Lucy Inman

Lucy Inman is a Partner with Bryson Harris Suciu DeMay. She has contributed decades of experience in civil litigation and service as a North Carolina trial and appellate judge.

Lucy concentrates her practice in appeals and dispositive trial and arbitration proceedings on behalf of consumers, primarily in class actions and mass torts, including as co-counsel with attorneys outside the firm. In addition to her work as an advocate, Lucy serves as an arbitrator in commercial disputes nationwide. She is licensed to practice law in California and North Carolina and has represented clients in state and federal courts throughout the United States.

Legal History

From 2015 through 2022, Lucy served on the North Carolina Court of Appeals, authoring more than 450 opinions in constitutional, criminal, civil, and administrative law cases. Fewer than three percent of her decisions were reversed on further appeal.

From 2010 through 2014, Lucy served as a North Carolina Superior Court judge. Of thousands of decisions she rendered in trials and pre-trial proceedings, just seven were reversed on appeal.

Before joining the bench, Lucy practiced commercial, employment, and personal injury litigation in California and North Carolina. She has represented consumers, businesses, employers, employees, military service members, and victims of fraud and physical abuse, including children and their parents.

Her early work as a journalist reporting on courts inspired her to pursue a legal career.

State Bar Admissions

• North Carolina
• California

Federal Court Admissions

• United States Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit
• United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
• United States District Court, Eastern District, North Carolina

Education

• J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law, 1990
• B.A. in English from North Carolina State University, 1984

Appointments & Service

• Planning Committee Member, American Bar Association’s Appellate Judges Education Institute
• Serves on the board of the Council of Appellate Lawyers within the American Bar Association’s Judicial Division 
• A trustee of the National Civil Justice Institute, a nonprofit organization providing education and scholarship for state appellate judges
• Presented continuing education programs for the bench and bar on topics including writing, trial and appellate practice, and the connection between wellness and professional ethics

Awards and Recognition

• 2026 North Carolina Business Magazine’s Legal Elite for appellate practice

Furthering the Legal Profession

• Speaker, lawyer wellbeing and effectiveness for North Carolina Bar events