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 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 ...

from 1975 to 1994, and as chief justice from 1986 to 1994. Under his leadership, the court "expanded civil rights, took a new approach to criminal justice, and increased available remedies in tort law."Justice Mark A. Davis LLM’18 Started a Thesis and Ended up with a Book
(November 22, 2019). Duke University Law School. Accessed May 20, 2022. Associate Justice Mark A. Davis has compared the Exum Court to the

Warren Court The Warren Court was the period in the history of the Supreme Court of the United States from 1953 to 1969 when Earl Warren served as the chief justice. The Warren Court is often considered the most liberal court in U.S. history. The Warren Cou ...

at the federal level.

Early life and education

Exum was born in

Greene County, North Carolina Greene County is a county located in the U.S. state of North Carolina. As of the 2020 census, the population was 20,451. Its county seat is Snow Hill. History Greene County, being a part of land grant by King Charles II of England in 1663, ...

. He was the son of Mary Well (née Bost) and James Gooden Exum. In 1953, he graduated from

Snow Hill High School Snow Hill High School (SHHS) is a four-year public high school in Snow Hill, Maryland, United States. It is one of four public high schools in Worcester County along with Pocomoke High School, Stephen Decatur High School, and the Worcester Tec ...

as class valedictorian. He attended the

University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill The University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill (UNC, UNC–Chapel Hill, or simply Carolina) is a public university, public research university in Chapel Hill, North Carolina, United States. Chartered in 1789, the university first began enrolli ...

where he was a Morehead Scholar, a member of

Sigma Nu Sigma Nu () is an undergraduate Fraternities and sororities in North America, college fraternity founded at the Virginia Military Institute in 1869. Since its founding, Sigma Nu has chartered more than 279 chapters across the United States and Ca ...

fraternity, and a member of the honor societies

Phi Eta Sigma Phi Eta Sigma () is an American freshman honor society. Founded at the University of Illinois in 1923, it is the oldest and largest freshman honor society. It is a member of the Association of College Honor Societies. History Phi Eta Sigma was f ...

and

Phi Beta Kappa The Phi Beta Kappa Society () is the oldest academic honor society in the United States. It was founded in 1776 at the College of William & Mary in Virginia. Phi Beta Kappa aims to promote and advocate excellence in the liberal arts and sciences, ...

. He graduated with an A.B. in English in 1957. He then attended

New York University School of Law The New York University School of Law (NYU Law) is the law school of New York University, a private research university in New York City. Established in 1835, it was the first law school established in New York City and is the oldest survivin ...

, where he was a Root Tilden Scholar. He received an LL.B. in 1960. In 1961, he attended the U.S. Army Information School, becoming a captain in the

Army Reserves A military reserve force is a military organization whose members (reservists) have military and civilian occupations. They are not normally kept under arms, and their main role is to be available when their military requires additional ma ...

and United States Army Judge Advocate General's (JAG) Corps from 1961 to 1967. In 1968, he also attended the

National Judicial College The National Judicial College (NJC) was established in 1963 as an entity within the American Bar Association. The NJC moved to the campus of the University of Nevada, Reno in 1964 and became a Nevada not-for-profit (501)(c)(3) educational corporat ...

Career

From 1960 to 1961, Exum clerked for Emery B. Denny, a

Justice. From 1961 until 1967, he worked for the law firm Smith Moore Smith Schell & Hunter in

Greensboro, North Carolina Greensboro (; ) is a city in Guilford County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, its population was 299,035; it was estimated to be 307,381 in 2024. It is the List of municipalitie ...

. In 1966, he served in the

North Carolina House of Representatives The North Carolina House of Representatives is one of the two houses of the North Carolina General Assembly. The House is a 120-member body led by a Speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives, Speaker of the House, who holds powers si ...

for the 26th district. He was appointed to the

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. History The Superior Court is North Carolina's oldest court. It was established by a law passed on November 1 ...

, 18th district, by Governor Daniel Killian More on July 1, 1967. In 1968, he was elected to the bench and continued in that capacity through 1974. He was elected as an associate justice of the

in 1974, serving from January 1975 to 1986. In 1985, the governor did not follow the tradition of appointing the senior associate justice, Exum in this case, to the vacant position of chief justice. Exum resigned from the North Carolina Supreme Court to run against the governor's appointee in the next statewide election. In 1986, he was elected Chief Justice and served through January 1, 1995. When he retired from the bench, a newspaper noted that Exum was “known for, among other things, his ability to uphold a death sentence despite personal objections to capital punishment. And though he was consistently successful at the polls, he took a very visible role in urging the state to change from electing to appointing judges." Exum was an adjunct professor of law at the

from 1977 to 1986 and

Duke University Duke University is a Private university, private research university in Durham, North Carolina, United States. Founded by Methodists and Quakers in the present-day city of Trinity, North Carolina, Trinity in 1838, the school moved to Durham in 1 ...

from 1995 to 1996. In 2006, he joined the faculty of

Elon University Elon University is a private university in Elon, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1889 as Elon College, the university is organized into six schools, most of which offer bachelor's degrees and several of which offer master's degrees or ...

