North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson Opens Law Conference at Wake Forest University

On March 27, North Carolina Attorney General Jeff Jackson delivered the keynote address to our inaugural Leadership and Character in the Law Conference at Wake Forest University. In it, he detailed his journey from a soldier in Afghanistan to prosecutor, state senator, member of Congress, and now, statewide office. “As a prosecutor, you get total fidelity to conscience,” he said. His job as attorney general “has to be about defense of people.”

Jackson, just 85 days into office, talked about building trust, the importance of learning limits to power, and his approach to leading the North Carolina Department of Justice and its 1,000-plus employees. “One of the things mission-driven people tend not to do is celebrate their wins,” he said. “We [as leaders] have to pause to celebrate.”

The Attorney General talked about several current and upcoming cases, and offered some closing thoughts to students who were getting ready to enter the workforce. “Rethink your grand plan, because there may be something wonderful out there,” he said. “If you would take a pay cut to do that job, that’s your mission.”

Jackson was introduced by Wake Forest University School of Law dean Andrew Klein, and the question-and-answer session was moderated by Allyson Gold, Associate Dean for Experiential Learning and Director of the Medical-Legal Partnership (MLP) Clinic. The conference is organized by the Program for Leadership and Character, Wake Forest Law, and the Association of American Law Schools.