Special to IFN

District Court Judge Rob Young recently earned an LLM Degree in International Law through Nottingham Trent University Law School in Nottingham, England. The LLM, or Masters of Law, an advanced degree earned after the Juris Doctor degree, was awarded during a ceremony at University Hall on the Nottingham Trent campus on July 28.

Young’s academic work was performed under the auspices of a joint LLM program developed by Campbell University Law School Dean L. Rich Leonard and Nottingham Trent Law School Deputy Dean Matthew Homewood in 2017.

Judge Young’s recent academic journey came in 2024 after his research proposal, which involved examining the roots of Juvenile Law in the United States, was selected by the N.C. Administrative Office of the Courts.

A cohort consisting of Young and three Superior Court judges from across North Carolina whose proposals were also selected, began their studies through coursework offered by Campbell University Law School. The focus of the classroom study was to enable each participant to hone their legal research and writing skills and to develop a polished research plan that would eventually be presented to the faculty at Nottingham Trent Law School.

In addition to this academic work, each judge maintained their full courtroom schedules throughout the time they participated in the Campbell/ Nottingham program.

In May of 2024, the cohort traveled to Nottingham to present their research and to meet with their academic advisors. The writing process then began in earnest.

Young met with his advisor, Dr. Loretta Trickett, online twice monthly to revise and rewrite his dissertation. By August of 2024, the 17,000-word dissertation was finished and was sent for academic review. Young’s dissertation, which traces the early development of state intervention with children in both England and the United States, the social activism that led to the recognition of the special needs of children in the legal system, and the eventual development of the first Juvenile Courts in the early 1900s, was not only approved but was recommended for an award of academic distinction, the second highest award in the English grading system.

In addition to earning his LLM, Young also earned an academic prize at Nottingham Trent for distinction in his dissertation writing. This same academic writing is now under consideration for publication in the United Kingdom.

Young’s said his experience with the Campbell/ Nottingham Trent Program was highly rewarding.

“I have learned a great deal through the process of examining the origins of Juvenile Courts in the United States and the whole experience has given me tremendous insight into what we as judges should be doing in our juvenile courtrooms. I am grateful to the Administrative Office of the Courts for making this opportunity possible, for the instructors at Campbell University Law School and for the guidance of my academic advisor at Nottingham Trent (who has subsequently become a friend) who helped me get my dissertation written, the support of my family who encouraged me along the way, and the wonderful staff at Nottingham Trent, particularly Deputy Dean Matthew Holmewood, who not only helped solve the many technical difficulties that arose along the way but also carried out a truly rich and meaningful graduation ceremony in the English tradition.”

Young currently sits as a District Court Judge for District 32, which is composed of Iredell and Alexander Counties. He was first elected in 2020 and is currently serving his second term. He is a graduate of the University of North Carolina at Asheville, where he majored in both Philosophy and Economics; the University of North Carolina at Charlotte where he earned a Master’s Degree in Religious Studies; and the Drake University School of Law, where he earned his law degree in 1995. Prior to taking the bench, he was a trial attorney for 26 years and was employed as the social services attorney for Iredell and Alexander counties until 2020. He is the author of “North Carolina Juvenile Code: Practice and Procedure” and the “Legal Rights of Children,” published by Thompson Reuters. He is also the author “The Alexamenos Grafitto: an Early Roman Commentary on Christians and Christianity” published by\ Resource Publications, an imprint of Wipf and Stock Publishers.

Young’s legal publications have been cited by various courts across the country, by major law reviews, by the Restatement of Torts, and have been cited in pleadings filed with the United States Supreme Court.