North Carolina has two appellate courts. North Carolina Supreme Court has both civil and criminal jurisdiction and hears cases on appeal from the North Carolina Court of Appeals and from the North Carolina Industrial Commission. The North Carolina Court of Appeals hears appeals from the from cases heard in the all 50 divisions of the North Carolina Superior Courts from throughout the state. In the North Carolina court system, the North Carolina Supreme Court and the North Carolina Court of Appeals make available selected court filings for cases from 2000 to present. This database, available through the NC Appellate Courts Electronic Filing website allows users to search by case number, party name, attorney name, case title, date, and court. North Carolina does not currently use electronic filing for trial court documents (though a pilot project is underway); records and briefs from those courts are not generally available online.
The earliest records available in the Law Library date from 1874 and are available in print. An index to the courts' records and briefs is available at the library reference desk. In addition, an partial index to the print volumes of the North Carolina Supreme Court is located on the first floor at the very end of the print volumes. Please be aware that the Law Library is in the process of digitizing its collection of North Carolina records and briefs. If a volume is missing, please ask at the Reference Desk.
