Burley Bayard Mitchell Jr. (born December 15, 1940) is an American jurist and former Chief Justice of the

North Carolina Supreme Court The Supreme Court of the State of North Carolina is the state of North Carolina's highest appellate court. Until the creation of the North Carolina Court of Appeals in the 1960s, it was the state's only appellate court. The Supreme Court consists ...

. He received his bachelor's degree from North Carolina State University and his J.D. degree from the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill A university () is an institution of higher (or tertiary) education and research which awards academic degrees in several academic disciplines. Universities typically offer both undergraduate and postgraduate programs. In the United States ...

Early career

A veteran of the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

, Mitchell served as an Assistant Attorney General of North Carolina from 1969–1972 and as a District Attorney from 1972-1977. He was a judge of the

North Carolina Court of Appeals The North Carolina Court of Appeals (in case citation, N.C. Ct. App.) is the only intermediate appellate court in the state of North Carolina. It is composed of fifteen members who sit in rotating panels of three. The Court of Appeals was create ...

from 1977 to 1979, when Governor Jim Hunt appointed Mitchell as his Secretary of Crime Control and Public Safety.

Supreme Court service

Mitchell served as an associate justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court from 1982 to 1994 and as chief justice from 1995 to 1999. Gov. Hunt appointed Mitchell to the office of chief justice in late 1994 to take the place of the retiring

James G. Exum James Gooden Exum Jr. also known as Jim Exum (born September 14, 1935) is an American jurist who served on the North Carolina Supreme Court from 1975 to 1994, and as chief justice from 1986 to 1994. Under his leadership, the court "expanded civil ...

. In 1996, Mitchell was elected to the post in the general election, defeating Republican

Ray Warren Raymond Warren OAM (born 11 June 1943) is a retired Australian sports commentator, known for his coverage of televised professional rugby league matches on the Nine Network. He is known as the "Voice of Rugby League", and called 99 State of ...

. As a judge, Mitchell wrote 484 decisions, including the landmark ''Leandro v. State of North Carolina'' case regarding educational opportunities for all North Carolina children. He was also well known for reducing the court's backlog. Mitchell was also known for securing additional resources for the court system for technology and personnel through appropriations at the state level as well as projects for the criminal justice system at the federal level. Mitchell's staff at the Administrative Office of the Courts included North Carolina Court of Appeals Judge Jack L. Cozort, who took leave to work for Mitchell as acting AOC director, and deputy director Jeanne Bonds, who was serving on the Knightdale Town Council at the time.

Post-Supreme Court activities

Mitchell retired and joined the law firm of Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice PLLC. He has also served as a member of the Board of Trustees for North Carolina State University, as a member of the

University of North Carolina The University of North Carolina is the multi-campus public university system for the state of North Carolina. Overseeing the state's 16 public universities and the NC School of Science and Mathematics, it is commonly referred to as the UNC Sy ...

system board of governors, and as chairman of U.S. Senator

Kay Hagan Janet Kay Hagan (née Ruthven; May 26, 1953 – October 28, 2019) was an American lawyer, banking executive, and politician who served as a United States Senator from North Carolina from 2009 to 2015. A member of the Democratic Party, she previ ...

's advisory panel on federal judicial nominees. In 2006, Mitchell helped found a so-called

527 group A 527 organization or 527 group is a type of U.S. tax-exempt organization organized under Section 527 of the U.S. Internal Revenue Code (). A 527 group is created primarily to influence the selection, nomination, election, appointment or defea ...

called FairJudges.net, which aimed to educate North Carolina voters about state appellate judicial candidates. In 2007, Mitchell received the

North Carolina Award The North Carolina Award is the highest civilian award bestowed by the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is awarded in the four fields of science, literature, the fine arts, and public service. Sometimes referred to as the "Nobel Prize of North Carol ...

for public service.News & Observer: Mitchell and Frye recognized

References

External links

Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice Biography
{{DEFAULTSORT:Mitchell, Burley North Carolina State University alumni University of North Carolina School of Law alumni State cabinet secretaries of North Carolina North Carolina Court of Appeals judges Chief Justices of the North Carolina Supreme Court Living people Needham B. Broughton High School alumni 1940 births