North Carolina Lawyers Weekly articles from February 2004

North Carolina Lawyers Weekly archives from February 2004

North Carolina Attorney James K. Dorsett III elected to the Fellows of the American Bar Foundation.(Brief article)
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff James K. Dorsett III, a commercial litigation partner with Smith, Anderson, Blount, Dorsett, Mitchell & Jernigan, L.L.P., was recently elected to the Fellows of the American Bar Foundation,...

North Carolina attorney obituaries.(Obituary)
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Henry S. Manning Jr. Henry Stancil Manning Jr. of Raleigh died Jan. 24. He was 65. Born in Windsor, he graduated from law school at the University of North Carolina. He served as law...

North Carolina U.S. Court of Appeals case summaries: February 2, 2004.
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Rights Excessive Force - Unlawful Arrest - FBI Agent's ID Even though the district court did not err in granting defendants summary judgment on the claim of plaintiff, an...

North Carolina U.S. District Court case summaries: February 2, 2004.
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Attorneys Fee Award - Antitrust - Class Action - Settlement Agreement - Lodestar Method Even though the defendants agreed to pay the plaintiffs' attorneys' fees at the time they settled...

North Carolina U.S. District Court case summaries: February 2, 2004.(Brief article)
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Labor & Employment Civil Rights - Race & Age Discrimination Claims - Civil Practice - Untimely Filing Where the plaintiff was notified that she would lose her right to sue if she did not...

North Carolina U.S. Bankruptcy Court case summaries: February 2, 2004.
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Real Property Negotiable Instruments - Deed of Trust - Alternate Trustees - Bankruptcy - Civil Practice - Res Judicata - Clerk's Decision Even though the deed of trust named three...

North Carolina Court of Appeals: February 2, 2004.
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Contempt - Domestic Relations - Equitable Distribution - Res Judicata & Collateral Estoppel Where the parties' consent equitable distribution judgment required the...

North Carolina Commission of Labor sues Shelton Pipeline Inc. for mis-marked location of pipeline.(Brief article)
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Labor & Employment Underground Pipe - Exact Location - Failure to Determine - Gas Explosion - Employee Death Even though (1) Piedmont Natural Gas did not properly document or file an...

North Carolina formal bar ethics opinions: February 2, 2004.
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff At a meeting on January 16, 2004, the State Bar Council adopted the opinions summarized below upon the recommendation of the Ethics Committee. ____________ 2003 Formal Ethics Opinion 7...

Verdicts & settlements February 2, 2004: N.C. jury awards $950K due to wrongful death auto suit.(Brief article)
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Wrongful death Injuries Alleged: Multiple blunt trauma from motor vehicle collision Name of Case: Estate of Vaughan v. Fisler Court: Superior Court (not filed) ...

Verdicts & settlements February 2, 2004: N.C. jury awards over $1M for unfair trade practices.(Brief article)
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Trade secret theft and unfair trade practices Injuries Alleged: Loss of business Name of Case: Essex Group, Inc. v. Express Wire Services, Inc., Scott Ramsey, and Wayne...

Verdicts & settlements February 2, 2004: North Carolina med-mal suit results in $650K settlement.(Brief article)
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Medical Malpractice Injuries Alleged: Thyrotoxicosis, post-traumatic stress disorder Name of Case: Confidential Court: Confidential Case No.: Confidential ...

Verdicts & settlements February 2, 2004: North Carolina Med-mal case results in $750K settlement.(Brief article)(Case overview)
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Medical Malpractice Injuries Alleged: Death Name of Case: Confidential Court: Confidential Case No.: Confidential Tried Before: Mediation Name of Judge:...

Verdicts & settlements February 2, 2004: N.C. hospital settles at $1.5M for wrongful death suit.(Brief article)(Case overview)
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Brief Statement of Claim: Wrongful death of a two-and-a-half-year-old child following brain injury at birth. Principal injuries: Acute hypoxic-ischemic brain damage resulting in cerebral...

Verdicts & settlements February 2, 2004: N.C. jury awards over $1M for wrongful death auto suit.(Brief article)(Case overview)
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of action: Auto negligence; wrongful death Injuries Alleged: Death of 25-year-old woman Name of Case: Confidential Court/Case: Confidential Tried Before: Mediation Name...

