North Carolina Court of Appeals

North Carolina Court of Appeals building

The North Carolina Court of Appeals is the only intermediate appellate court in the state of North Carolina. The court has 15 judges who rotate, hearing cases in panels of three. Judges serve eight-year terms and are elected in statewide partisan elections.

If one judge on a three-judge panel dissents, the case may be appealed to the North Carolina Supreme Court. The supreme court may accept other cases for review at its discretion.

The court of appeals decides questions of law, not fact, in reviewing cases from the trial courts. The court hears all civil and criminal appeals from the superior and district courts, except for cases in which the death penalty is imposed. Death penalty sentences are appealed directly to the supreme court.

• Published opinions of the North Carolina Court of Appeals can be found here.

 

North Carolina Court of Appeals
Court information
Judges:	15
Salary:	Associates: $189,621
Judicial selection
Method:	Partisan election of judges
Term:	8 years

Judges

Judge	Tenure	Appointed By
Christopher A. Freeman	January 1, 2025 - Present
Valerie Johnson Zachary	2015 - Present	Pat McCrory
Jefferson Griffin	January 1, 2021 - Present	Elected
Thomas Murry	January 1, 2025 - Present
Michael Stading	January 1, 2023 - Present	Elected
John Marsh Tyson	January 1, 2015 - Present	Elected
Donna Stroud	January 2, 2007 - Present	Elected
Julee Flood	January 1, 2023 - Present	Elected
Jeffery Carpenter	January 1, 2021 - Present	Elected
Chris Dillon	January 1, 2013 - Present	Elected
Willie Fred Gore	January 1, 2021 - Present	Elected
April C. Wood	January 1, 2021 - Present	Elected
Allegra Collins	January 1, 2019 - Present	Elected
Toby Hampson	January 1, 2019 - Present	Elected
John S. Arrowood	2017 - Present	Roy Cooper

Former judges

Click here for a list of former judges of the North Carolina Court of Appeals.

Judicial selection

Judges of the North Carolina Court of Appeals are selected in partisan elections to serve eight-year terms, after which they must run for re-election if they wish to remain on the court. These elections were nonpartisan from 2004 until a law passed in 2016 made them partisan again, beginning in 2018.

For details about North Carolina's judicial elections, visit the North Carolina judicial elections page.

Qualifications

Judicial candidates in North Carolina must be:

• at least 21 years old
• licensed attorneys
• registered to vote
• residents of the state
• under the age of 72

Salary

The annual salary for judges of the North Carolina Court of Appeals is $134,440, effective for the 2013 to 2015 legislative session.

Elections

2022

See also: North Carolina intermediate appellate court elections, 2022

The terms of four North Carolina intermediate appellate court judges expired on December 31, 2022. The four seats were up for partisan election on November 8, 2022.

General election

General election for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 8

Julee Flood defeated Carolyn J. Thompson in the general election for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 8 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Julee Flood (R)	52.4	1,956,550
		Carolyn J. Thompson (D)	47.6	1,775,943

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	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 3,732,493
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Carolyn J. Thompson advanced from the Democratic primary for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 8.

Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Julee Flood advanced from the Republican primary for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 8.

General election

General election for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 9

Incumbent Donna Stroud defeated Brad Salmon in the general election for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 9 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Donna Stroud (R)	54.4	2,029,025
		Brad Salmon (D)	45.6	1,700,597

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 3,729,622
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Brad Salmon advanced from the Democratic primary for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 9.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 9

Incumbent Donna Stroud defeated Beth Freshwater Smith in the Republican primary for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 9 on May 17, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Donna Stroud	59.3	400,119
		Beth Freshwater Smith	40.7	274,861

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 674,980
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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General election

General election for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 10

Incumbent John Marsh Tyson defeated Gale M. Adams in the general election for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 10 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		John Marsh Tyson (R)	52.7	1,967,192
		Gale M. Adams (D)	47.3	1,762,793

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	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 3,729,985
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
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Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Gale M. Adams advanced from the Democratic primary for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 10.

