Lucy Noble Inman is 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 ...

and formerly served as a special

North Carolina Superior Court The Superior Court is North Carolina's general jurisdiction trial court. It was established in 1777 and is North Carolina's oldest court. Jurisdiction and administration The Superior Court is the trial court of general jurisdiction in North Caroli ...

judge. She won election to the appellate court in a statewide race on November 4, 2014.

Early life

Inman is the daughter of author Lucy Daniels, the granddaughter of former White House Press Secretary Jonathan W. Daniels, and the great-granddaughter of

Navy Secretary The secretary of the Navy (or SECNAV) is a statutory officer () and the head (chief executive officer) of the Department of the Navy, a military department (component organization) within the United States Department of Defense. By law, the s ...

Josephus Daniels. She was born in

Indianapolis, Indiana Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the state capital and most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the seat of Marion County. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the consolidated population of Indianapolis and Mari ...

while her father was working at the

Indianapolis Star Indianapolis (), colloquially known as Indy, is the List of U.S. state and territorial capitals, state capital and List of U.S. states' largest cities by population, most populous city of the U.S. state of Indiana and the county seat, seat of ...

. The family returned to Raleigh while she was an infant.

Education

Inman earned her undergraduate degree from North Carolina State University in 1984 and worked as a newspaper reporter before attending law school at the

University of North Carolina School of Law The University of North Carolina School of Law is the law school of the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. Established in 1845, Carolina Law is among the oldest law schools in the United States and is the oldest law school in North Caro ...

. After earning her J.D. degree in 1990, she clerked for Chief Justice

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 ...

at 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 ...

Career

Inman was in private practice from 1992 to 2010. She and her husband, Billy Warden, lived in

Los Angeles, California Los Angeles ( ; es, Los Ángeles, link=no , ), often referred to by its initials L.A., is the largest city in the state of California and the second most populous city in the United States after New York City, as well as one of the world' ...

from 1992 to 2000, where she practiced civil litigation, concentrating on disputes in commercial, media, and entertainment law. She was recognized for her pro bono work by the

California State Bar The State Bar of California is California's official attorney licensing agency. It is responsible for managing the admission of lawyers to the practice of law, investigating complaints of professional misconduct, prescribing appropriate disciplin ...

. Upon returning to North Carolina in 2000, she shifted her practice and spent the next decade representing victims of negligence, fraud and sexual abuse. In 2010, she was appointed to the superior court as a special judge by Governor

Bev Perdue Beverly Eaves Perdue (born Beverly Marlene Moore; January 14, 1947) is an American businesswoman, politician, and member of the Democratic Party who served as the 73rd governor of North Carolina from 2009 to 2013. She was the first female gov ...

. After being appointed to the North Carolina Superior Court, she presided in hearings and jury trials in courthouses across the state. She won election to the Court of Appeals in 2014, defeating District Court Judge Bill Southern in a race to replace retiring Judge Robert C. Hunter. In the 2014 judicial election, she received endorsements from retired North Carolina Chief Justices

Henry Frye Henry E. Frye (born August 1, 1932) is an American judge and politician who served as the first African-American chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court. Early life and education Henry Frye was born August 1, 1932, in Ellerbe, Richmond ...

, James Exum,

I. Beverly Lake Jr. Isaac Beverly Lake Jr. (January 30, 1934 – September 12, 2019) was an American jurist and politician, who served as chief justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court. Early life I. Beverly Lake Jr. was born on January 30, 1934, in Raleigh, No ...

, and

Burley Mitchell Burley Bayard Mitchell Jr. (born December 15, 1940) is an American jurist and former Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court. He received his bachelor's degree from North Carolina State University and his J.D. degree from the University ...

. Before becoming a judge, Inman advocated for mental health services for children and adults in North Carolina. She served on the North Carolina Governor's Advocacy Council for Persons with Disabilities and as a board member of Carolina Legal Assistance an
Disability Rights North Carolina
In January 2019, Inman announced that she was a candidate at the 2020 North Carolina judicial elections for an eight-year term as a justice of the

. In November, she was narrowly defeated by Republican Phil Berger Jr. In 2022, she again ran for a seat on the North Carolina Supreme Court, but was defeated by Richard Dietz. Inman has also served on the boards of th
Lucy Daniels Foundation
an
North Carolinians Against Gun Violence
and has chaired the judicial division of th
North Carolina Association of Women Attorneys
https://www.linkedin.com/in/linman/ She currently serves on the board of
NC BarCARES
a non-profit entity funded by the

North Carolina Bar Association The North Carolina Bar Association (NCBA) is the voluntary (non-mandatory) bar association of the U.S. state of North Carolina. NCBA membership is voluntary and tax money is not involved in its support. In contrast, the North Carolina State Bar ...

that provides confidential mental health and substance abuse treatment for attorneys and judges. She is a member of the

National Association of Women Judges National Association of Women Judges (NAWJ) is an American professional organization founded in 1979. Members are lawyers and women judges who are dedicated to preserving judicial independence to women, minorities and other historically disfavor ...

and has served on the education committee of th
Appellate Judges Education Institute

Personal life

Inman's son, William Warden, has struggled with bipolar disorder and schizophrenia all his life. In January 2020, he pled guilty in

Wake County Wake County is located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. In the 2020 census, its population was 1,129,410, making it North Carolina's most-populous county. From July 2005 to July 2006, Wake County was the 9th-fastest growing county in the U ...

District Court to a misdemeanor charge of ethnic intimidation for threatening a local synagogue in 2018. His attorney read an apology letter from him. The court accepted his guilty plea and ordered him to comply with terms of unsupervised probation for one year, on conditions including that he remain in

psychiatric treatment Psychiatry is the medical specialty devoted to the diagnosis, prevention, and treatment of mental disorders. These include various maladaptations related to mood, behaviour, cognition, and perceptions. See glossary of psychiatry. Initial psych ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Inman, Lucy 1962 births 21st-century American women judges Living people North Carolina Court of Appeals judges North Carolina Democrats North Carolina State University alumni Lawyers from Indianapolis University of North Carolina School of Law alumni 21st-century American judges