In 1984, Judge Zachary graduated from Michigan State University, obtaining her Bachelor of Arts with honors in Multidisciplinary Studies, with concentrations in French, Economics, and Political Science.
She also critiqued briefs for the Ames Moot Court Competition and served as a member of the Harvard Legal Aid Bureau and the Women’s Law Association.
Upon graduating from law school in 1987, Judge Zachary joined the litigation team of the Charlotte firm Kennedy Covington Lobdell & Hickman (now K & L Gates).
Chief Justice Newby also appointed Judge Zachary to the North Carolina Family Court Advisory Commission in 2024.
In 2017, then-Chief Judge Linda McGee appointed Judge Zachary to serve as the Court of Appeals’ representative to the North Carolina Sentencing and Policy Advisory Commission (the “Structured Sentencing Commission”), on which she serves as a general member and as a member of the Justice Reinvestment Implementation Subcommittee.
In summer 2019, Judge Zachary was invited to present an elective course and to deliver the Convocation Address to the students and faculty of Governor’s School East.