Avery
Ellen Shults

Jason R. Harris

Mr. Harris brings experience practicing in Federal and State Courts in Eastern North Carolina. He will concentrate on civil litigation including maritime and admiralty law (where he often serves fellow lawyers as special maritime counsel). Mr. Harris has extensive experience working with insurance companies defending assureds and pursuing subrogation claims. Mr. Harris is a member of the Maritime Law Association (where he has earned Proctor status and serves as the Vice-Chair of the Salvage Committee) and the Southeastern Admiralty Law Institute. Harris has been featured in NC Lawyers Weekly and has authored several law review articles in such publications as the Tulane Maritime Law Journal, Benedicts Maritime Bulletin and the Journal of Maritime Law and Commerce, among others. Mr. Harris is a member of the adjunct faculty at Campbell University's Law School and UNCW. Harris earned his B.A. from Auburn University in 1997, his J.D. from Wake Forest University in 2000 and his LL.M. in Ocean and Coastal Law from The University of Miami in 2001. He was Honorably Discharged from the Army National Guard following service as a Military Policeman and an assistant to Judge Advocates General.

Salvage Case Law Updates

• Salvage Case Law Update MLA - Fall 2004
• Salvage Case Law Update MLA - Spring 2005
• Salvage Case Law Update MLA - Fall 2006
• Salvage Case Law Update MLA - Spring 2006
• Salvage Case Law Update MLA - Fall 2007
• Salvage Case Law Update MLA - Spring 2007
• Salvage Case Law Update MLA - Spring 2008
• Salvage Case Law Update MLA - Spring 2009
• Salvage Case Law Update MLA - Spring 2010
• Salvage Case Law Update MLA - Fall 2010
• Salvage Case Law Update MLA - Spring 2011
• Salvage Case Law Update MLA – Spring 2012
• Salvage Case Law Update MLA - Spring 2013

Christopher J. Welch

Mr. Welch has been an advocate in the criminal justice legal system for his entire career. As an Assistant District Attorney in Onslow and Duplin counties, he represented the State of North Carolina at both the District and Superior Court levels. After going into private practice in 2002, Mr. Welch has concentrated on the field of criminal defense and has represented clients charged with serious felonies and misdemeanors before state and federal courts throughout the Cape Fear Region. A member of the Onslow County Bar and various professional organizations, he has served on the Board of Directors for the Onslow County Teen Court. Welch earned his B.A. with Honors from Trinity College in 1997 and his J.D. from the Wake Forest School of Law in 2000.

Prominent cases covered in the media:

State v. Listle

• Father charged after son mauled by pit bull
• Jury selection underway in pit bull bite case
• Friend calls dog mauling defendant a good father
• Father found not guilty in dog mauling case

State v. Laurean

• Laurean's DNA not on murder weapon
• Laurean's wife's attorney says sheriff needed warrant
• Call parallels Laurean flight
• Laurean attorney files to limit wife's testimony
• Laurean's wife will not attend murder trial
• DA: Laurean's wife will not be charged

Trevor J. Avery

Trevor Avery is an Associate Attorney who earned his Bachelor of Arts in Philosophy and Masters of Business Administration degrees from East Carolina University and his law degree from Campbell University's Norman A. Wiggins School of Law. Mr. Avery is a native of Onslow County, North Carolina with networks throughout the local health, academic and construction industries. He continues the firm's general practice with a focus on transportation, including maritime and admiralty law as well as criminal defense and trial practice.

Ellen Shults

Ellen earned her J.D., cum laude, in 2005 from the University of Alabama School of Law, where she served as managing editor of the Alabama Law Review. While in law school, Ellen received several honors including the Book Award in Civil Procedure. Ellen received a B.A., summa cum laude, in Political Science from Auburn University in 2002.
Prior to becoming an associate, Ellen worked in private practice in California and Alabama. Ellen is a member of the North Carolina State Bar, the Alabama State Bar and the District of Columbia Bar.