Michael ByrneMichael Byrne

Administrative Law Judge Michael C. Byrne is running for the North Carolina Court of Appeals. He grew up in Wake County and earned his B.A. in English with university and departmental honors from North Carolina State University. He earned his law degree from Campbell University, where he served as editor of the Campbell Law Observer. After several years of trial and appellate practice in North Carolina’s state and federal courts, Michael focused his law practice on representing law enforcement officers and public employees. He represented clients before the North Carolina Office of Administrative Hearings (OAH), Superior Court, Court of Appeals, and Supreme Court. Between 2005 and 2020, Michael appeared in more than 270 cases before OAH and served as a referral attorney for multiple law enforcement organizations. Michael litigated more than 20 cases before the North Carolina Court of Appeals as an attorney, including cases involving law enforcement and correctional officers who were wrongfully terminated or otherwise disciplined. Cases Michael won on behalf of North Carolina law enforcement are regularly cited in similar cases by OAH and the Court of Appeals. He also submitted amicus, or friend of the court, briefs in Court of Appeals and Supreme Court cases on behalf of public employee and law enforcement groups. In June 2020, Michael was sworn in as an Administrative Law Judge. In just over six years on the bench, he has issued more than 400 decisions. Michael writes his decisions himself rather than delegating this important responsibility to others. His top priority is providing a fair hearing to every party who comes before him. Ten of Michael’s decisions have been appealed to the North Carolina Court of Appeals. All ten were unanimously affirmed by the Court of Appeals, most recently in June 2026. Michael’s judicial philosophy can be summarized by the one-sentence directive the Chief Judge at OAH gave him when he began serving there: “Get it right.” He believes passionately in due process, fairness, giving all sides an opportunity to be heard, and deciding cases strictly according to the law, without fear or favor. Michael lives in Cary with his wife, Brigette, and their dog, Tilda.

Decades of trial work: 272 cases as a lawyer in the Office of Administrative Hearings and more than 20 cases in the Court of Appeals and Supreme Court.