N. Carolina lawyers looking for new methods to attract clients take note of proposed ethics rulings.(North Carolina)
February 2, 2004... Byline: Michael Dayton Lawyers looking for new methods of attracting prospective clients should take note of two proposed ethics rulings. In Proposed 2004 Formal Ethics Opinion 1, the Bar's Ethics Committee tentatively approved...

North Carolina's Kilpatrick Stockton launches alumni website.(Brief article)
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Recognizing the tremendous value in making and maintaining connections, Kilpatrick Stockton has announced the launch of its alumni website. Kilpatrick Stockton created the alumni website to...

North Carolina salesman gets malicious prosecution trial against store.
February 2, 2004... Byline: Ertel Berry A shoe salesman who was acquitted of embezzling from Dillard's will get a trial on claims the store maliciously prosecuted him, the Appeals Court has ruled. The case arose when Dillard's informed an off-duty police...

North Carolina Lawyers In The News: February 2, 2004.
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Elaine Hedrick Ashley has become a member of Hill, Evans, Duncan, Jordan & Beatty in Greensboro. With the firm since 1988, her practice is concentrated in family law. Also, firm member Polly D....

N.C. Court of Appeals rules cash payment to be implied by ED settlement.
February 2, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Even though an equitable distribution consent order didn't say how a Moore County husband was to pay $75,000 to his wife, that didn't mean he could comply by rolling over an IRA account to her,...

North Carolina tenant wins new trial after offer of proof denied.
February 2, 2004... Byline: Ertel Berry Even though a Cabarrus trial judge had stopped taking evidence in a rent dispute, he should have allowed the tenant to make an offer of proof that rebutted critical testimony for the landlord, the Appeals Court has...

Vocational expert opinion struck in ADA case.(Americans with Disabilities Act)
February 9, 2004... Byline: Ertel Berry A vocational expert's opinion that a plaintiff's knee and back problems kept him out of the labor market was too general or speculative to be admitted under the Americans with Disabilities Act, a federal judge has...

Court of Appeals says defendant's late answer preempted default judgment.(ARM Enterprises)
February 9, 2004... Byline: Michael Dayton Even though a defendant filed his answer 13 months after a complaint was filed -- and just moments before a hearing on an entry of default -- he could not be hit with a default judgment, the Court of Appeals ruled...

N.C. Legal Community Obituaries: February 9, 2004.(Obituary)(Obituary)(Brief article)
February 9, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Richard N. Junker Denver lawyer and businessman Richard Norman Junker died Dec. 28, Lawyers Weekly has learned. Born in Charlotte, he graduated from law school at Duke and practiced for...

U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit Case Summaries: February 9, 2004.
February 9, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative FOIA - Postal Service Contract The U.S. Postal Service was not required under the Freedom of Information Act to turn over to an unsuccessful contract bidder 13 pages of...

U.S. District Court Middle District Case Summaries: February 9, 2004.
February 9, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Federal Jurisdiction - Remand - Contract - Insurance - ERISA - No Preemption Even though the defendant administers the plaintiff's ERISA employee benefit plan, since the...

N.C. Court of Appeals Case Summaries: February 9, 2004.
February 9, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative Stormwater Permit - Agency Decision - Timeliness - Waiver - Delegation of Authority - NPDES Committee Even though respondent Environmental Management Commission issued its...

Verdicts & Settlements February 9, 2004: Arrestee hurt during transport.(Case overview)
February 9, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Against police officer for gross negligence; against city for violating plaintiff's due process and equal protection rights Injuries Alleged: Plaintiff suffered back injury:...

Verdicts & Settlements February 9, 2004: Host backed car into guest.(Brief article)(Case overview)
February 9, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Negligence; motor vehicle Injuries Alleged: Bilateral fractured femurs, Fractured left tibia and fibula Name of Case: Virginia Hassie Thomas v. Ruth Bumgardner Cornett ...

Verdicts & Settlements February 9, 2004: 30-year-old motorcyclist - defendant turned in front of him.(Brief article)(Case overview)
February 9, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Brief Statement of Claim: Plaintiff was riding a motorcycle when defendant made a left turn in front of him. Plaintiff struck defendant's vehicle and sustained serious personal injuries. The...

Verdicts & Settlements February 9, 2004: Patient injured by medication error settles claim.(Brief article)(Case overview)
February 9, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Medical malpractice Injuries Alleged: Medication error during surgery causing chronic pain Name of Case: Confidential Court: Confidential Case No.: Confidential...

