J. Griffin Morgan was born in Springfield, Massachusetts in 1950. As part of a military family, he spent his childhood traveling throughout the United States and Europe. He graduated from Denison University with a major in Institutional and Social Change. Griff was active in the Civil Rights and antiwar movements. He was a member of the founding class of the Antioch School of Law in Washington, D.C., which was created to train lawyers dedicated to civil rights and to helping individuals.

After graduating from law school in 1975, Griff worked as a union organizer and labor representative. He was responsible for organizing campaigns, negotiating contracts and arbitration hearings. In 1984, Griff became a staff attorney with the Legal Aid Society of Northwest North Carolina. In 1987, he founded the firm of Morgan & Morton. In 1991 he merged his practice with Elliot & Pishko to form the current firm of Elliot Pishko Morgan.

Griff remains dedicated to assisting individuals who are the victims of discrimination, who need assistance with problems arising from work or who have suffered a serious injury. He practices primarily in the areas of employment, labor and workers' compensation. He has successfully represented victims of sexual harassment, gender, race, and disability discrimination. His workers' compensation practice focuses on significant cases regarding physical injuries and occupational diseases, including mental stress cases.

Since 1985, Griff has taught as an adjunct professor at Wake Forest University School of Law, where he currently teaches Workers' Compensation. He is a member of the National Employment Lawyers Association and a former Chair of the North Carolina Chapter. He is a member of the North Carolina Academy of Trial Lawyers, and served as the founding Chair of the Employment Law Section. He is a member of The North Carolina State Bar Workers' Compensation Specialty Committee. He is a frequent lecturer at continuing legal education seminars on employment law and workers' compensation. He has been selected for listing as one of the Best Lawyers in America. He is certified as a specialist in workers' compensation law by the North Carolina State Bar.

Community service is a fundamental part of Griff's practice. He currently serves on the Board of Directors of the North Carolina Black Repertory Company and. He has served on the Boards of the Legal Aid Society, the North Carolina Occupational Safety and Health Committee and Workers' Compensation Section of the North Carolina Academy of Trial Lawyers and the Council of the Workers' Compensation Section of the North Carolina Bar Association. He regularly represents clients unable to afford an attorney and successfully represented a death row inmate in the post-conviction process, removing her from death row.

Griff is married and has two children, a son and a daughter. He enjoys traveling, running, reading and spending time with his family.