Cheri Beasley

Chief Justice (ret.) Cheri Beasley is a distinguished former jurist, private practitioner, law professor and seasoned arbitrator and mediator. Her legal career has been marked by a series of historic achievements and a deep commitment to public service, commitment to the rule of law and administration of justice.

Chief Justice Beasley began her service on the North Carolina bench in 1999, serving for a decade as a District Court Judge in Cumberland County, where she presided over thousands of civil, family, juvenile, criminal and traffic cases. In 2008, she was elected to the North Carolina Court of Appeals, in 2012, she became an Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of North Carolina and in 2019, Beasley became the first African American woman to serve as Chief Justice of the Supreme Court of North Carolina. Prior to her judicial career, she served as an assistant public defender in Cumberland County, North Carolina.

As a jurist, Chief Justice Beasley presided over numerous cases handling the most challenging and multifaceted matters across a wide range of industries, including complex business and commercial, civil rights, employment, insurance, personal injury and product liability arenas.

Chief Justice Beasley, in addition to leading the Supreme Court, led the North Carolina Court System through the recovery from devastation of local courts due to hurricanes, led the court system through the pandemic developing protocols to address health and safety, while effectively streamlining cases to allow courts to safely hear cases. She also led courts through heightened racial tensions after George Floyd’s murder. Beasley worked toward a court system that not only solved legal disputes but also helped people better their lives. Through her leadership, North Carolina’s courts implemented 21st century technology, expanded access to drug recovery courts, domestic violence courts, mental health courts, addressed bail disparities and partnered with schools and faith leaders to solve critical challenges in our communities.

Chief Justice Beasley has always advocated for fair, independent, and accessible courts. She has mentored countless students and judges, lectured at area law schools, and traveled nationwide and abroad to promote the rule of law and the administration of justice. She has served on numerous committees with the American Bar Association and the North Carolina Bar Association and has been a highly sought speaker and presenter nationally and internationally. She is active in the arts communities and is an advocate to end childhood hunger.

Beasley received her Bachelor of Arts from Douglass College of Rutgers University, her law degree from The University of Tennessee College of Law and an LLM in judicial studies from Duke University School of Law. She is the recipient of several awards to include awards for her service to the legal profession, community service awards, the highest alumni awards from Rutgers University and The University of Tennessee and two honorary doctorates.

In 2022, Beasley was the first African American woman elected as Democratic nominee for the U.S. Senate in North Carolina. She advocated for the underserved, farmers, healthcare, environmental justice, economic justice and social justice, better education, and a better life for all North Carolinians. In Fall 2023, Chief Justice Beasley served as a Resident Fellow at Harvard Kennedy School Institute of Politics. She is currently the inaugural Justice Sandra Day O’Connor Professor at Elon University School of Law in Greensboro, North Carolina and an arbitrator and mediator for JAMS in Washington, D.C.