In this episode of All Things Judicial: Beyond the Bench, we take listeners beyond the courtroom and into the heart of disaster recovery, featuring a compelling conversation with North Carolina Court of Appeals Judge Michael Stading and law clerks Vincenzo Conciatori and Tomas Nazer-Paniagua.

These legal professionals stepped away from their usual roles in the judiciary to volunteer in Western North Carolina following the devastation of Hurricane Helene. In this episode, they share their firsthand experiences witnessing the storm’s impact, assisting communities in need, and reflecting on how the experience shaped their perspectives on justice and public service.

Welcome to All Things Judicial: In Focus—your monthly dive into the latest news, updates, and decisions shaping our Judicial Branch. Topics include: Court of Appeals Judge Tom Murry's investiture, eCourts Track 7 roll-out, NC Human Trafficking Commission's annual grant program, judicial appointments, and preview of next episode.

In this episode, we feature the second installment of a truly extraordinary roundtable discussion with nine former NCAOC directors. The discussion was moderated by former director Judge Marion Warren and included: Judge Gerald Arnold, Judge Jack Cozort, Mr. Jim Drennan, Justice Franklin Freeman, Judge Robert Hobgood, Judge Tom Ross, Judge John Smith, and Judge Ralph Walker. The directors discussed NCAOC's changes throughout the years and shared funny anecdotes from their time leading the Judicial Branch.

"I went to Avery County in the early 1990s and there was an older woman assistant clerk there. I said, 'I noticed you just got your computers in but they're still in boxes.' She said, 'we don't like computers here and we don't like anyone who does,'" said Judge Walker on the podcast. "I went back 10 years later, the older lady is gone and a younger woman was there. She was pulling her hair out (in frustration) and I said, 'ma'am what in the world is wrong?' She said, 'the computers are down and we can't do anything without them!'"

This is part two of the roundtable which was recorded in December 2016. Visit NCcourts.gov to listen to part one and other episodes of All Things Judicial.

In this episode, we feature the first installment of a truly extraordinary roundtable discussion with nine  former NCAOC directors. The discussion was moderated by former director Judge Marion Warren and included: Judge Gerald Arnold, Judge Jack Cozort, Mr. Jim Drennan, Justice Franklin Freeman, Judge Robert Hobgood, Judge Tom Ross, Judge John Smith, and Judge Ralph Walker. The directors began by discussing how they received the "call of duty" from their respective chief justices.

"I got a call from Chief Justice Henry Frye and he asked if I would be the director of AOC. I talked with my wife and she said 'absolutely not,'" said Judge Hobgood on the podcast. "I thought that was the end of it, but two days later I got calls from I. Beverly Lake, who was just elected, and Henry Frye who said 'why didn't you take that job?' I started thinking about having the sitting chief justice and former chief justice call and ask me to be the the director, so I agreed to start January 1, 2001."

This is part one of the roundtable which was recorded in December 2016. Subsequent parts will be released later this month.

In this episode, we feature an excerpt of an interview with Charlotte Attorney Joseph W. Grier, Jr. (1915-2010). Grier was interviewed in 2003 for the Chief Justice's Commission on Professionalism's Historical Video Series. Grier led an epic career as a Charlotte attorney for more than 60 years after volunteering for the U.S. Army during WWII. In the podcast, he discusses his early life, highlights of his career, and his community service which included the desegregation of all Charlotte city park facilities and pools in the 1950s. 

"We voluntarily desegregated all of the parks in Charlotte long before there was any litigation in the schools," said Grier. "It turned out that because we did it voluntarily ... integration was taken as a matter of course and we never had any fuss at all about the parks."

This interview was conducted by Attorney Hank Hankins for the CJCP's Historical Video Series. A video of the entire interview can be viewed on the Judicial Branch YouTube Channel.

In this episode, we feature our annual Halloween episode entitled Fright Court. In the first segment,  we feature Nelson Nauss, the Executive Director of The Ghost Guild, a North Carolina-based paranormal research organization. Nauss shares four court cases involving claims of the supernatural, where the courts didn’t necessarily rule-out the paranormal elements of each lawsuit. In the second segment, Roger Winstead of the Judicial Branch Communications Office narrates the story of John Walker Stephens, a state senator who was murdered in 1870 in the Historic Caswell County Courthouse.

