Rachel Fuerst, the youngest daughter of Robert L. Fuerst, was born and raised in Rocky Mount, North Carolina. After graduating from Rocky Mount Senior High, Rachel received the prestigious Morehead Scholarship to attend the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She graduated with honors in 1998 and went on to earn her Juris Doctorate from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill School of Law in 2001.
After graduation, Rachel practiced law in Atlanta, Georgia for ten years, focusing her practice on catastrophic liability cases, as well as litigating and managing cases in Arkansas, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina and Virginia.
Rachel’s practice has been shaped in large part by her close relationship with her grandfather, Dr. Herbert Fuerst, and her concern for the rights and needs of elders and those who live with disabilities related to old age. She continues to work with families of individuals living with disabilities, including dementia and other brain injuries.
Through her work, she became involved in Disability Rights NC, North Carolina’s federally mandated non-profit organization charged with protecting the rights of children and adults living with disabilities in North Carolina.
Rachel is passionate about making sure her clients have the opportunity to be heard and to receive a fair chance to live the lives they choose. She and her family are staunch advocates for improving the lives of everyone in their community.
Outside of work, she enjoys traveling, especially to Spanish-speaking countries. Rachel and her husband, Kepler Knott, lived in Costa Rica for two years, where Rachel learned most of her conversational Spanish. Rachel and her husband have two children, Sylvie and Minnie, as well as an Australian Cattle dog named Bullet.
She and her family spend their summers swimming at Atlantic Beach and hike through Blue Ridge Parkway in the fall. Rachel enjoys baking and is almost always in the middle of a mystery novel and a new home improvement project.
Education
- Bachelor’s Degree – University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill
- Juris Doctorate – University of North Carolina School of Law
BAR ADMISSIONS
- Georgia
- North Carolina
- Virginia
- Multiple Federal Courts in Georgia, North Carolina, and Virginia
- Department of Veterans Affairs Accreditation
PROFESSIONAL ASSOCIATIONS
- North Carolina Advocates for Justice (NCAJ)
- Nursing Home Section Chair – 2019-2020
- Chair of Communications
- North Carolina Bar Association, Justice and Judiciary Committee
- Wake County Bar Association
- Virginia State Bar
- American Association for Justice
Raleigh Office
Raleigh, NC 27612
P (919) 781-1107
F (919) 781-8048
Rocky Mount Office
Rocky Mount, NC 27804
P (252) 443-2111
F (252) 443-9429
Jacksonville Office
Jacksonville, NC 28540
P (910) 377-7671
Boone Office
P (828) 295-7469