About Catherine
Catherine Drake is a attorney based in Greensboro, North Carolina, specializing in estate planning and fiduciary law. She earned her Juris Doctor from Tulane University School of Law in 1998 and holds a Master of Arts in Political Economy from the University of Toronto, completed in 1977. Admitted to the North Carolina State Bar, she has been practicing law in the state for over two decades. Throughout her career, Catherine has focused on complex estate administration, special needs planning, and estate and trust litigation.
She has been a partner at McPherson Rocamora Nicholson Wilson & Hinkle PLLC in Durham, where she developed her expertise in these areas. Her dedication to the field is further demonstrated by her role as a Fellow of the American College of Trust and Estate Counsel (ACTEC) and as an Honorary Member of the Special Needs Alliance. In addition to her practice, Catherine has been actively involved with the North Carolina Bar Association (NCBA). She has served on the Council of the Estate Planning & Fiduciary Law Section and was the Immediate Past Chair of the Section's Legislative Committee.
Her contributions to the legal community have been recognized nationally; in 2011, she was selected as one of the inaugural Fastcase 50, honoring innovators and leaders in the legal field. She has also served on the ABA TECHSHOW Board and co-chaired the event in 2019 and 2020. Catherine's educational background includes a Bachelor of Arts in English, magna cum laude, from Lipscomb University, and a Master of Theological Studies from Vanderbilt University Divinity School. While at Vanderbilt, she was an Honors Scholar and served as Executive Articles Editor for the Vanderbilt Journal of Transnational Law.
Her diverse education gave her a unique perspective in her legal practice — Outside of her professional endeavors, Catherine is committed to community service. She has been involved with local land trusts and conservation commissions, reflecting her dedication to environmental stewardship. Her personal interests include cycling, skiing, kayaking, and hiking in the Green Mountains, activities she enjoys with her family and dogs. Catherine's experience and active involvement in both the legal and local communities underscore her commitment to providing comprehensive legal services in estate planning and fiduciary law.
