RALEIGH – Former Wake County District Court Judge Jane Powell Gray ‘79 and Frank Gray have generously agreed to help fund fellowships for state trial judges to earn an LL.M. in International Legal Studies, Campbell Law School Dean J. Rich Leonard has announced.
Judge Gray and her husband, Frank, have agreed to donate $25,000 to send two North Carolina judges to participate in the Campbell Law program that partners with Nottingham Law School in the United Kingdom to offer an LL.M. degree.
The donation comes on the heels of state budget cuts affecting the AOC, Leonard said.“For almost a decade, state trial judges have joined my students as participants in this program,” he explained. “More than two dozen have earned their LL.M. degrees. The Administrative Office of the Courts (AOC) has generously supported the judges in this endeavor until this year. Sadly, budgetary constraints have eliminated this support for this year.”
The Campbell Law/Nottingham partnership allows Campbell Law students, attorneys and judges to earn an LL.M., which involves online coursework and an in-person component at Nottingham Trent University’s law school.
“Our students take an onboarding course here, then travel to Nottingham to present their thesis topic and be assigned a distinguished faculty member to oversee their writing process,” Leonard added. “The relationship between law students and judges has been a hallmark of this program we want to continue. I am glad to announce that it can, due to a generous gift from Judge Jane Gray and her husband, Frank Gray.”
Campbell Law will be able to offer two Gray Fellowships of $12,500 each to state trial judges chosen by the AOC to participate in the program, beginning with the 2026 spring semester.
“They will join my law students in class this spring, and participate in our spring break trip to Nottingham to enroll in the LL.M. program there,” Leonard said.
District Court Judge Rob Young traveled to Nottingham in July 2025 to participate in the LL.M. graduation ceremonies.
“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,” Young said in an article about the program.
“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 Homewood, who … carried out a truly rich and meaningful graduation ceremony in the English tradition.”
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 Law. 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 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.
Young currently sits as a 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. In addition to earning his LL.M., 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.
Judge Gray served as a District Court Judge for Wake County from 2002 until 2012. After retirement, she served seven more years as an Emergency Judge. She spent 19 years with the North Carolina Attorney General’s Office where she handled a variety of matters, including acting as counsel to the Division of Motor Vehicles, representing the State on civil and criminal appeals and serving as Legislative Liaison for the Department. She also served three years as General Counsel to the Speaker of the North Carolina House of Representatives. She earned a bachelor’s degree in sociology from the University of Florida in 1972 prior to earning her J.D. from Campbell Law School in 1979 as a member of the Charter Class. Judge Gray is currently a member of Campbell Law’s Board of Visitors. Frank Gray graduated from Davidson College in 1970 and from the University of Florida Law School with honors in 1973. He is a partner in the Raleigh law firm Jordan Price Wall Gray Jones & Carlton.
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Since its founding in 1976, Campbell Law School has developed lawyers who possess moral conviction, social compassion, and professional competence, and who view the law as a calling to serve others. Among its accolades, the school has been recognized by the American Bar Association (ABA) as having the nation’s top Professionalism Program and by the American Academy of Trial Lawyers for having the nation’s best Trial Advocacy Program. Campbell Law boasts more than 5,000 alumni, who make their home in nearly all 50 states and beyond. In 2026, Campbell Law will celebrate 50 years of graduating legal leaders and 17 years of being located in a state-of-the-art facility in the heart of North Carolina’s Capital City.