From the Office of the Governor:

RALEIGH - Gov. Bev Perdue today appointed Susan Dotson-Smith to the District Court bench for the 28th Judicial District which covers Buncombe County. She will fill the vacancy created by the retirement of Judge Rebecca Knight.

“Susan will do an outstanding job on the District Court bench,” said Gov. Perdue. “Her experience in both the private and public sectors as well as her extensive involvement in the community makes her well-qualified to serve as a District Court judge.”

Since 2011, Dotson-Smith has served as assistant clerk of Superior Court in Buncombe County. Prior to that, she spent 20 years in private practice in Western North Carolina.

She has been active in numerous legal organizations on both a statewide and local basis, including the North Carolina Courts Commission, the 28th Judicial District Bar, the Modest Means Access Committee of the North Carolina Bar Association Foundation, the 4ALL Campaign of the North Carolina Bar Association, the North Carolina Association of Women Attorneys, and Pisgah Legal Services. In addition, she was a member of the board of directors of Consumer Credit Counseling Service of Western North Carolina and Hospitality House. She has received a number of awards in recognition of her pro bono work, including the Outstanding Service Award from the 28th Judicial District Bar and Pisgah Legal Services, and has been recognized as a Champion of Justice from the North Carolina Bar Association Foundation. She has also served as an adjunct instructor in business law at the University of North Carolina at Asheville and Mars Hill College and is certified as a mediator for North Carolina Superior Court.

Dotson-Smith received her law degree from the Wake Forest University School of Law and was awarded a bachelor’s of arts degree from Duke University.