Republican primary election

The Republican primary election was canceled. Incumbent John Marsh Tyson advanced from the Republican primary for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 10.

General election

General election for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 11

Michael Stading defeated incumbent Darren Jackson in the general election for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 11 on November 8, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michael Stading (R)	52.9	1,968,517
		Darren Jackson (D)	47.1	1,755,982

---

	Incumbents are bolded and underlined. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 3,724,499
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
If you are a candidate and would like to tell readers and voters more about why they should vote for you, complete the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection Survey.
Do you want a spreadsheet of this type of data? Contact our sales team.

Democratic primary election

The Democratic primary election was canceled. Incumbent Darren Jackson advanced from the Democratic primary for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 11.

Republican primary election

Republican primary for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 11

Michael Stading defeated Charlton L. Allen in the Republican primary for North Carolina Court of Appeals Seat 11 on May 17, 2022.

		Candidate	%	Votes
✔		Michael Stading	70.8	469,419
	Submit photo	Charlton L. Allen	29.2	194,022

---

	There were no incumbents in this race. The results have been certified. Source	Total votes: 663,441
= candidate completed the Ballotpedia Candidate Connection survey.
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Judges not on the ballot

• Lucy N. Inman (D)

2020

See also: North Carolina intermediate appellate court elections, 2020

The terms of five North Carolina Court of Appeals justices expired on December 31, 2020. The five seats were up for partisan election on November 3, 2020. A full term on the court is eight years.

Candidates and election results

Seat 4: Bryant vacancy

General election candidates

• Tricia Shields  (Democratic Party) 
• April C. Wood  (Republican Party) ✔ 

---

= candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey
 Democratic primary candidates

This primary was canceled and this candidate advanced:

• Tricia Shields ✔ 

---

= candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey
 Republican primary candidates

This primary was canceled and this candidate advanced:

• April C. Wood ✔ 

---

= candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey

Seat 5: McGee vacancy

General election candidates

• Lora Cubbage  (Democratic Party)
• Willie Fred Gore  (Republican Party) ✔

 Democratic primary candidates

This primary was canceled and this candidate advanced:

• Lora Cubbage ✔

 Republican primary candidates

This primary was canceled and this candidate advanced:

• Willie Fred Gore ✔

Seat 6: Dillon's seat

General election candidates

• Chris Dillon  (Incumbent) (Republican Party) ✔
• Gray Styers  (Democratic Party) 

---

= candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey
 Democratic primary candidates

This primary was canceled and this candidate advanced:

• Gray Styers ✔ 

---

= candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey
 Republican primary candidates

This primary was canceled and this candidate advanced:

• Chris Dillon (Incumbent) ✔

Seat 7: Young's seat

General election candidates

• Reuben Young  (Incumbent) (Democratic Party)
• Jeffery Carpenter  (Republican Party) ✔ 

---

= candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey
 Democratic primary candidates

This primary was canceled and this candidate advanced:

• Reuben Young (Incumbent) ✔

 Republican primary candidates

This primary was canceled and this candidate advanced:

• Jeffery Carpenter ✔ 

---

= candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey

Seat 13: Brooks' seat

General election candidates

• Chris Brook  (Incumbent) (Democratic Party) 
• Jefferson Griffin  (Republican Party) ✔ 

---

= candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey
 Democratic primary candidates

This primary was canceled and this candidate advanced:

• Chris Brook (Incumbent) ✔ 

---

= candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey
 Republican primary candidates

This primary was canceled and this candidate advanced:

• Jefferson Griffin ✔ 

---

= candidate completed Ballotpedia's Candidate Connection survey

Judges not on the ballot

• Linda McGee
• Wanda Bryant
  

2018

See also: North Carolina intermediate appellate court elections, 2018

The terms of three North Carolina Court of Appeals judges expired on December 31, 2018. All three stood for partisan election by voters in 2018 in order to remain on the bench. A full term on the court is eight years.

