Russ Ferguson Confirmed as U.S. Attorney for Western North Carolina

Russ Ferguson’s confirmation by the U.S. Senate and swearing-in as the presidentially appointed United States attorney for the Western District of North Carolina caps a year-long leadership transition that began earlier this spring under the U.S. Department of Justice.

On March 11, 2025, the U.S. Department of Justice announced that Ferguson had been sworn in as U.S. attorney after his March 3 appointment by Attorney General Pamela Bondi. The oath of office was administered by U.S. District Judge Frank D. Whitney.

“It is the honor of a lifetime to serve as United States attorney for the Western District of North Carolina,” Ferguson said at the time. “I am fortunate to be coming into a well-regarded office with some of the best lawyers in North Carolina. I am ready to roll up my sleeves and get to work for the people of my home state.”

Following that initial appointment, federal judges in the district unanimously appointed Ferguson to continue in the role effective June 30, 2025. He was later nominated by President Donald Trump on July 30 and confirmed by the U.S. Senate on Dec. 18. His presidential commission was signed Dec. 23, and he was sworn in again on Christmas Eve as the Senate-confirmed U.S. attorney.

As chief federal law enforcement officer for the Western District of North Carolina, Ferguson oversees all federal criminal prosecutions and civil litigation on behalf of the United States. He leads an office of nearly 100 federal prosecutors and support personnel serving 32 counties across western North Carolina, including the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians, the largest Native American community in the eastern United States.

Ferguson brings more than 16 years of legal experience to the position. He began his career as a federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the District of Columbia, where he tried 28 cases to verdict. Before his appointment, he was a partner at Womble Bond Dickinson, leading the firm’s complex litigation group and handling high-profile civil and criminal cases, including international arbitrations.

He has held leadership roles with the Mecklenburg County Bar, which recognized him for pro bono service, and has been named to Super Lawyers, Best Lawyers in America, and North Carolina Business Elite. Ferguson also received the Charlotte Business Journal’s Forty Under Forty Award and has written and spoken extensively on civil and criminal law.

Ferguson serves on the board of NourishUp, Charlotte’s food pantry and meals-on-wheels organization. He earned his undergraduate degree from Duke University and his law degree and Master of Laws from Georgetown University Law Center. After law school, he clerked for Judge Whitney in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of North Carolina.

The seat was previously held by Dena King, who is now a partner at Parker Poe. First Assistant U.S. Attorney Lawrence Cameron served as Acting U.S. Attorney before Ferguson was named King's successor. Cameron is now a partner at Troutman Pepper Locke.