"A nonlawyer sitting on the highest court in the land? Is that even allowed?" — Greensboro News-Record columnist Doug Clark

Yes, for the U.S. Supreme Court; no, for the North Carolina one.

Article IV of the North Carolina constitution states that "only persons duly authorized to practice law" in state courts may be eligible to be elected or appointed state judges.

The N.C. Board of Law Examiners determines who can practice law. It requires that students graduate from a law school approved the N.C. State Bar, provide proof of "good moral character" and pass the bar exam, or have practiced law in another state.

"The main requirement is that you have to graduate from an ABA-approved law school," said Tammy Jackson, a spokeswoman for the State Bar.

Article III of the U.S. Constitution, however, states only that judges shall "hold their offices during good behavior."

It does not list any formal educational requirements, although every person nominated to the Court to date has been a lawyer and nearly two-thirds have been judges.

UNC-Chapel Hill law professor Bill Marshall said that Supreme Court justices handle a lot of technical legal issues.

"You don't have to be a lawyer to be a Supreme Court justice, but I think you probably need to be a this point," he said.

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Bill Marshall thinks U.S. Sen. Richard Burr is in a tough spot.

The UNC-Chapel Hill law professor and former deputy White House counsel said that the Winston-Salem Republican may have a more difficult choice on President Obama's Supreme Court nomination.

He said senators such as Burr who are facing re-election soon have to weigh carefully how much to support or oppose a nominee, including how publicly to air their thoughts and whether to back filibusters.

"They have to face voters a little sooner," he said. 

Marshall said that decisions on Supreme Court nominees can become fodder for a rival campaign, although they are rarely the decisive issue in a race.

"For some voters it is a salient thing in its own right," he said. "For others, it's a symbol of larger things ... a signal somehow that the person holds very conservative or very liberal views. That can be part of an overall package." 

Previously: Burr seeks qualified, non-activist judge.