2016

November general election candidates

Five seats were up for election. Though North Carolina judicial elections were nonpartisan at the time of the November 2016 election, court of appeals candidates declared their party affiliations upon filing, and their party affiliations appeared on the ballot as of 2015. Parties did not nominate the candidates, and if a primary was held because more than two candidates filed, that primary was not to narrow the candidates to one candidate from each party. Instead, the top two finishers, regardless of party, advanced to the general election. In 2016, no primary was held for the court of appeals elections, since not more than two candidates each filed to run for the seats held by Dietz, Hunter, Stephens, and Zachary. The Geer seat was not vacant for election until after the regular March primary.

Dietz seat

■ Richard Dietz (R) (Incumbent)
■ Vince M. Rozier Jr. (D)

Hunter seat

■ Robert N. Hunter Jr. (R) (Incumbent)
■ Abe Jones (D)

Stephens seat

■ Linda Stephens (D) (Incumbent)
■ Phil Berger Jr. (R)

Zachary seat

■ Valerie J. Zachary (R) (Incumbent)
■ Rickye McKoy-Mitchell (D)

Geer seat

Judge Martha Geer stepped down from her seat in May.
Her seat was up for election in November 2016.

■ Hunter Murphy (R)
■ Donald R. Buie (D)
■ Margaret P. Eagles (D)

Election results

November 8 general election

Incumbent Richard Dietz defeated Vince M. Rozier, Jr. in the general election for the North Carolina Court of Appeals, Dietz seat.

North Carolina Court of Appeals, Dietz seat, 2016
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Richard Dietz Incumbent	53.47%	2,353,604
Vince M. Rozier, Jr.	46.53%	2,048,367
Total Votes (2,704 of 2,704: 100%)		4,401,971
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections Official Results

Incumbent Robert N. Hunter, Jr. defeated Abraham P. Jones in the general election for the North Carolina Court of Appeals, Hunter seat.

North Carolina Court of Appeals, Hunter seat, 2016
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Robert N. Hunter, Jr. Incumbent	54.37%	2,403,059
Abraham P. Jones	45.63%	2,016,552
Total Votes (2,704 of 2,704: 100%)		4,419,611
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections Official Results

Phil Berger Jr. defeated incumbent Linda Stephens in the general election for the North Carolina Court of Appeals, Stephens seat.

North Carolina Court of Appeals, Stephens seat, 2016
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Phil Berger Jr.	50.25%	2,233,730
Linda Stephens Incumbent	49.75%	2,211,631
Total Votes (2,704 of 2,704: 100%)		4,445,361
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections Official Results

Incumbent Valerie Johnson Zachary defeated Rickye McKoy-Mitchell in the general election for the North Carolina Court of Appeals, Zachary seat.

North Carolina Court of Appeals, Zachary seat, 2016
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Valerie Johnson Zachary Incumbent	53.81%	2,361,232
Rickye McKoy-Mitchell	46.19%	2,027,078
Total Votes (2,704 of 2,704: 100%)		4,388,310
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections Official Results

Hunter Murphy defeated Margaret P. Eagles and Donald R. Buie in the general election for the North Carolina Court of Appeals, Geer seat.

North Carolina Court of Appeals, Geer seat, 2016
Candidate	Vote %	Votes
Hunter Murphy	48.70%	2,159,193
Margaret P. Eagles	45.60%	2,021,769
Donald R. Buie	5.70%	252,756
Total Votes (2,704 of 2,704: 100%)		4,433,718
Source: North Carolina State Board of Elections Official Results

2014

Davis Seat

Candidate	Incumbency	Primary Vote	Election Vote
HolcombePaul A. Holcombe	No		41.2%   D
DavisMark A. DavisA	Yes		58.8%   A

Hunter Seat

Candidate	Incumbency	Primary Vote	Election Vote
SouthernWilliam F. Southern, III	No		48.1%   D
InmanLucy N. InmanA	No		51.9%   A

Unopposed	Judge Donna Stroud (Stroud Seat)

