RALEIGH – Campbell Law School Vice Dean Raven Byrne ‘06 and Tricia Wilson Magee ‘03, a partner at Shumaker, Loop & Kendrick LLP, have been named among the 2026 “The 50 Most Influential Women” in the state by N.C. Lawyers Weekly.
Byrne and Magee are among those being honored at an event the publication is hosting on Thursday, Oct. 29, in Charlotte.
“The 50 Most Influential Women” event spotlights the important role women leaders play in North Carolina’s legal and business community, according to organizers. Honorees are selected for their leadership, business acumen, mentoring and community involvement.
Byrne joined the law school as Director of Student Life and Pro Bono Opportunities in September 2021. She was promoted to Assistant Dean of Student Life and Pro Bono Opportunities in August 2022. She was promoted to Vice Dean in May 2023.
Byrne returned to Campbell Law after working in private practice for 15 years. She operated her own firm, Brooks & Byrne, from 2007 to 2020, where she worked to provide proactive representation in a cost-effective way. Most recently, as an associate attorney with Breeden Law Office, she counseled clients on a variety of family law matters.
In her current role, Byrne oversees all of the law school administrative, budgetary and supervisory responsibilities for the departments of Admissions, Career Services, External Relations and Student Life and Pro Bono Opportunities.
Active in professional and civic communities, Byrne has served on the board of directors of Gigi’s Playhouse Raleigh and Hands of Compassion International, a non-profit based in Cary that provides services to people in Guayaquil, Ecuador. She has served as a pro bono attorney for Project Together in Wake County. She also volunteered as a Guardian ad Litem in Harnett, Johnston and Lee counties, and participated in mission trips serving children in Ecuador and the Dominican Republic. She is a member of the North Carolina State Bar, the North Carolina Bar Association and the Wake County Bar Association.
Byrne, who lives in Fuquay-Varina, earned a bachelor of arts in rhetorical communications with a minor in Spanish from the University of North Carolina-Chapel Hill in 2002.
Magee is a seasoned litigator and partner at Shumaker, where she serves as a Labor & Employment Service Line Lead. With more than two decades of experience, she is known for her commanding courtroom presence and her ability to navigate complex, high‑profile legal matters at the trial and appellate levels in both state and federal courts. Her practice centers on litigation, including matters related to labor and employment and intellectual property (IP) as well as commercial litigation.
Prior to joining Shumaker, she served 18 years as the career law clerk to Judge Frank D. Whitney, U.S. District Judge for the Western District of North Carolina. During her service with the federal bench, she played a central role in the court’s adjudication of thousands of civil and criminal matters and she provided trusted counsel to the court in more than 150 federal jury and bench trials.
“This extensive “behind‑the‑scenes” experience informs every aspect of my practice today, giving clients a rare perspective into how judges and juries evaluate facts and reach decisions,” she said. “My ability to anticipate judicial reasoning makes me a strategic partner in high‑stakes litigation, including recent representation in nationally publicized sports industry disputes and complex collegiate athletics litigation.”
Magee is also an engaged community leader with a strong commitment to organizational effectiveness and governance. She has held director and executive leadership roles with several notable nonprofits, including past president of the Junior League of Charlotte and past board chair for Charlotte Family Housing.
Magee, who lives in Charlotte, served as a judicial law clerk to North Carolina Court of Appeals Judge John Tyson ‘79 following graduation. While in law school, she served as a judicial extern to then North Carolina Supreme Court Chief Justice Mark Martin and as a legal intern to the Chief Legal Counsel of the United States Senate. She earned a bachelor’s degree from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill in public policy analysis with a minor in history in 2000.
Other 2026 50 Most Influential Women Honorees
Mandy Alfaro, Fairwood Construction
Nana A. Asante-Smith, Parker Poe
Corinne Auman, Choice Care Navigators
Alexis Baker, First American Title Insurance Co.
Jessica Berresse, Seemingly Overzealous
Sarah Boyce, Office of the Governor
Sarah D. Byrne, Moore & Van Allen
Dr. Samantha DeLoache, Modeling Pharmacist LLC
Dawn M. Dillon, Young Moore
Brittany Fancher, FeedNC
Kelli Ferry, Novant Health
Kimberly B. Gatling, Fox Rothschild
Morgan Grohol, BGE, Inc.
Carmaletta Henson, Henson Fuerst
Valerie A. Johnson, Johnson & Groninger
Melody J. Jolly, Cranfill Sumner
Dr. Karla Jones, Queens University of Charlotte and MKCircle Enterprises CEO Institute
Carrie Klamut, Girl Scouts Hornets Nest Council
Carolyn L. Krueger-Andes, Krueger-Andes Law
Patricia A. Markus, Nelson Mullins
Carrie Miller, Sanger Heart & Vascular Institute
Kristen Moore, NiceDay
Dimelina Mora, Truist Bank
Elizabeth Moran, Premier Gynecology and Wellness
Kerry Barr O’Connor, The Village on Morehead
Adenike Ohonme-Goldschmidt, Samaritan’s Feet International
Milan T.T. Pham, NicholsonPham
Dr. Valerie N. Rakes, Catawba College
Michelle Riley, Truliant Federal Credit Union
Dana Silvers, The Beck Group / Beck Architecture
Caroline W. Sink, Robinson Bradshaw
Elizabeth Sterling, Foundation for the Carolinas
Monique Stubbs, Monique Stubbs Enterprises
Johanna Suarez, Reliable Restorations
Sharon Sullivan, Renewal by Andersen
Kimberly O. Swintosky, Smith Anderson
Dr. Tracy Threatt, Changing The Narrative for Women Veterans
Jennifer K. Van Zant, Brooks, Pierce, McLendon, Humphrey & Leonard
Hon. Carrie F. Vickery, North Carolina Judicial Branch
Amy P. Wang, Ward and Smith
Dixie Wells, Ellis & Winters
Elizabeth Wheeler, Mosaic Engineering and Consulting
Terri White, Charlotte Museum of History
Alexa Whiteside, WAM
Lauren Woodruff, Bank of America
Noelle E. Wooten, Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz
Marissa Wooten, Instrata
Cordelia Zerega, Prudent Growth Partners
ABOUT CAMPBELL LAW
Since its founding in 1976, Campbell Law has developed lawyers who possess moral conviction, social compassion and professional competence, and who view the law as a calling to serve others. Among its accolades, the school has been recognized by the American Bar Association (ABA) as having the nation’s top Professionalism Program and by the American Academy of Trial Lawyers for having the nation’s best Trial Advocacy Program. Campbell Law boasts more than 4,700 alumni, who make their home in nearly all 50 states and beyond. In 2026, Campbell Law is celebrating 50 years of graduating legal leaders and 17 years of being located in a state-of-the-art facility in the heart of North Carolina’s Capital City.