North Carolina Archives - Fines and Fees Justice Center

Estimating Earnings Impact of Driver’s License Revocations in North Carolina

In North Carolina, a driver’s license can be revoked for failure to pay court ordered monetary obligations and failure to appear in court. Millions of people rely on their licenses …

When the Dollars Don’t Add Up to Sense

Over the past 20 years, North Carolina has increased its reliance on fines and fees as a revenue source. At the same time, the legislature has implemented regressive tax policies …

Waiving Criminal Court Fees Prevents Harms of Civil Debt

North Carolina law allows judges to order the conversion of financial obligations to civil judgments. Although doing this may protect justice-involved people from driver’s license suspensions, an extension of probation, …

Civil Rights and Equity of Legal Financial Obligations in North Carolina

Each state has an advisory committee on civil rights composed of members with diverse backgrounds, skills, and experiences that advise the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights on civil rights issues …

The Impact of Criminal Financial Sanctions: A Multi-State Analysis of Survey and Administrative Data

This multi-state study assesses outcomes related to recidivism, employment, expenditures, mental well-being, and household spillovers. Researchers specifically analyzed how increasing the dollar amount of financial obligations imposed upon conviction across …

Auto-Jubilee: A Case for Massive Automatic Driver’s License Restoration for Debtor-Suspendees

Driver’s license suspension is increasingly employed as a punitive measure for non-driving offenses such as failure to appear or failure to comply with court orders, including orders to pay fines …

North Carolina Court Appearance Project

In North Carolina, nonappearance for a court case can lead to driver’s license suspension, an order for arrest, and jail time. Nearly 250,000 court appearances are missed annually in North …

Spiraling Criminal Debt

North Carolina in recent decades moved to a user- fee model allowing courts to impose any number of fines and fees when a criminal case is resolved through a plea …

Johnson v. Goodwin

Johnson v. Goodwin (Formerly Johnson v. Jessup) Case No. 1:18-cv-00467 (M.D. N.C. 2022) On March 3, 2022, a federal court accepted a settlement in this class action lawsuit brought against the …

Resolve Traffic Debt: Advocate Toolkit

North Carolina automatically suspends a person’s driver’s license for failure to pay court fees or fines for a motor vehicle offense. Approximately 300,000 North Carolinians have long-term driver’s license suspensions …