Martin seat, special election

Candidate	Incumbency	Primary Vote	Election Vote
DonovanJ. Brad Donovan	No		1.3%   D
NewsomeJody Newsome	No		1.7%   D
ArrowoodJohn S. Arrowood	No		14.4%   D
ChristianLori G. Christian	No		3.8%   D
Johnson ZacharyValerie Johnson Zachary	No		4%   D
MurphyHunter Murphy	No		4.4%   D
WarrenMarion R. Warren	No		6.1%   D
JonesAbraham P. Jones	No		2.6%   D
FairesSabra Jean Faires	No		1.4%   D
TysonJohn Marsh TysonA	No		23.8%   A
BuntingBetsy Bunting	No		1.6%   D
CookJeffrey M. Cook	No		2.1%   D
DonahueDaniel Patrick Donahue	No		2.8%   D
KirbyAnn Kirby	No		4.1%   D
LovelaceKeischa Lovelace	No		9.7%   D
MartinMarty Martin (North Carolina)	No		5.1%   D
ShieldsTricia Shields	No		3.4%   D
Davenport ScottElizabeth Davenport Scott	No		5.6%   D
WinfreeChuck Winfree	No		2.3%   D

2012

Candidate	Incumbency	Office	Primary Vote	Election Vote
DillonChris Dillon   A	No			52.7%   A
ThigpenCressie Thigpen	Yes			47.3%   A
RobinsonDavid S. Robinson	No	McGee Seat		38.8%   A
McGeeLinda McGee   A	Yes			61.2%   A
McGeeMartin B. McGee	No			43.5%   A
BryantWanda Bryant   A	Yes			56.6%   A

Ethics

The North Carolina Code of Judicial Conduct sets forth ethical guidelines and principles for the conduct of judges and judicial candidates in North Carolina. It is composed of seven canons:

• Canon 1: "A judge should uphold the integrity and independence of the judiciary."
• Canon 2: "A judge should avoid impropriety in all the judge’s activities."
• Canon 3: Titled "A judge should perform the duties of the judge’s office impartially and diligently," outlines the responsibilities of judges and when they should disqualify themselves from a case.
• Canon 4: "A judge may participate in cultural or historical activities or engage in activities concerning the legal, economic, educational, or governmental system, or the administration of justice."
• Canon 5: "A judge should regulate the judge’s extra-judicial activities to ensure that they do not prevent the judge from carrying out the judge’s judicial duties." In part, this canon notes that a judge should not practice law.
• Canon 6: "A judge should regularly file reports of compensation received for quasi-judicial and extra-judicial activities."
• Canon 7: Describes what political activity is permissible: "A judge may engage in political activity consistent with the judge’s status as a public official."

The full text of the North Carolina Code of Judicial Conduct can be found here.

Removal of judges

Judges in North Carolina may be removed in one of three ways:

• Impeachment by the house of representatives and conviction by a two-thirds vote of the senate.
• In case of mental or physical incapacity, by joint resolution of two thirds of the members of each house of the general assembly.
• By the supreme court, on the recommendation of the judicial standards commission. (The supreme court may choose to merely censure the judge.)

Notable decisions

• Justice for state trooper, fired over lost hat	Click for summary→
A North Carolina state trooper who lied about his missing hat should not have been fired, according to a ruling by the North Carolina Court of Appeals. Trooper Thomas Wetherington was dismissed from his job at the North Carolina Highway Patrol in 2009 when his hat allegedly blew away during a traffic stop in Craven County, North Carolina. Wetherington reportedly stopped a vehicle on U.S. 70 and placed his trooper’s hat, known as a "campaign cover," on top of the vehicle while he reached through the window to take several alcohol containers and two loaded pistols away from the occupants. According to Wetherington’s written report of the incident, it was a windy night and he heard his hat blow away and strike the asphalt. Wetherington stated that he and a fellow trooper returned later and searched for the hat, but only managed to retrieve a flattened cord that had decorated his hat, which suggested to the troopers that hat had been flattened as well. The same vehicle that Wetherington pulled over that night was stopped again two weeks later and Wetherington's hat was found inside the vehicle. The hat had been in the driver’s possession since the first traffic stop. It was in good condition and had not blown off the top of the car or been flattened as Wetherington stated in his official written report. Wetherington was subsequently charged with violating the state patrol’s truthfulness policy which provides that no trooper "shall willfully report any inaccurate, false, improper or misleading information." In his defense, Wetherington stated: “ When I last recalled having my hat, it was on my head, but at some point I must have taken it off and set it on the car… [i]t's sort of like when you lose your wallet and look all over for it, only to find it in your pocket. I never intentionally misled anyone. ” —Thomas Wetherington The North Carolina Court of Appeals agreed, finding that Wetherington’s dismissal from his job was incongruous with the level of the offense.

