Judicial review is an important process to review decisions of the Board of Review. If you disagree with a decision made about your unemployment benefits, you may be able to challenge it in court through a process called judicial review. This is a way to ask a judge to look at the facts of the case and the conclusions to check if it follows the law. 

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1. Get Your Higher Authority Decision:

  • You must first receive the Higher Authority decision made by the Board of Review. This decision will be mailed to you and also uploaded to your MyNCUIBenefits account.  
  • You must file your petition for judicial review within 30 days from the date the Higher Authority decision is mailed to you or when you have been informed about the decision, whichever comes first.

2. File Your Petition:

  • You must file your petition for judicial review within 30 days form the date the Higher Authority decision was issued.  If you wait longer than 30 days from the date the Higher Authority decision was issued, the decision becomes final, and you may lose your chance to have the judge review the Higher Authority Decision.

3. Where to File:

  • File your petition for judicial review with the Clerk of Superior Court in the county where you live or where your principal place of business is located.
  • If you do not live or have your principal place of business in North Carolina, you can file your petition in the Superior Court of Wake County, North Carolina, or with the Clerk of Superior Court in the county where the issue that led to the final agency decision arose. 

Maybe. Fees and costs for North Carolina’s courts are determined by the North Carolina General Assembly.  Costs for filing your petition for judicial review are between you and your county’s Clerk of Superior Court. 

If you can’t pay to file a petition for your case, you can ask to file as an “indigent.” This means you might not have to pay the costs upfront. The clerk of superior court or judge may allow you to file your case as an “indigent.” This means that you will not have to pay the costs in advance. If you have legal help, they may pay the costs for you.  You must download and complete Form AOC-G-106 from the Administrative Office of the Courts website. If you need more help, contact the clerk’s office in the county where you plan to file.  

If you are a Claimant, you can represent yourself in court, but you may want to talk to a lawyer for advice. However, corporations must be represented in court by a licensed attorney.  

NOTE: Court representation must follow with North Carolina General Statutes Chapter 84 and the North Carolina State Bar Rules.  

You can get legal advice from an organization like Legal Aid of North Carolina. The State Bar of North Carolina can help you find an attorney. 

The law requires that you explicitly state your specific exceptions (disagreements) to the Board of Review’s decision or procedure in your petition. You must also state the relief that you seek (what it is that you want the court to do for you). You may consult an attorney for legal advice.   

You must send a hard copy of your petition to certain people. Below is a list of who to include:

  1. The N.C. Division of Employment Security’s (DES) registered agent. You can find their name and address in the Appeals Rights section of your decision.
  2. All parties to the case before the Board of Review (usually to the claimant if you are the employer, or the employer if you are the claimant). If you need their contact information, call DES’s Legal Services Section at 984-236-5987. 

You must serve the petition by certified mail, return receipt requested or personal service.  

You have 10 days to serve your petition for judicial review. Here’s how it works:

  1. Claimants: Claimants must serve a copy of the petition on DES’s registered agent for service of process and on the employer within 10 days after filing it with the court.
  2. Employers: Employers must serve a copy of the petition on DES’s registered agent for service of process and on the claimant within 10 days after filing it with the court. 

You can become a party to the judicial review proceeding by letting the court know that you want to be a party.  

  1. You must inform the court within 10 days after you receive a copy of the petition.
  2. You can inform the court by filing a notice with the Clerk of Superior Court. You can also ask the court to add you as a party by filing a motion to intervene pursuant to N.C. Gen. Stat. § 1A-1, Rule 24. 

You will have a chance to attend a hearing before a superior court judge.  If you do not file and serve your petition properly, DES will file a motion to dismiss your petition. If you meet all legal requirements, the judge will review the evidence that the Board of Review used to make its decision. First, the judge will decide whether there was competent evidence in the record to support the Board of Review’s findings of fact. Next, the judge will decide whether the findings of fact support the Board of Review’s conclusions of law and decision. If your appeal was dismissed or not allowed and you file a petition for judicial review, the judge will determine whether the Board of Review abused its discretion when it dismissed your appeal or upheld the Appeal Referee’s dismissal or disallowance of your appeal. 

If the superior court judge rules against you, you can file an appeal to the appellate division as provided in N.C. Gen. Stat. § 7A-27 and the North Carolina Rules of Appellate Procedure. You can also seek the assistance of an attorney. 

Yes, you should continue to file your weekly claims for benefits even if your case is being appealed or if you have submitted a petition for judicial review. If you don’t file, you won’t get paid for those weeks. If you are unemployed, keep filing a certification each week until all appeals are decided. 

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