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On June 23, 2017, at its Annual Meeting in Asheville, the North Carolina Bar Association has recognized L. Phillip Hornthal, III with its Citizen Lawyer Award.  This award honor attorneys who dedicate their time and talents to serving their communities and inspire others to do the same.

Hornthal is right at home practicing law in Elizabeth City, North Carolina, a small town in the far northeast corner of the state.  After completing his undergraduate degree at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and his law degree at Campbell University, Hornthal returned to Elizabeth City in 1999 to practice law and to serve as a vital resource for the local community.  His recommender, L. P. Hornthal, Jr., believes that Hornthal “represents the very epitome of a Citizen Laweyer in the extraordinarily broad scope of his service to the community over the past 17 years; and service to and through the bar.”

Hornthal’s personal philosophy is that his life as a lawyer and his life as a citizen is “indivisible” living in a small town and community.  Despite having a fulfilling and busy litigation case load over his legal career, Hornthal is compelled to give back to the community in which he was raised and nurtured.  Hornthal believes that lawyers should heed the calling to serve their community, especially in smaller, rural areas where resources are scant.

In Elizabeth City, Hornthal has served his community through countless endeavors such as his service to Arts of Albermarle, the Elizabeth City Boys and Girls Club Board of Directors, the Elizabeth City-Pasquotank County Human Relations Committee, among several additional service and leadership roles.   Through his role as the co-chair of the Building Campaign to save the Lowry Chesson Building, the Arts of Albermarle raised $3.4 million for renovating and converting the building into “The Center” to serve as a location to showcase the visual and performing arts.  Hornthal has also served two terms as the President of the organization’s Board of Directors.

For successfully balancing his numerous commitments in the community with his busy law practice, and for his many contributions to the Elizabeth City area, the North Carolina Bar Association names L. Phillip Hornthal, III a 2017 recipient of the Citizen Lawyer Award.