There's a bad recession on, but there's a lot of billable hours being added up in the State Board of Elections hearing room.

Whatever comes of the Gov. Mike Easley hearings, the proceeding has given a boost to a bunch of lawyers.

Gov. Mike Easley has his lawyer, Thomas Hicks (pictured at the far right). Hicks worked as a prosecutor under Easley when Easley was a district attorney in Bladen, Brunswick and Columbus counties.

Jim Cooney (pictured next to Hicks) is representing the N.C. Democratic Party. Cooney represented exonerated Duke University lacrosse player Reade Seligmann and former death row inmate Alan Gell.

John Wallace and David Long are representing the Easley campaign.

Ruffin Poole, a lawyer himself, came with his attorney, Joseph Zeszotarski.

Car dealer Robert F. Bleecker testified with his lawyer, Dan Boyce, sitting behind him. There are at least a half dozen other lawyers or paralegals in the room.

Correction: Post now includes correct information about where Easley was a District Attorney.

The State Board of Elections opened a hearing into the campaign finance activity of former Gov. Mike Easley.

Board of Elections chairman Larry Leake called the hearing to order right at 11 a.m., recognized the attorneys representing the various parties involved in the case. Leake then moved the board into a closed session to discuss how to proceed with its criminal inquiry.

David Long, a lawyer for Easley's campaign, rose to question whether Leake meant to call the hearing "criminal."

"The fact that this board is considering a hearing and an inquiry does not in any way suggest or mean that anybody has done anything wrong and any inference to that effect based on the existence of this inquiry or my statements would be erroneous," Leake said.

Leake said that he did mean to say "criminal," but noted that the fact that a hearing was underway did not mean anyone was guilty of a crime.

Easley was not in the hearing room Monday and is not expected to attend regularly.

McQueen Campbell, pictured above left, sat in the front row, drawing looks, camera clicks and murmuring. Campbell has figured prominently in the questions about Easley's campaign finances. And he may be called to testify today.