Fright Court is an annual episode of All Things Judicial which showcases unexplained occurrences and macabre historical incidents in North Carolina's courthouses. This popular YouTube and podcast series won a first place award for videography from the North Carolina Association of Government Information Officers in 2019 and 2020. 

In this episode, we welcome Pitt County District Court Judge Mario Perez. Judge Perez is the first Hispanic judge in Pitt County and possibly the first Mexican-American judge in North Carolina. On the podcast, he discussed his upbringing in Texas, the challenges he faced as a Mexican-American, and his favorite Hispanic heritage traditions. Hispanic Heritage Month is recognized September 15 – October 15.

Judge Mario E. Perez worked in private practice and as an assistant public defender for more than 30 years. He was appointed to the district court bench in 2018, and in 2020, he was elected to a four-year term. He originated from San Antonio, Texas and earned degrees from St. Mary's University and Georgetown University School of Law School.

In this episode, we focus on the North Carolina judicial system reforms of the 1960s. These reforms created a unified court system that included newly created District Courts, Court of Appeals, and the Administrative Office of the Courts (NCAOC). In the interview, former NCAOC Director and Supreme Court of North Carolina Associate Justice Franklin Freeman interviews two men who helped implement these reforms: Judge James Dickson Phillips, Jr. and Senator Lindsay C. Warren, Jr.

"The effect of the implementation of the District Court was to abolish all of the courts beneath the Superior Courts – county courts, city courts, and the justice of the peace system," said Warren on the podcast. "The worst thing about the justice of the peace system was that their compensation came from fees they assessed, but in a criminal case they could not assess a fee unless a defendant was convicted."

This 2012 interview is part of CJCP's historical video series. A video of this interview can be viewed on the Judicial Branch YouTube Channel.

Today, we commemorate Constitution Day, recognized annually on September 17. In the first segment, we hear from Chief Justice Paul Newby who shares about the important principles contained in America's founding documents. After that, we travel to the Historic 1767 Chowan County Courthouse to visit with Charles Boyette, who serves as a Historic Interpreter for the NC Department of Natural and Cultural Resources' Historic Edenton State Historic Site. Boyette explains what NC courts were like during America's founding era, and identifies the historical figures who frequented that courthouse then went on to contribute to America's founding documents: Joseph Hewes, signer of the Declaration of Independence; James Iredell, an original member of the US Supreme Court; and Hugh Williamson, signer of the US Constitution.

"We are so grateful for the foundational structure of our constitution that takes governmental power and divides it up among the three branches," said Newby on the podcast. "What are those branches? We have the Legislative Branch, the Executive Branch, then we have the Judicial Branch whose charge is to do justice for all."

Constitution Day is a federal observance that recognizes the adoption of the US Constitution. It is observed on September 17, the day in 1787 that delegates to the Constitutional Convention signed the document in Philadelphia.

In this episode, we feature an interview with former Chief Justice Burley Mitchell. Mitchell worked in several county and state government leadership positions before serving as a judge on the North Carolina Court of Appeals, as associate justice of the the Supreme Court of North Carolina, and the Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of North Carolina. During his tenure as Chief Justice, Mitchell created the Chief Justice's Commission on Professionalism (CJCP) with the mission to enhance professionalism among North Carolina lawyers.

In this 2006 interview conducted by former CJCP Executive Director Mel Wright, Mitchell reflects on his career's most notable cases, dispenses advice on handling unprofessional lawyers, and explains why professionalism in the legal field is of utmost importance.

"Dean Pound at Harvard Law School wrote 'our profession is not just a job, it's a calling,' and it's a calling whereby a person serves humanity and only coincidentally makes a pretty good living," said Mitchell on the podcast. "If (making a good living) is our focus, we will lose what sets us apart and that has always been the aspect of public service."

This interview is part of CJCP's historical video series. A video of this interview can be viewed on the Judicial Branch YouTube Channel.