North Carolina Lawyers In the News: February 9, 2004.
February 9, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Adrienne S. Blocker and Marcus E. Hayes Sr., both litigation lawyers at Crumley & Associates, have been certified as members of the Million Dollar Advocates Forum, an organization whose membership...

North Caorlina DOT may be liable for lack of median barrier.
February 9, 2004... Byline: Ertel Berry The Industrial Commission misapplied a cost-benefit test in rejecting claims that a fatal I-85 wreck was caused by the state Department of Transportation's delay in installing a median barrier, the Appeals Court held...

N.C. Court of Appeals rules expert testimony not required to show surveyor negligence.
February 9, 2004... Byline: Michael Dayton A general contractor did not need expert testimony to show a surveyor made mistakes -- allegedly missing the mark by as much as 5 inches -- when placing columns for a commercial building in Swepsonville, the Court of...

N.C. Court of Appeals rules insurer can be sued for fraud despite dividend disclaimer.
February 9, 2004... Byline: Ertel Berry A Mecklenburg couple can pursue fraud claims against a life insurance company over sales brochures that showed rising dividends would eliminate the plaintiffs' premiums after 11 years, the Appeals Court held Feb. 3. ...

N.C. Supreme Court reinstates tuition benefits for record heart balm verdict.(North Carolina)
February 16, 2004... Byline: Michael Dayton The state Supreme Court has reinstated future college tuition included in a $1.4 million alienation of affections verdict from Mecklenburg County. The one-page per curiam ruling affirms the entire jury award that...

N.C. Supreme Court reverses comp award for 'road rage' death.(North Carolina, compensation)
February 16, 2004... Byline: Ertel Berry The state Supreme Court has reversed an award of worker's comp death benefits to the widow of trucker killed in an apparent road rage incident. The per curiam reversal adopted an Appeals Court dissent that tied the...

Superior Court rules meat company not liable over salesman's robbery, assault.(Case overview)
February 16, 2004... Byline: Ertel Berry A woman who was assaulted by a door-to-door salesman during a break-in failed to prove the company he worked for was liable for negligent hiring or retention, a Guilford trial judge has ruled. Superior Court Judge...

N.C. Supreme Court rules wife's abandonment of husband gave siblings standing.(Case overview)
February 16, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff A wife who abandoned her husband before he died of alleged medical malpractice lost her standing to sue for wrongful death -- but that didn't end his siblings' right to pursue the claim, the...

N.C. Supreme Court Case Summaries: February 16, 2004.
February 16, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative Appeals - Agency Delay - No Cause Shown - ALJ Decision Adoption - Welfare - Medicaid Where our Court of Appeals held, Where G.S. 150B-44 required the respondent-agency to...

NC Court of Appeals Unpublished Case Summaries: February 26, 2004.
February 16, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Res Judicata & Collateral Estoppel - Inapplicable - Contract - Settlement - Enforcement Action - Counterclaims Even though, in a prior Forsyth County action, a judge...

N.C. Lawyers in the News: February 16, 2004.(McIntyres Books )(Brief article)
February 16, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff South Carolina attorney and historian Gordon Rhea will be signing his new book, "Carrying the Flag," on Feb 21 at McIntyres Books in Pittsboro. Mr. Rhea is among the most respected contemporary...

Charlotte office of Ellzey & Brooks merges with national employment law firm.(Ellzey and Brooks merger with Fisher and Phillips)(Brief article)
February 16, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff The Charlotte office of the labor law firm Ellzey & Brooks has merged with Fisher & Phillips, one of the oldest and largest firms in the country representing management in the areas of labor,...

Verdicts & Settlements February 16, 2004: Plaintiffs recover $13.575M for child's quadriplegia.(Case overview)
February 16, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Brief statement of claim: A grandmother lost control of her vehicle and spun-out on a rain-slick portion of the eastbound lanes of Interstate 40 in North Carolina. Her grandson, then a...

Verdicts & Settlements February 16, 2004: Assisted living facility pays $40,000 settlement.(Brief article)(Case overview)
February 16, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Negligence/wrongful death Injuries Alleged: Death from stroke Name of Case: Ola Reese, Administratrix of the Estate of James Lucas, deceased, v. Diversicare Assisted...

