Wake Forest Lawyers

Managing partner Benjamin T. Cochran oversees the operation of Hardison & Cochran Attorneys at Law in addition to representing individual clients in cases involving workers’ compensation and personal injury law.

A lifelong North Carolinian, Cochran knew from his high-school days in High Point that he wanted to be an attorney. He received a B.A. degree in economics and African-American studies from the University of North Carolina in 1999 and then enrolled at the Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law at Campbell University.

As a second-year law student, Cochran started working part-time in the law firm he now manages. During his third year...

Jonathan Blair Biser is a partner at Hardison & Cochran and heads the law firm’s busy Social Security Disability division. His goal is to make the complicated and bureaucratic process of obtaining disability benefits as simple as possible for clients. “It can be a slow process to begin with,” he says. “But we do our best to help our clients maneuver through the process as efficiently as possible.” Biser got his introduction to Social Security Disability law when he was an undergraduate at Wake Forest University. He worked in his uncle’s law office, where the primary focus was Social Security cases, and...

Laurie Biggs' practice focuses on business and consumer bankruptcy, including chapter 7, chapter 11, chapter 12, and chapter 13 cases. Ms. Biggs primarily represents small business owners, individuals, and those in the agricultural sector who need help addressing their debts or exploring their legal options. Ms. Biggs has been certified as a specialist in business and consumer bankruptcy by the North Carolina State Bar. With almost twenty years of experience helping clients navigate their financial difficulties, Ms. Biggs In addition to bankruptcy cases, Ms. Biggs also practices in the area of out of court financial restructuring, business disputes, civil...

Attorney Rebecca A. Olla was raised in Austin, Texas. She obtained her undergraduate degree from Bryn Mawr College in Pennsylvania and her Law Degree from the University of Texas School of Law in Austin. Before joining The Bishop Law Firm, Rebecca worked for the Texas State Office of the Attorney General and the U.S. District Court of Southern New York. After working for the government (by the people), Rebecca refocused her practice to represent clients in federal appeals in U.S. District Court (for the people). Through her prior legal experience, Rebecca has learned that lawyers are needed to ensure positive outcomes for their...

Len C. Mueller graduated in 1982 from North Carolina State University with a B. S. in English, and graduated in 1985 from The Campbell University School of Law with her J. D. She has been practicing domestic law in Wake County since that time. Ms. Mueller was certified as a specialist in the area of family law by The North Carolina State Bar in 1994. Ms. Mueller is also certified as a Family Financial Mediator. Ms. Mueller credits her former law partners, prominent local attorneys, Richard (“Rick”) Gammon and Russell W. DeMent, for her success as a trial lawyer. She...

North Carolina Professional License Defense Attorney Nicholas Dowgul, or “Nick” as he prefers, began his legal career in 2008 in the Public Defender’s Office in Harrison County, Mississippi. In this position, Dowgul found his passion for the litigation of cases. Being in a courtroom felt like home to him. While he loves the mental battle within a courtroom, he believes resolving cases outside the courtroom is typically in the client’s best interests when it’s a valid option. However, when the time calls for it and resolution measures outside of the courtroom have been exhausted, Dowgul is well-prepared to obtain the best results for...

In joining Hardison & Cochran in 2008, Joel Jackson Hardison made a transition from defending insurance companies in Workers Compensation cases to representing injured and disabled workers. He applies the insights he gained from representing insurance companies to assist the injured workers he represents. There is little doubt about which type of practice he prefers. Hardison received a B.A. degree in journalism from the University of North Carolina in 1999 and a J.D. from the UNC School of Law in 2004. He was a member of the law school’s Holderness Moot Court team and was named to the Dean’s List. He launched his...

For Joey DeMartin, officially joining the team at Hardison & Cochran, Attorneys at Law feels like a homecoming. He worked at the law firm, writing motions and assisting in the call center while attending Campbell Law School in Raleigh. DeMartin graduated from the Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law at Campbell University in 2018 and passed the North Carolina Bar Exam in 2019. The Washington, N.C., native is the first attorney in his family. “My grandfather was pretty happy with that,” DeMartin said, noting that the law had interested him from a young age. “I was definitely the family debater. … I...

