’ 74 Bradley Keith Greenway (’ 74
AB) of Rutherfordton has been
elected district attorney, serving
Rutherford and McDowell counties.
■ obituaries
James Baugham McMullan Jr. (’ 74 AB), 56,
of Tunica, Miss.; Feb. 25, 2007. McMullen was
a lawyer in Tunica for 10 years. Previously, he
practiced law in his hometown of Washington,
N.C. He belonged to the Philanthropic
Society at UNC. J. Kirk Osborn (’ 74 JD),
64, of Chapel Hill; March 25, 2007. Osborn
was a lawyer in private practice. The first public
defender in Orange and Chatham counties, he
represented a number of high-profile defendants
during his career. He was on the board of the
Fair Trial Initiative in Durham and previously on
the board of the law school alumni association. Bruce Robert Pearce (’ 74 BSBA),
54, of Hendersonville; Feb. 14, 2007. Pearce
owned a carpet and cleaning service.
Sathyabhama Devi Roy (’ 74 MS), 75, of
Gaithersburg, Md.; March 22, 2007. Roy
retired as a technical manager for IBM, where
she was involved with many projects, including
a global communications project for Mobil Oil
and an air traffic control system for the FAA.
She was a volunteer with area Indian-American organizations and was on the board
of Karuna Charities.
’ 75 Kermit Dewitt Williamson Jr.
(’ 75 AB) of Clinton is the club
leader for the newly formed
Sampson County Carolina Club.
Retirement Law
James Wilde ’04 (JD) really knows how to
raise the bar. An economics professor at UNC
for more than 35 years, Wilde went from the
University’s phased retirement program to law
school in 1999.
Now a lawyer specializing in elder law,
Wilde offers his expertise to Orange County’s
senior centers on a volunteer basis. One morning a month, he unpacks his briefcase on a
desk at the Northside senior center in Chapel
Hill and counsels retirees. He also presents
monthly elder law clinics at the senior center in
Chapel Hill.
“He saw a need to help people with elder-care issues, predatory lending, fraud, powers of
attorney, Medicaid and Medicare issues,” said
Maccine Brown with Legal Aid of North Carolina, which schedules appointments for the
clients. “He contacted us to say he had time to
help. This kind of volunteer effort helps us
expand and makes equal access to justice
meaningful.”
Wilde sees himself as a guide to the elderly
and his new law career as a social outreach
mission.
“The essence of legal aid is to provide services to people who cannot afford representation,” Wilde said. “Elder law is a unique specialty in the legal profession in that it is not
subject- or act-related. It’s not like a robbery.
Elder law involves almost anything conceivably
that a senior citizen might face.”
As part of UNC’s phased retirement program, Wilde taught economics one semester
and attended law classes the next four years
before attending law school full time in 2003.
He received his law degree in 2004 — at 66,
he was the oldest of that year’s 220 graduates
— passed the bar and opened an office the
next year.
Wilde was undergraduate academic adviser
in the College of Arts and Sciences for more
than 30 years and was associate chair of the
economics department. In 1998, he won the
William C. Friday/Class of 1986 Award for
Excellence in Teaching. ever. Wilde had fun picking
Wilde is committed to his community, out his backpack — he whether it be the University, where he still chose a red one that would profile
teaches as needed, or his church, Olin T. Bink- stand out among the oth-
ley Memorial Baptist, where he has served as a ers — and he enjoyed sitting in the student sec-
deacon for five three-year terms and where he tion of the Smith Center to cheer on the Tar
has sung in the choir for 34 years. Heels. He even got a kick out of standing in line
As an economics for tickets.
professor, he special- “That was kind of fun,” he
ized in public finance said. “The other kids won-
and public policy, with dered who this guy was.”
research interests in And Wilde loved being
fiscal federalism, back in the classroom.
bureaucratic behavior “It’s a wonderful environ-
and public choice. His ment,” he said. “You realize
interests mesh well again that education should
with his work in elder be an enjoyable activity. It was
law issues. fun to be in class and see the
“He was always professor bring the subject to
interested in how gov- life.”
ernment can be organ- Law school Dean John C.
ized to help the peo- Boger, who taught a constitu-
ple,” said John Akin, tional law class with Wilde as
the Carr Distinguished James Wilde ’04 (JD) retired from UNC’s eco- a student, said he was
Professor of economics nomics department after teaching for more impressed with Wilde’s dedi-
at UNC and a colleague than 35 years and then enrolled as a full-time cation to his new academic
law student at UNC. The 69-year-old lawyer spe-
CAROLYN EDY ’ 97 (MA)
of Wilde’s. “He just cializes in elder law and volunteers his services role.
jumped on the other at local senior centers. “He was so unassuming, it
side of a question he almost took my breath away,”
had worked on all his life, studying government Boger said. “He insisted on calling me Profes-behavior toward its citizens. It makes a lot of sor Boger. He wanted to put himself completely
sense.” into the role as a student.”
Wilde’s journey to the legal profession was Boger said Wilde’s choice of a law specialty
not without its challenges. is a reminder that as increasing numbers of
“He really worked hard,” said Wilde’s wife, baby boomers retire, there will be more
Melinda. “It didn’t come easy.” demand for lawyers who can take up the issues
For Wilde, memorization was the toughest of the elderly. He said he would love to see UNC
thing about law school: The question-and- hire a faculty member to specialize in elder
answer format of the classes and the need for law.
preparation were time-consuming. “Jim shows that a person of any age can
“He’s a real reader,” Melinda Wilde said. start and become accomplished in a new area of
“He always kept up with The Wall Street work and life if they remain open and accepting
Journal. He couldn’t do that while he was in law to challenges of growth,” he said. “Jim shows
school, so he gave up his subscription.” what can be ahead for elders with courage.”