State profile

Demographic data for North Carolina
	North Carolina	U.S.
Total population:	10,035,186	316,515,021
Land area (sq mi):	48,618	3,531,905
Race and ethnicity**
White:	69.5%	73.6%
Black/African American:	21.5%	12.6%
Asian:	2.5%	5.1%
Native American:	1.2%	0.8%
Pacific Islander:	0.1%	0.2%
Two or more:	2.4%	3%
Hispanic/Latino:	8.8%	17.1%
Education
High school graduation rate:	85.8%	86.7%
College graduation rate:	28.4%	29.8%
Income
Median household income:	$46,868	$53,889
Persons below poverty level:	20.5%	11.3%
Source: U.S. Census Bureau, "American Community Survey" (5-year estimates 2010-2015) Click here for more information on the 2020 census and here for more on its impact on the redistricting process in North Carolina. **Note: Percentages for race and ethnicity may add up to more than 100 percent because respondents may report more than one race and the Hispanic/Latino ethnicity may be selected in conjunction with any race. Read more about race and ethnicity in the census here.

Presidential voting pattern

See also: Presidential voting trends in North Carolina

North Carolina voted Republican in six out of the seven presidential elections between 2000 and 2024.

Pivot Counties (2016)

Ballotpedia identified 206 counties that voted for Donald Trump (R) in 2016 after voting for Barack Obama (D) in 2008 and 2012. Collectively, Trump won these Pivot Counties by more than 580,000 votes. Of these 206 counties, six are located in North Carolina, accounting for 2.91 percent of the total pivot counties.

Pivot Counties (2020)

In 2020, Ballotpedia re-examined the 206 Pivot Counties to view their voting patterns following that year's presidential election. Ballotpedia defined those won by Trump won as Retained Pivot Counties and those won by Joe Biden (D) as Boomerang Pivot Counties. Nationwide, there were 181 Retained Pivot Counties and 25 Boomerang Pivot Counties. North Carolina had six Retained Pivot Counties, 3.31 percent of all Retained Pivot Counties.

More North Carolina coverage on Ballotpedia

• Elections in North Carolina
• United States congressional delegations from North Carolina
• Public policy in North Carolina
• Endorsers in North Carolina
• North Carolina fact checks
• More...

Recent news

The link below is to the most recent stories in a Google news search for the terms North Carolina Court Appeals. These results are automatically generated from Google. Ballotpedia does not curate or endorse these articles.

North Carolina Court of Appeals - Google News

See also

• Courts in North Carolina
• North Carolina counties
• Judicial selection in North Carolina

External links

• The North Carolina Court System, "Court of Appeals of North Carolina"
• General Assembly of North Carolina, "HB8: Court of Appeals Election Modifications," signed into law October 30, 2015

Footnotes

State intermediate appellate courts

List of courts

Alabama Civil • Alabama Criminal • Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Hawaii • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Louisiana • Maryland • Massachusetts • Michigan • Minnesota • Mississippi • Missouri • Nebraska • Nevada • New Jersey • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania Superior • Pennsylvania Commonwealth • South Carolina • Tennessee Civil • Tennessee Criminal • Texas • Utah • Virginia • Washington • West Virginia • Wisconsin