Workers who have been injured on the job or who suffer occupational diseases oftentimes must face a frustrating waiting game to receive the benefits they deserve. Attorney James Adam Bridwell, who focuses his practice solely on workers’ compensation cases, knows what it takes to help clients get their lives back together. Bridwell is a native South Carolinian. He received a B.A. in marketing and management from the University of South Carolina before coming to Raleigh to attend Campbell University Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law. While in law school, he was a case summary writer for the Campbell Law Observer and...

Construction & Business Lawyer representing Owners, Developers, Sureties, General Contractors, Subcontractors, Suppliers, and other Construction Industry Participants in Litigation, Mediation, and Arbitration. Federally Certified Mediator for the EDNC, United States District Court. Certified Arbitrator for Wake County District Court. Private Arbitrator for Construction and Commercial disputes. Arbitrator and Mediator, Construction Industry Panel of Neutrals, American Arbitration Association (AAA)

Michelle Dewkett-Kochhar found her passion for workers’ compensation law dabbling in personal injury, workers’ compensation, and criminal defense law after graduating from law school. Dewkett-Kochhar graduated from Campbell University’s Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law in 2019, and passed the North Carolina Bar Exam that same summer. A northerner at heart, Dewkett-Kochhar grew up in Rhinebeck, New York. She first moved to Raleigh to attend North Carolina State University, where she received a B.A. in International Studies and a minor in Spanish. While at law school, Dewkett-Kochhar served as a research assistant and interned with the Wake County Public Defender’s Office, a personal...

Stuart Matthews is the founding immigration attorney of Matthews Immigration Group in Raleigh, NC. His practice is nationwide and focused on business and corporate immigration matters. Prior to relocating to Raleigh, Stuart gained well over a decade of diverse immigration law and policy experience in Washington DC, Baltimore, and Nashville. Stuart has delivered immigration strategies and solutions to Fortune 50, Fortune 500, and Global 500 companies as well as other domestic and multinational corporations, middle market companies, small business start-ups and entrepreneurs, research organizations and DC think tanks, academic institutions, law firms, and individuals across a wide range of industries,...

Raleigh corporate lawyer Bob Morton is a true business and civil litigation generalist. He has successfully tried multiple civil jury trials. He regularly assists his business clients with planning, litigation avoidance, employment matters and virtually all other legal matters that his business clients face.

Bob believes that providing personal service and going the extra mile for clients isn’t just a good way to do business — it’s the only way to do business.

He has been featured as a consumer advocate on ABC’s “Good Morning America,” has served Three Terms as Chairman of the local Better Business Bureau (BBB), been recognized as...

Ms. Armstrong has been licensed to practice law in North Carolina since 1991. She earned her juris doctorate from the North Carolina Central University School of Law Evening Division and her bachelor of arts in journalism from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. During her 30 years of legal experience, Ms. Armstrong has alternated between private practice and the federal government. She has served as Counsel on the staff of two U.S. Senators, and as District Counsel for three U.S. House Representatives. In January, 2021, Ms. Armstrong retired from federal service and has reopened her private immigration...

For more than a decade, K. Gregory Gunter has been working hard to protect the rights of his North Carolina clients with their workers' compensation - personal injury cases and is a member of the North Carolina Advocates for Justice, a prominent group dedicated to doing the same.

Carter Whittington concentrates his practice in North Carolina workers’ compensation law, helping injured workers seek the benefits they need and deserve after sustaining a job related injury. Whittington started working at Hardison & Cochran while he was a third-year student at Campbell University’s Norman Adrian Wiggins School of Law. After graduating cum laude and receiving his J.D. in 2016, he joined Hardison & Cochran as a full-time attorney. A North Carolina native, Whittington grew up in Winston-Salem and attended the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, where he received a B.A. in political science in 2012. In law school, Whittington was...

Family Law and Divorce attorney with 16 years of experience. Lecturer for over 5 continuing legal education seminars teaching other attorneys about family law and divorce.

Jeff brings 25 years of business and legal experience to his business/corporate transactional and general civil practice. Earning his Juris Doctorate from Valparaiso University School of Law and his MBA from North Carolina State University, Jeff specializes in commercial transactions (contracts, vendor relationships/negotiations, M&A due diligence) and enjoys the art of the deal. Jeff’s popular Software Licensing Handbook is consistently reviewed as the bible for technology licensing instruction and he’s frequently sought as a recognized expert in negotiation by publications such as Inc, CBS and MSNBC. Jeff is licensed in both North Carolina and Indiana and is admitted to...