Verdicts & Settlements February 16, 2004: Co. wins directed verdict in negligent hiring suit.(Case overview)
February 16, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Negligent Hiring/retention Injuries Alleged: Broken finger, cuts, bruises and emotional distress Name of Case: Teri H. Little and Frank Little v. Omega Meats I, Inc.,...

North Carolina Lawyers In the News: February 16, 2004.
February 16, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff McGuireWoods has elected J. Mark Langdon as a partner in its Charlotte office. He is a member of the commercial litigation department, where he focuses his practice on complex commercial,...

Verdicts & settlements February 23, 2004: North Carolina worker settles comp claim for $1.5M.
February 23, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Workers' Compensation Type of Action: Workers' compensation Injuries Alleged: Incomplete quadrapaligia Name of Case: Donagustin v. Lewis Homes Inc. Court/County: Industrial...

N.C. Court of Appeals rules drug dog could not be used during routine license check.
February 23, 2004... Byline: Michael Dayton Even though Rockingham County deputies had reason to hold a motorist for a license and warrants check, they could not use that time to have a drug dog sniff around her car, the Court of Appeals ruled Feb. 17. ...

Maupin Taylor's James Dever III appointed to U.S. magistrate judgeship.
February 23, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff James C. Dever, III, a long-time partner at Maupin Taylor, P.A., has been appointed to a United States magistrate judgeship in the Eastern District of North Carolina effective Feb. 9. Dever,...

U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit Case Summaries: February 23, 2004.
February 23, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative Patent Office - Advertising Campaign - Final Agency Action A company that complains that the Patent & Trademark Office's advertising campaign alerting the public about...

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Case Summaries: February 23, 2004.
February 23, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Bankruptcy Dismissal Motion - Consumer Debt - Business Debt - Small Ratio Where only 17 percent of the amount of the debt in this case could be found to constitute consumer debt, and...

N.C. Court of Appeals Case Summaries: February 23, 2004.(North Carolina)(Watts v. Sharon Slough)(Calvin Gibbs v. Mayo)
February 23, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Appeals - Interlocutory - Dismissed - Tort/Negligence - Securities Sale Even though, in its partial summary judgment order, the trial court found that defendant Sharon...

Verdicts & Settlements February 23, 2004: Homeowner recovers $1.15M in toxic mold claim.(Brief article)
February 23, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Bad faith insurance; toxic mold Injuries Alleged: Headaches, nosebleeds, shortness of breath, vertigo, memory loss, and a variety of other cognitive problems Name of Case:...

Verdicts & Settlements February 23, 2004: Carteret jury awards $772,700 to shooting victim.(Mitchum vs. Gaskill)(Brief article)
February 23, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Negligence/Shotgun blast injury Injuries Alleged: Right hip, colon, low back, and right lower extremity Name of Case: Mitchum vs. Gaskill Court/County: Carteret ...

N.C. Court of Appeals rules marital property stipulation didn't bar ED factor.
February 23, 2004... Byline: Ertel Berry Even though a Forsyth husband stipulated his medical practice was marital property, that didn't bar consideration of his separate interest in the business as a distributional factor, the Appeals Court ruled Feb. 17. ...

Paternity test struck over chain of custody in North Carolina court.
February 23, 2004... Byline: Ertel Berry A Feb. 17 Appeals Court ruling shows the steps for proving the chain of custody for paternity test results may vary -- depending on whether the test is court-ordered or not. Because the correct standards for a...

Ask the risk man: February 23, 2004.
February 23, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff "Mike Dyer: The attorney who answers his own telephone." That message is plastered across billboards and bus stops throughout Omaha, Nebraska, which I visited not long ago. Naturally, I was...

North Carolina Lawyers In the News: February 23, 2004.
February 23, 2004... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Jo Ann Brighton has joined Kennedy Covington's Charlotte office as special counsel in the financial restructuring group of the debt financing section. A partner at Nixon Peabody before relocating...

N.C. Court of Appeals rules lessee group's notice of parade hazard not imputed to landlord.
February 23, 2004... Byline: Ertel Berry Even though a Catawba County landlord could veto the Fourth of July parade of a lessee association, the landlord wasn't liable when a girl was burned by a flaming Statue of Liberty, the Appeals Court held Feb. 17. ...