Crawford H. Cleveland III
Senior Associate General Counsel
Regulatory and Litigation
Crawford serves as Senior Associate General Counsel for Appalachian State University. He joined the Office of General Counsel in April of 2019. His legal practice areas include litigation, regulatory compliance, Academic Affairs, Student Affairs, utility law for New River Light & Power, first amendment law, and public record requests. Prior to joining the University, he was a partner with di Santi, Watson, Capua, Wilson & Garrett, PLLC. He has experience in general civil litigation and has served as a County Attorney for Watauga County. In addition, he also has in-house counsel experience with a large construction company in Louisiana from his time in New Orleans.
He is active within the North Carolina State Bar and the local bar. The State Bar Council appointed him to a second three-year term in 2023 to serve on the Board of Directors for the North Carolina State Bar Lawyer Assistance Program. In October of 2020, he was elected President of the 35th Judicial District Bar covering a five-county area (Watauga, Avery, Yancey, Madison, Mitchell) for the 2021-2022 term. At the local level, Crawford has served as President of the Watauga County Bar Association in 2019 and 2024 and has been a member of the Executive Committee for the past five years. He particularly enjoys his engagement with attorneys in the community and helps organize Continuing Legal Education events for the local bar.
In the High Country, Crawford has served on boards and in leadership positions both in Boone and Blowing Rock. When he is not at work, he enjoys spending time with his wife, Brynn, and their two boys. They like to hike trails along the Blue Ridge Parkway and ski together during the winter season.
EXPERIENCE
Education
- The University of the South, Sewanee, Tennessee – B.A. English
- Charlotte School of Law, North Carolina – Juris Doctor
Bar Admissions
- North Carolina
Memberships
- North Carolina State Bar
- North Carolina State Bar Association
- 35th Judicial District Bar, President 2021-2022
- Watauga County Bar Association, President 2019, 2024
- National Association of College and University Attorneys
- University of North Carolina System Attorneys Group
- UNC Executive Leadership Institute, Class of 2024
University Committees
- Emergency Management Task Force
- Real Estate Committee
- Occupational Safety and Health Committee
- Campus Climate Support Committee
Community Service
- North Carolina State Bar Lawyer Assistance Program, Board of Directors 2020-2026
- North Carolina Lawyer Assistance Program Foundation, Board of Directors 2020-2026
- National Ski Patrol, Alpine Patroller at Appalachian Ski Mountain
- St. Mary of the Hills Episcopal Church, Blowing Rock, Vestry 2018-2020
- Watauga County Children’s Council, Board of Directors 2016-2019
- Boone Sunrise Rotary 2016-2018
Practice Groups
- Higher Education
- Litigation
- Real Property
- Student Affairs
- Academic Affairs
- Transactional
- Utility and Energy