's new law school as Distinguished Jurist in Residence. After retiring from the bar, Exum joined the firm of Smith Moore, LLP in Greensboro, NC, later called Smith Moore Leatherwood LLP, where he led the appellate practice group. In November 2018, the firm merged with Fox Rothschild, a national law firm. Exum is currently a retired counsel from that firm. His status with the North Carolina Bar is Emeritus Pro Bono.

Publications

* "Rediscovering State Constitutions." ''North Carolina Law Review'', 70:6 (1992).

Professional affiliations

Exum is a member of 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 a ...

, serving on the task force on alternative to litigation, the committee on judicial independence, and the appellate rules study commission. He is a member of the

American Bar Association The American Bar Association (ABA) is a voluntary association, voluntary bar association of lawyers and law students in the United States; national in scope, it is not specific to any single jurisdiction. Founded in 1878, the ABA's stated acti ...

where he served on the house of delegates, as chairman of the criminal justice standards committee, and chairman of the ad hoc committee on death penalty costs. From 1995 to 2003, he was a fellow and state chair for the American Bar Association Foundation. He is also a fellow in the American Academy of Appellate Lawyers. He was a board member of the Conference on Chief Justices, chair of the Standing Committee on Criminal Justice Standards, and a member of the

Judicial Conference of the United States The Judicial Conference of the United States, formerly known as the Conference of Senior Circuit Judges, was created by the United States Congress in 1922 with the principal objective of framing policy guidelines for administration of judicial co ...

, the International Society of Barristers, and the Gilford Inn of Court. He was also a member of the Fair Trial Initiative, Court Watch, and the legal honor society

Phi Delta Phi Phi Delta Phi (), commonly known as Phid or PDP, is an international legal honor society and the oldest legal organization in continuous existence in the United States. Founded in 1869 at the University of Michigan as a professional fraternity, ...

Awards and honors

* His portrait was dedicated at the North Carolina Supreme Court, in October 2015 * John McNeill Smith Jr., Award,

's Constitutional Rights and Responsibilities Section, 2009 * Judge John J. Parker Award,

* Alumni Achievement Award,

* Herbert Harley Award,

American Judicature Society The American Judicature Society (AJS) is an independent, non-partisan membership organization working nationally to protect the integrity of the American justice system. AJS's membership — including judges, lawyers, and members of the public — ...

* James Iredell Award,

Phi Alpha Delta Phi Alpha Delta Law Fraternity, International ( or P.A.D.) is a North American professional fraternity composed of pre-law and law students, legal educators, attorneys, judges, and government officials. It is one of the largest professional law ...

Law Fraternity,

Campbell University Campbell University is a private Christian university in Buies Creek, North Carolina, United States. Campbell's main campus in Buies Creek is home to its College of Arts & Sciences, College of Pharmacy & Health Sciences, Divinity School, Scho ...

Norman A. Wiggins School of Law * Distinguished Alumnus Award,

* William Richardson Davie Award, Trustees, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill * Distinguished Service Award, General Alumni Association, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill * Frank Porter Graham Award, American Civil Liberties Union of North Carolina * Distinguished Service Award, Psi chapter,

fraternity,1974 * Distinguished Service Award, Greensboro Jaycees, 1968 * Benjamin F. Butler Memorial Award, New York University School of Law, 1960 *

Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award The Algernon Sydney Sullivan Award is an award presented to graduating seniors, alumni, and faculty of selected colleges and universities in the Southern United States for excellence of character and service to humanity. The awards stem from the ...

, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, 1957

Personal life

Exum married Judith Jamison on June 29, 1963. They have three children: James Gooden Exum, Steven Jamison Exum, and Mary March Exum. He served on the Central Selection Committee for the Morehead Scholarship Foundation from 1975 to 1988. He is also a past president of the UNC General Alumni Association. He served on the board of the Paul Green Foundation, Sustainable North Carolina, and Habitat for Humanity. He belongs to the Capital City Club in

Raleigh Raleigh ( ) is the List of capitals in the United States, capital city of the U.S. state of North Carolina. It is the List of municipalities in North Carolina, second-most populous city in the state (after Charlotte, North Carolina, Charlotte) ...

, the Carolina Club, the Conversation Club, the Greensboro City Club, the Masons, the Milburnie Fishing Club, the Neuse Sailing Association, the Sherwood Swim & Racquet Club, the Shriners, the Wake County Chittlin' Club, and the Watauga Club.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Exum, James G. 1935 births People from Greene County, North Carolina Duke University School of Law faculty Living people American jurists University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill alumni New York University School of Law alumni Members of the North Carolina House of Representatives Chief justices of the North Carolina Supreme Court University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill faculty Elon University faculty Duke University faculty North Carolina lawyers People from Greensboro, North Carolina American Freemasons 20th-century members of the North Carolina General Assembly