North Carolina Chief Justice Paul Newby continued his 100-county courthouse tour today. 

He visited the Halifax, Bertie, Hertford, and Northampton county courthouses today.

He will visit the Nash, Edgecombe, and Wilson county courthouses Friday.

In Halifax this morning, Newby greeted the clerk of court staff, district attorney staff, bailiffs, social services staff and judges.

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He and his wife Macon presented the employees with gifts and the couple were given a gift of items reflective of the county.

His visit to Halifax marked the fortieth of his tour. After his visits Friday he will resume the tour in 2022.

He said the biggest takeaway from his visits has been “the diversity of our state. You can define diversity however you want to. Our state geographically, each region, each courthouse, each community is just so different. One size will never fit all in the judicial branch. Hopefully we in Raleigh will learn that the local folks are much better judges of what they need and our job is to give them what they need.”

His 100-county tour began in Cherokee County in May and is expected to end in Dare County in 2022. When completed, Newby will be the first chief justice to visit all of North Carolina's courthouses from Murphy to Manteo.

At each county courthouse, he greets judges and courthouse personnel to thank them for their hard work and dedication in keeping courts open this year. 

Beginning last year judges and courthouse personnel were deemed essential in fulfilling the judicial branch's constitutional open courts mandate to provide equal justice to all in a timely manner.

"We couldn't function without the dedicated men and women who tirelessly work at our local courthouses," he said. "As head of the judicial branch I want to thank them and let all of them know that what they do is vital to the administration of justice in our great state."