*This article has been updated to include a statement from Board Member Stephanie Walker.
On Wednesday, January 3, at the New Hanover County Board of Education’s agenda review meeting, members Stephanie Kraybill and Stephanie Walker said they had been notified that they lost two of their employees from the Vogel Law Firm, LLC, adding that they were now in a deficit for their “specialty areas” of the law.
While Kraybill and Walker did not reveal who the two employees were — a complaint filed on January 2 for money owed in small claims court in Mecklenburg County shows it was Jonathan and Leigha Sink.
The Sinks are alleging that Jonathan Vogel owes them $7,779.25 for October's legal bills.
The reason, the Sinks claim, is that Vogel breached his contract with them, and “the Defendant knows he breached [it] and is in the wrong.” They allege that he violated the contract “on or around December 28, 2022 [sic] when he willfully withheld monies due to the Plaintiff [the Sinks].”
The Sinks appear to have been researching their complaint for several weeks. Late last year, on December 21, Jonathan Sink filed a public records request asking NHCS staff to provide him with the “Vogel Firm’s October 2023 detailed invoice to NHCS/NHC Board as well as Vogel Law Firm’s November 2023 detailed invoice to NHCS.”
In their complaint, the Sinks claim they have a contractual agreement with Vogel, which provides that they are supposed to split the monthly income from “their shared client, the New Hanover County Board of Education, 50/50 on a monthly basis.”
The complaint said the contract was enclosed, but it wasn't available through the courts; it is likely considered a part of the evidentiary file for the impending case.
The Sinks end the filing by saying Vogel is “acting willfully, unilaterally, and deceitfully in his individual capacity [...] and serves as the basis by which the Defendant’s corporate veil has been pierced.”
They are asking the court to recover the full amount they are owed, plus interest and reimbursement for court costs.
Both Jonathan and Leigha declined to comment about the filing.
Vogel also declined to comment because it’s a “personnel matter.” He also made similar statements on Wednesday, reiterating that the Sinks’ departure was both a personnel and privacy matter and that “all companies have people that come and go,” referencing the board’s previous law firm, Tharrington Smith, alluding specifically to one of their former attorneys, Colin Shive.
He went on to say that the Sinks did “very little work for the firm” and “very little has changed” now that they are gone — and that the board could “verify” his firm’s invoices with him.
However, legal invoices show that the Sinks have been doing considerable work in the areas of exceptional children and bonds and forfeitures, which Vogel said now he will take over. He said there are other attorneys on staff, but they were not named or listed on his site. Vogel said attorney Terry Wallace will continue to consult on litigation matters, human resources, contract review, and operations.
During Wednesday’s meeting, Kraybill expressed concerns that the Sinks were leaving, as well as reiterating concerns about Vogel’s qualifications, including his dubious claims to have been in the running to represent Cabarrus County (Vogel’s firm was not a top choice, and was not selected).
Board member Pat Bradford defended Vogel, suggesting that Kraybill’s criticism was a breach of the board’s ethics policy and could make the board look “dysfunctional.”
Vogel alleged that ultimately the complaints against him were because of “misinformation and people who have ulterior motives and hidden political agendas.”
He also reminded the board that they have a “contract with the Vogel Law Firm and no particular attorney” and that they “acknowledged his good work by renewing it until the end of the year,” even though the contract renewal was approved in a split 4-3 vote, with Kraybill, Walker, and Hugh McManus dissenting
Back in April when the firm first presented to the board, Vogel did say that it was four lawyers who would be representing the school district, himself, the Sinks, and Terry Wallace. He only mentioned that he would be the main point of contact for the board and that any of the four would be available “24/7 by phone to immediately respond.”
WHQR has put out requests for comment to the board and the district.
Board Member Josie Barnhart said “No comment.” Bradford said, "As I have said publicly, whatever is alleged to be occurring or alleged to have occurred between a board vendor and its staff is an internal personnel issue that does not involve the board."
Board Member Stephanie Walker sent the following statement: "I have said it before, and I’ll say it yet again - this firm does not have adequate experience to handle the needs of this school district. Six months later and every new disclosure proves that my concerns were valid. In my view, they were not truthful with this board from the very onset. They were hired in an extremely partisan fashion, and that pressure to hire and retain them, despite concerns, including this new extremely troubling revelation, does this school district and our county taxpayers a disservice. We were elected to be good stewards for New Hanover County Schools, and the fact that Mr. Vogel is being sued by his one-time partners for non-payment and breach of contract should be a wakeup call to this board. It is my hope that the board will do the right thing by our school district."
Below: Suit filed in Mecklenburg County court.
24CV000110-590 by Ben Schachtman on Scribd
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