Judges Eagles and Stephens Seek Seats on the NC Court of Appeals

By Cash Michaels –

Two veteran jurists are vying for seats on the NC Court of Appeals, promising to vigorously, but fairly, uphold the law if elected.

Eagles Seeks Election to Open Seat

As a Wake County District Court judge, Margaret Eagles has presided over civil, criminal, and family court cases, and serves as one of two judges in the Abuse, Neglect and Dependence Courtroom. She is also the lead Domestic Violence Judge in Wake County. She is seeking an open seat on the Court, running as a Democrat against one Republican and one unaffiliated candidate, neither of whom has judicial experience.

Eagles, an alumna of Wake Forest University and Campbell University School of Law, is the daughter of former NC Appellate Court Chief Judge Sidney Eagles. Despite having her father as a role model, she didn’t intend originally to study law.

“I enjoyed doing volunteer work and helping those who were less fortunate. Then, after working as a loan officer at the State Employee’s Credit Union, I knew that the best way I could continue to serve the hard-working people of North Carolina was through the practice of law.”

Eagles started her legal career as a judicial clerk for Justice George Wainwright on the NC Supreme Court, working on appeals in criminal and civil cases. Then, as an Assistant Attorney General, she represented the state in environmental enforcement litigation and in criminal appeals in the NC Court of Appeals. In private practice, Eagles was a civil litigator, handling numerous jury trials in District and Superior Courts.

Among the many jurists Judge Eagles admires, those she holds in the highest esteem are former NC Supreme Court Justice Patricia Timmons-Goodson, “for her consistent judgment and consummate professionalism”; former Judge Martha Geer; and of course, Sidney Eagles. “Not only because he is my father and I love him, but because I respect his work on the Court, his true belief in the system and the grace and courtesy he shows to everyone he encounters.”

Judge Eagles expresses pride in the work she’s done. “I worked alongside the Administrative Office of the Courts and multiple stakeholders to implement remote electronic filing of complaints for emergency domestic violence protective orders from Interact, our local rape crisis and domestic violence agency. I am the co-chair of the Wake County Domestic Violence Task Force and a member of the Wake County Domestic Violence Fatality Review Team.”

“I am dedicated to the rule of law,” Judge Eagles says, “steadfast in my respect to the public trust, and committed to impartiality for all who appear before me as a district court judge, and would continue to do so if elected to the NC Court of Appeals. If elected, I would continue to treat all parties in the same manner, regardless of who they are or who represents them.”

Stephens Hopes to Retain Her Seat

In another race, Judge Linda Stephens is running for re-election to the NC Court of Appeals. She is being challenged by Phil Berger, Jr., son of the NC Senate’s majority leader.

The first in her family to graduate high school, Judge Stephens is an alumna of the University of South Carolina and earned her law degree from UNC Chapel Hill.

“I see the law as a great equalizer in society,” she says. “The law should treat everyone equally and never discriminate based on some portion of one’s identity. In practical life, we all know that there is implicit bias in the law and the way it is applied, but I have always aimed higher than that. I have always worked toward fairness and equality, as promised by our Constitution.”

In her long career, Judge Stephens was named one of the top 50 female attorneys in North Carolina by Super Lawyers magazine, and listed among the Best Lawyers in America during the last eleven years she was in private practice. She has won numerous awards for her hard work ethic, and has served on the state appellate court for over ten years.

“First, I believe in adhering to my oath of office,” she says, “in other words, to uphold the Constitutions of my Country and my State; to uphold the laws of my State when they are consistent with the Constitutions; to follow the law in every case to reach the result the law requires even when that result is different from my personal beliefs. My record indicates I have faithfully adhered to that oath.”

Judge Stephens has also worked collaboratively and cohesively with her colleagues on the Court who represent a different judicial philosophy and political affiliation.

“Political ideology has never affected my interest in or ability to work with my colleagues on the Court of Appeals,” she says.