The Hon. Mark Davis, Elon Law’s Visiting Distinguished Jurist in Residence, will serve as a special Superior Court judge designated to the North Carolina Business Court beginning July 1, 2021.
An Elon Law faculty member will serve the State of North Carolina beginning this summer as a judge on the North Carolina Business Court.
North Carolina Gov. Roy Cooper appointed the Hon. Mark Davis, Elon Law’s Visiting Distinguished Jurist in Residence, to hear complex business cases for the Business Court in Raleigh. Davis was one of four judges whose confirmations were approved May 4, 2021, by the North Carolina General Assembly.
“I am thrilled to be joining the North Carolina Business Court,” Davis said. “For the last 25 years, our Business Court has served as an excellent forum for adjudicating complex business disputes. It is truly an honor for me to be serving alongside some of the best judges in this state.”
Davis previously served as an associate justice on the Supreme Court of North Carolina and an associate judge on the North Carolina Court of Appeals. He earned his Bachelor of Arts from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, his Juris Doctor from the University of North Carolina School of Law and his Master of Laws from Duke University School of Law.
Davis also is the author of the 2019 book “A Warren Court of Our Own: The Exum Court and the Expansion of Individual Rights in North Carolina,” which explores the jurisprudence that evolved when former North Carolina Chief Justice James Exum, Jr. presided over the court from 1986 to 1994. Exum is a founding member of the Elon Law Advisory Board and a retired member of the Elon Law faculty.
As a member of the Elon faculty since January, Davis is currently teaching a course, “The Nature of the Judicial Process,” and he has given multiple presentations to students on effective legal writing and advocacy. He has also provided assistance in a Criminal Law class for first-year students.
In addition, Davis is co-authoring an article on the subject of evidence along with another member of the Elon Law faculty.
“Judge Davis has modeled for our students all the traits of our nation’s finest lawyers and jurists,” said Elon Law Dean Luke Bierman. “He is committed to the pursuit of justice, he demonstrates a relentless intellectual curiosity that is a prerequisite for success in the courtroom, and he readily shares his vast knowledge with colleagues and students with an eye toward future relevance of our profession.
“We’ll miss seeing him every day in our law school but know the State of North Carolina is in good hands with his service on the bench in Raleigh.”