"Your Legal Counsel"
Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. provides a professional and personal source of legal advice to each of its clients, and places emphasis on practicing "preventive law" to prevent legal complications before they occur. Whether you need legal advice for personal and family matters such as estate planning or financial planning, legal counsel for your business affairs such as corporate planning or real estate development, or legal advice and planning for the affairs of a foundation or other nonprofit organization, Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. is ready to serve all of your needs as legal counsel.

Firm History. Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. has evolved since Bill Lambe and Jack Walker began practicing law in Durham some thirty years ago and joined forces with a common philosophy and dedication to client service. Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. is pleased to offer the highest level of quality professional legal counsel to its clients in the Research Triangle area and throughout North Carolina. Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C., whose partners represent more than 100 years of combined legal experience, is a law firm which can provide you and your family, and you and your business (whether for-profit or nonprofit), with professional and personal legal counsel.

Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C.’s attorneys have a strong and proud tradition of community service, with a long and deep history. The Firm and its attorneys have given generously to many cultural, educational, artistic, and community-related groups throughout North Carolina. Our attorneys are encouraged to devote time and energy to worthwhile community projects: for example, Bill Lambe has served as Chairman of the North Carolina Interest on Lawyers Trust Accounts (“IOLTA”) Board. IOLTA collects interest from the trust accounts of participating law firms and uses these funds to support public-interest projects that strengthen the justice system in communities around the state. This tradition of service includes Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. attorneys who have served in the following capacities: President of the Durham County Bar Association, Trustee of Duke University, President of the North Durham Rotary Club, President of the Board of Trustees of Durham Academy, Director of the United Way, member of the City of Raleigh Environmental Quality Advisory Board, Trustee of Durham County Hospital Corporation, Church Elder, and numerous non-profit board memberships and other leadership positions in the arts, helping the homeless, helping veterans, and promoting public health.

Experience. The attorneys of Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. have substantial experience in all areas in which the firm practices. Our attorneys prioritize helping our clients to identify potential problems before they happen in order to smooth the path toward the client’s business or personal goals.

Fees. Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. provides the highest quality of legal services, tailored to individual needs and with a sensitivity to cost. Where time and circumstances permit, the attorney or attorneys representing you, your family, or your business, will give you an informed estimate of the cost of services prior to your incurring significant fees. Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. encourages clients to ask questions about fees when the client is uncertain about what to expect.

OUR PRACTICE

Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. is ready to serve as Your Legal Counsel. Not only does Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. provide a high level of professional competence in many legal fields, but if a matter requires expert legal counsel in other fields of practice (for example, in patent law or environmental law), Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. will serve as Your Legal Counsel and coordinate all legal undertakings on your behalf. By doing this, we can focus the services of specialty counsel to control your cost and expedite the results.

Legal Services for Families
Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. has provided legal counsel to families since its beginning. From sophisticated tax and financial planning to the structuring of complex estate plans incorporating wills, trusts, charitable trusts and gifting plans, Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. offers you and your family a personalized relationship for all of your legal needs. Your goals may be to plan for retirement, to provide for the continuation of a family business, to provide for a member of the family who is disabled, to plan for the education of children and grandchildren, or to establish a private foundation to further the charitable goals of the family. In all events, Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. is ready to serve as Your Legal Counsel.

Legal Services for Nonprofit Organizations
Besides representing families, Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. has provided legal counsel to many nonprofit organizations, including charitable foundations; nonprofit arts, educational, and health care organizations; employee benefit and profit-sharing plans; and charitable trusts. Representation includes not only planning for and establishing nonprofit organizations, but also continuing representation of the nonprofit entity and its governing board. Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C.’s attorneys are also active volunteers in the community as participants in local community charitable work.

Fiduciary Services
Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. has a long and proud tradition of advising institutional and individual trustees and other fiduciaries as to their legal responsibilities with respect to the investment and management of funds. Where a client lacks satisfactory alternatives, individual attorneys of Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. are experienced, willing, and able to serve as trustees or other fiduciaries for individual or family business and financial matters.

Legal Services for Business
Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. has long played a leading role in representing clients in business matters in the Research Triangle area. Our representation typically includes counseling regarding the initial consideration of business entity choices, tax planning, and the legal structure and establishment of the business entity, from a sole proprietorship to a corporation, partnership, limited partnership, professional corporation, limited liability corporation, or other form of business entity. Representation of business clients also includes executive compensation matters including deferred compensation, employment-related business issues, corporate administration and maintenance, planning for family continuation of business ownership, and assistance with the myriad of day-to-day legal issues which businesses face every day. A general legal review of the business entity and its operation is a basic part of Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C.'s representation of businesses.

Another important part of the business practice of Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. is representing clients involved in commercial real estate projects and the financing of those projects. From representation of land developers in land acquisition to leasing transactions and the structure of complex financing plans involving private investors and banks, Walker, Lambe, Rhudy & Costley, P.L.L.C. can be an integral part of your business plan.