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Paul C. Ridgeway
Paul C. Ridgeway is a judge for Judicial District 10A of the North Carolina 3rd Superior Court Division. He assumed office on January 1, 2007. His current term ends in 2026.
Ridgeway (Democratic Party) ran for re-election for the Judicial District 10A judge of the North Carolina 3rd Superior Court Division. He won in the general election on November 8, 2022.
Ridgeway completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. Click here to read the survey answers.
The North Carolina Superior Courts are split into five divisions and 48 districts. Superior court judges rotate among the districts within their division every six months.[1] However, superior court judges are elected by voters in their district and must reside in the district in which they are elected.[2]
Biography
Paul C. Ridgeway earned a bachelor's degree from North Carolina State University in 1982, a law degree from the Campbell University School of Law in 1986, and a graduate degree from North Carolina State University in 1990.[3]
Elections
2022
See also: Municipal elections in Wake County, North Carolina (2022)
General election
General election for North Carolina 3rd Superior Court Division Judicial District 10A
Incumbent Paul C. Ridgeway won election in the general election for North Carolina 3rd Superior Court Division Judicial District 10A on November 8, 2022.
Candidate | % | Votes | ||
| ✔ |  | Paul C. Ridgeway (D)  | 100.0 | 46,880 |
| Total votes: 46,880 | |||
| = candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey. | ||||
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Democratic primary election
The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Paul C. Ridgeway advanced from the Democratic primary for North Carolina 3rd Superior Court Division Judicial District 10A.
2014
See also: North Carolina judicial elections, 2014
Ridgeway ran for re-election to the 10A Judicial District of the Third Division of the Superior Court.
General: He was unopposed in the general election on November 4, 2014.
[4]
Campaign themes
2022
Ballotpedia survey responses
See also: Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection
Paul C. Ridgeway completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey in 2022. The survey questions appear in bold and are followed by Ridgeway's responses. Candidates are asked three required questions for this survey, but they may answer additional optional questions as well.
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Raised in Raleigh, Ridgeway received his B.S. degree and M.P.A. from NC State University and his J.D., cum laude, from Campbell Law School (’86), where he was the Law Review editor-in-chief. Thereafter, he was awarded a fellowship to the University of Amsterdam and obtained an advanced degree in European Community law.
Prior to being elected as a judge, Ridgeway practiced law in a variety of litigation, commercial transactions, and administrative law fields. Since 1993, Ridgeway has been an adjunct professor of law at Campbell Law School, currently teaching a seminar on Law and Public Policy and a seminar on International Litigation.
Ridgeway was elected President of the Wake County Bar Association and Vice President of the NC Bar Association. He received the Judge Robinson Everett Professionalism Award (‘14) and the NC Advocates for Justice Outstanding Trial Judge Award (‘20).
- I consider the privilege of serving as an elected judge to be a great responsibility and aspire every day to do the best job I possibly can to honor the trust the citizens have placed in me to be a caretaker of their courts.
- I seek to apply the law as it is written in a fair and even-handed manner consistent with my oath of office.
- I strive to treat each person who appears before me in court with dignity, respect, courtesy and professionalism.
(2) I am passionate about measures that we as a court system can take, and improvements we can make, that guarantee greater access and greater justice for all persons who come before us.
Note: Ballotpedia reserves the right to edit Candidate Connection survey responses. Any edits made by Ballotpedia will be clearly marked with [brackets] for the public. If the candidate disagrees with an edit, he or she may request the full removal of the survey response from Ballotpedia.org. Ballotpedia does not edit or correct typographical errors unless the candidate's campaign requests it.
Education
Ridgeway received his B.S. in 1982 and a masters of public administration in 1990 from North Carolina State University. He received his J.D. from Campbell University School of Law 1986.[5]
Career
Before becoming a judge, Ridgeway practiced law for two decades. He was working at the firm of Everett, Gaskins, Hancock & Stevens, LLP before his election to the bench in November 2006. Since 1992, and in addition to his judicial duties, Ridgeway has been teaching law as an adjunct professor at Campbell University School of Law.[5][6]
Awards and associations
- Member, Wake County Bar Association, President
- Member, North Carolina Bar Association
- Member, NCSU Alumni Association [5]
Noteworthy cases
Common Cause v. Lewis (2019)
- See also: Redistricting in North Carolina
On September 3, 2019, a three-judge panel of North Carolina superior court judges – Paul C. Ridgeway, Joseph N. Crosswhite, and Alma L. Hinton – issued a unanimous ruling striking down the state's legislative district plan as an impermissible partisan gerrymander under the state constitution. In their ruling, the judges wrote, "[The] 2017 Enacted Maps, as drawn, do not permit voters to freely choose their representative, but rather representatives are choosing voters based upon sophisticated partisan sorting. It is not the free will of the people that is fairly ascertained through extreme partisan gerrymandering. Rather, it is the carefully crafted will of the map drawer that predominates."[7]
The court ordered state lawmakers to draft remedial maps by September 18, 2019, for use in the 2020 election cycle. The court indicated that it would appoint a referee to develop and recommend remedial maps to the court should the legislature fail to enact suitable remedial maps.[7]
See also
2022 Elections
External links
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Candidate North Carolina 3rd Superior Court Division Judicial District 10A |
Personal |
Footnotes
- ↑ North Carolina Judicial Branch, "North Carolina Superior Court: About," accessed October 9, 2019
- ↑ North Carolina Judicial Branch, "Court Officials: Superior Court Judges," accessed October 9, 2019
- ↑ Information submitted to Ballotpedia through the Candidate Connection survey on August 10, 2022
- ↑ North Carolina State Board of Elections, "Candidate List Group by Contest," March 4, 2014
- ↑ 5.0 5.1 5.2 Campbell University, "Faculty and Staff Directory"
- ↑ LinkedIn.com, "Profile: Paul Ridgeway"
- ↑ 7.0 7.1 North Carolina General Court of Justice – Superior Court Division – Wake County, "Common Cause v. Lewis: Judgment," September 3, 2019
Federal courts:
Fourth Circuit Court of Appeals • U.S. District Court: Eastern District of North Carolina, Middle District of North Carolina, Western District of North Carolina • U.S. Bankruptcy Court: Eastern District of North Carolina, Middle District of North Carolina, Western District of North Carolina
State courts:
Supreme Court of North Carolina • North Carolina Court of Appeals • North Carolina Superior Courts • North Carolina District Courts
State resources:
Courts in North Carolina • North Carolina judicial elections • Judicial selection in North Carolina
