Dispute Resolution Section Recognizes Two Individuals

February 24, 2026

On Feb. 13, 2026, at the Dispute Resolution Section Annual Meeting hosted at the N.C. Bar Center, Frank Laney presented NCBA Dispute Resolution Section members Richard J. “Rick” Igou and George P. Doyle with the Harmony Award and the Peace Award.

The Harmony Award is given annually to an individual of the Dispute Resolution Section who provides significant pro bono service, contributing to the dispute resolution field through leadership and participation in civic, community and charitable efforts.

Harmony Award winner Rick Igou is a longtime laborer and leader in the dispute resolution field in North Carolina. He is a Durham lawyer who was first trained in mediation in 1990. He now limits his practice to alternative dispute resolution (ADR), providing mediation and arbitration services as a District Criminal Court mediator, District Court arbitrator, Family Financial Settlement mediator, Court Permanency mediator, Superior Court MSC mediator and also arbitrating and mediating business and community matters. For the past eight years, Igou has taught related courses at the North Carolina Central University School of Law.

Igou has a three-decade tenure as a volunteer mediator, facilitator and trainer with the Dispute Settlement Center of Orange County. He has been a board member for more than 12 years and recently finished a term as vice president of the board, followed by a year as president. Igou provides free mediation services to his local legal aid office and serves as a guardian ad litem.

He has also been a member of the Supreme Court Custody Advisory Committee since 2012, meeting regularly to examine challenges and find solutions for child custody mediation programs across the state. Igou is a repeat member of the Dispute Resolution Section Council, regularly participating in CLE programs as either a speaker, a planner or both. He is on the coordinating committee for the rewriting of the Green Book, brainstorming which chapters to include in the new edition and then serving as a “cat herder,” finding and corralling writers to complete those chapters.

Laney delivered the speech honoring Igou with the award, where he compared his place in the world of ADR to the star player on a championship team.

Every championship team has its stars who put up highlight reels, but to win consistently and win the tough games, a team needs what is called the glue guy. The guy who works hard every day. Does the gritty, tough, unappreciated things that hold the team together and keep it going during the tough times. Rick is just that kind of guy for ADR in North Carolina. He has provided quiet, consistent, largely behind-the-scenes leadership in many, many parts of the ADR field for an entire career, doing the necessary work to make sure everyone can access the benefits of dispute resolution.

The Peace Award is given annually to an individual of the Dispute Resolution Section who has made a special commitment to the peaceful resolution of disputes. Recipients are often committed to the development of new and innovative programs and research and writings, as well as the demonstration of improvements in service, efficiency and leadership with local, state and national boards and legislative bodies.

Peace Award winner George Doyle is a Chapel Hill attorney with 30 years of experience as a litigator and a respected, well-known leader, having served as president of both his district bar and county bar association. He has also been a statewide leader at NCBA through his active membership in no fewer than four sections and chair positions on several bar committees.

Doyle has been a mediator since 1992, mediating Superior Court cases first, then Workers’ Compensation and Family Financial cases, before adding matters before the clerk of court. He also arbitrates District Court cases.

After being certified in all of these alternative dispute resolution programs, he continued his training by studying at Harvard Law School. Eventually, he turned around and used his knowledge, experience and skills to teach at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, UNC School of Law and Greensboro College.

Laney delivered the speech honoring Doyle with the Peace Award, where he not only spoke about Doyle’s career accomplishments but also his great personality.

He is friendly, outgoing and well-liked. When he sees you, he greets you by name and asks about you and others who are mutual friends. He has a big smile and a ready laugh. He is interested in you and lets you know it. People are persuaded by people they like and trust — everyone likes George, and he likes everyone. He is a true believer in dispute resolution. It is in his bones, in his core values. He loves to help people and cares deeply about them.

Doyle’s dedication to leadership in his local bar has built up mounds of trust, credibility and relationships. His ideas about the use and benefits of mediation and arbitration do not go unheard by fellow leaders because they know he has put in the work to understand the message he is trying to convey.

George has been a voice and, before it became a thing, an influencer for the growth and nurturing of dispute resolution in our courts and in our communities. For his quiet but effective leadership, we salute George Doyle.

Visit the Dispute Resolution Section page to learn more about the community and get involved.