Cooper taps Wijewickrama for superior court seat

Judge Roy Wijewickrama has been appointed to fill the recently vacated senior resident superior court seat in the district made up of Haywood and Jackson counties. 

The appointment, announced by Gov. Roy Cooper in a press release, came the afternoon of Nov. 14.

Superior Court judge nearing EBCI Supreme Court confirmation

Superior Court Judge Bradley B. Letts has confirmed he has the intention of vacating his seat on the bench to become the Chief Supreme Court Justice for the Eastern Band of Cherokee Indians.  

With Superior Court seat filled, steps taken to address District Court vacancy

There have been a lot of questions regarding the future of Western North Carolina’s judges over the last year or so, but the final piece may have just fallen into place. 

District Court judge one step closer to moving up to Superior Court

Attorneys in Western North Carolina now know who will likely hold the farthest west superior court seat. 

Filling the vacancy: Unique process plays out to replace retiring Superior Court judge

When Superior Court Judge William Coward announced his retirement late last year, it caught many in the Western North Carolina legal community off guard and set in motion a process with little precedent.

Judge rules on motion to dismiss claims in police shooting suit

The court has made its decision in the Cherokee County Sheriff’s Office’s request to dismiss  many of the complaints in a lawsuit stemming from the 2022 shooting of Jason Harley Kloepfer at his home near Murphy.

WNC swears in a new judge

After several months of filling gaps in court calendars with visiting judges, Western North Carolina will finally fill its District Court vacancy with Swain County native Justin Greene. 

Judicial race heats up

When most people think about exciting election action, they don’t often think about judgeships. 

Judicial races are not usually contested, they’re not usually competitive and so they’re not usually talked about much, for all of those reasons. 

N.C. Chief Justice Beasley speaks in Haywood

The small room of the Democratic headquarters for Haywood County was packed Oct. 31 for a speech by the Chief Justice of the North Carolina Supreme Court Cheri Beasley. 

Republican seeks N.C. Chief Justice seat

His name is Newby, but he’s far from new — Justice Paul Newby was first elected to the North Carolina Supreme Court in 2004, and was subsequently re-elected to another eight-year term in 2012. As that term nears its end in 2020, he’s not only seeking re-election, but election as the court’s chief justice. 

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