NCSB Journal Summer 2026

Shaping the Legal Landscape: North Carolina’s Role in the American Inns of Court Movement

B Y J A S O N H I C K S

I n the 1970s, led primarily by Chief Justice of the United States Warren E. Burger and others, there was growing con cern that the legal profession was lacking essential skills. In 1977, the Anglo-American Exchange of Lawyers and Judges took place. This includ ed Chief Justice Burger and Judge J. Clifford Wallace of the US Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit. 1 During this exchange, they observed the Inns of Court in England, where young barristers are trained in the practical and professional aspects of their craft and are also guided by models of integrity, civility, and collegiality. 2 From this experience, they drew several conclusions: 1. Lawyers cannot be equally competent in all areas of practice. 2. Training in advocacy must begin in law schools. 3. Ethics, manners, and civility must be taught in law schools and practiced in courtrooms. 3 These insights became the guiding prin ciples for what the American Inns of Court would become. These discussions culminated in the founding of the first American Inn of Court in 1980, followed by the establishment of the American Inns of Court Foundation in 1985. 4 According to the organization’s web y d d n n f s s t e l y d l

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site, its purpose is to be: An association of lawyers, judges, stu dents, and other legal professionals from all levels and backgrounds who share a passion for professional excellence. Through regular meetings, members are able to build and strengthen professional relationships, discuss fundamental con cerns about professionalism and pressing legal issues of the day, share experiences and advice, exhort the utmost passion and dedication for the law, provide mentoring opportunities, and advance the highest levels of integrity, ethics, and civility. 5 The movement reached North Carolina

in 1990 with the founding of the Chief Justice Joseph Branch American Inn of Court in Winston-Salem. 6 Later that year, the Craven-Everett American Inn of Court was established in Durham County, 7 fol lowed by the Guilford Inn of Court in 1995 8 and the Harry C. Martin American Inn of Court in Asheville in 2010. 9 Most recently, the Kara Farnandez Stoll American Inn of Court was established in Charlotte in 2024, with a specific focus on intellectual property. 10 Four other inns have been established in North Carolina but are no longer active. 11 Most inns hold monthly meetings, often

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