Attorney Bio: Rachel Starnes
I started at Atlas Orange in October and can honestly say that I cannot and do not dream of working anywhere else - I will, however, give you some backstory into just how I got here.
Taking it all the way back, I was born and raised in Summerfield/Greensboro, North Carolina - I have to make that distinction because my husband, Caleb, claims Summerfield doesn’t count. I had the benefit of going to school with the same group of kids that I'd known my whole life which is something I have become more appreciative of as I have gotten older. Of that group, the one I knew the longest, was and is my twin sister, Hannah. Although truly fraternal in every sense of the word, she is one of my favorite people! She is a chef in the Triad so if you are looking for someone… I have some recommendations!
My mom, who I am the spitting image of, is still in Greensboro with her wife, Michelle, a medical coder. My dad, a PA of Psychiatry, is in Wilmington with his wife, Mary. Funny enough, my dad moved to Wilmington the year before I started my freshman year at UNCW, I guess he didn’t get the hint…
My family is incredibly important to me and we were raised on family-friends, family that you can choose who love you just the same. Speaking of choosing my family, I have gone long enough without mentioning my husband, Caleb, who is one of the kindest, most caring people I have ever met - how and why he ended up with me remains a mystery. Caleb and I knew each other in high school and had reciprocated crushes that never went anywhere. When we kept staring at each other wondering if that was the person I thought it was three years later when I was home visiting my parents, the deal was done, once we did confirm we were in fact who the other thought it was.
Although having married a mountain person, I am a beach person through and through, hence my going to UNCW, which had always been my dream school simply because it was 10 minutes from the beach. In college, I met three of my closest friends, Tori, Laura, and Jordan, each of which I have successfully surprised for their birthdays since graduating. Also while in college, I studied abroad in Salzburg, Austria - one of the most storybook towns you will ever see and I recommend it to anyone who will listen. During my time in Austria, I submitted my application to Elon Law, having decided that there are few things more powerful than knowledge and understanding the legal system would be the information I needed to maintain my unfounded level of confidence.
Somewhere in all of this, Caleb and I got Emma, our husky who does NOT howl but does grumble, donning her Lady Grumbles the Cow.
I started law school in 2018 and Caleb proposed in 2019, three days before my Property final…not saying he was the reason I didn’t do as well as I wanted but I will say I stared at my engagement ring a lot that weekend rather than notes. I had a love/hate relationship with law school and it didn’t help when 2020 hit, if you remember a little thing called COVID. Law school changed, as did the wedding I'd planned for a year…so Caleb and I got married in a "drive-in" style wedding that lasted 15 minutes. A wedding still to come, stay posted. I graduated law school and watched my online commencement and hunkered down.
I bar prepped, nannied while I waited for my bar results, and then passed! My first job was in Creditor's Rights, I know I'm sorry - I took what I could get! I learned a lot, even gained some trial experience, and was ready for something that brought me more fulfillment - cue Atlas Orange.
I feel like I am pretty simple - love my family (dog, included), friends, and job. There ya go, you're caught up.
