Martin Brinkley Receives Carolina Alumni Faculty Service Award

Carolina Alumni, The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill’s more than 367,000-member alumni association, has honored Martin Brinkley with its Faculty Service Award, recognizing his outstanding service to the University and his decade of leadership as dean of Carolina Law.

Martin was a partner at Smith Anderson for 12 years before becoming the 14th dean of the University of North Carolina School of Law on July 1, 2015. He is the only lawyer in the modern history of Carolina Law to have been appointed dean directly from the practicing bar. He served as dean from 2015 to 2025 and remains affiliated with the law school as a Kenan Distinguished Professor, while also serving as of counsel with Smith Anderson. His corporate law practice focuses on mergers and acquisitions, antitrust, insurance and regulatory matters, public finance and nonprofit organizations.

The award is presented to faculty members whose contributions have had a meaningful impact across the University community. Martin is the fifth Carolina Law faculty member to receive this honor, joining Judith Wegner, Dickson Phillips, Ken Broun and Lissa Broome—an accomplishment that reflects the deep respect he has earned across the University community.

Read the full Carolina Alumni article celebrating his service here.