North Carolina Lawyers Weekly articles from October 2003

North Carolina Lawyers Weekly archives from October 2003

U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit Case Summaries: October 6, 2003.
October 6, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Rights Elections - Campaign Finance Laws - N.C. Statute - Pro- Life Group Where appellees North Carolina Right to Life Inc., N.C. Right to Life Political Action Committee and N.C....

U.S. Middle District Rules CGL Insurer Must Defend Claim For Shoddy Work.
October 6, 2003... Byline: Ertel Berry A commercial general liability insurer must defend a sub against claims it misapplied concrete at a Hickory warehouse -- even though a leading case says CGL policies aren't meant to cover shoddy workmanship, a federal...

U.S. Western District Court Rules Settlement Statements Off-Limits In Age Bias Case.
October 6, 2003... Byline: Michael Dayton Statements made by an employer's general counsel during settlement negotiations could not be used to prove a pretextual termination in an age discrimination case, a U.S. Western District judge has ruled. The...

N.C. Industrial Commission Rules Trucker's 'Trial Return' Wages Did Not Determine Benefits.
October 6, 2003... Byline: Ertel Berry Even though a trucker was making $378 a week when he hurt his knee, he was entitled to disability benefits based on the $797 weekly wages he was earning two years before the accident, the Industrial Commission has...

U.S. Middle District Court Rules Fast Food Worker Gets Title VII Claim Over Fiance's Firing.
October 6, 2003... Byline: Ertel Berry A Bojangles worker who was told not to return from maternity leave could sue under Title VII -- because the company may have been retaliating against her on the belief she was going to help her live-in fiance with his...

U.S. District Court Middle District Case Summaries: October 6, 2003.
October 6, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Statute of Limitations - Life Insurance - Policy Lapse - Claim Denial Where the complaint seeks relief either for the defendant-insurer's June 17, 1999 refusal to honor...

U.S. District Court Western District Case Summaries: October 6, 2003.
October 6, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Federal Jurisdiction - Federal Question - Age Discrimination - Fewer Than 20 Employees - Remand Where the plaintiff's age discrimination complaint alleges that the...

Verdicts & Settlements October 6, 2003: Civil Action For Unpaid Commissions.
October 6, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Civil action to collect unpaid wages (commissions) Description: The claim was for commissions owed pursuant to an employment agreement, which stated that Plaintiff/employee was...

N.C. Lawyers In The News: October 6, 2008.
October 6, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Richard DeWitte Sparkman of Angier has been elected chair of the bankruptcy section of the N.C. Bar Association for 2003-2004. A board certified bankruptcy law specialist, he is a Chapter 7...

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Case Summaries: October 6, 2003.
October 6, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Bankruptcy Motion to Reopen - Chapter 11 - Unscheduled Causes of Action - Substantially Consummated Plan Even though the debtor failed to schedule two causes of action it entered as a...

U.S. District Court Eastern District Case Summaries: October 6, 2007.
October 6, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Labor & Employment Contract - Covenant Not to Compete - Tort/Negligence - Breach of Fiduciary Duty - Interference With Contract - Wage & Hour Act Even though one clause of the parties'...

N.C. Lawyers Raise Money On MS Bike Tour.
October 6, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Twenty lawyers from Alamance, Craven, Johnston and Wake counties rode with the 59-member Selma Cyclepath bicycle team in the MS 150 Bike tour on Sept. 13 and 14. Over $500,000 was pledged for this...

N.C. Industrial Comm. Case Summaries: October 6, 2003.
October 6, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Workers Compensation Average Weekly Wage - Prior Compensable Injury - Light Duty - Reduced Wages - Pre- Injury Wages Even though the plaintiff was only earning a weekly wage of $378.40...

N.C. Court of Appeals Case Summaries: October 13, 2003.
October 13, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Costs - Statutory & Common Law - Real Property - Condemnation Where G.S. 136-119 does not authorize the taxing of appraisal fees in this condemnation case, and where G.S....

N.C. Appeals Court Rules DOT Could Be Sued In Court Over Sign Maintenance.
October 13, 2003... Byline: Ertel Berry Three passengers who sued the driver of their car for running a stop sign in Elm City could also sue the state Department of Transportation for allegedly letting foliage obscure the sign, the Appeals Court held Oct. 7....

N.C. Supreme Court Rules Dad Who Reentered Adult's Son Life Not Entitled To Share Of Estate.
October 13, 2003... Byline: Michael Dayton Even though a father reconnected with his adult son and provided financial support in the year before the child's death, he was not entitled to any wrongful death proceeds from his son's estate, the Supreme Court has...

N.C. Appeals Court Decisions Highlight Split On Costs For Travel, Exhibits.
October 13, 2003... Byline: Ertel Berry A pair of Oct. 7 decisions from the Appeals Court say judges can't award court costs for certain types of expenses like attorney travel and trial exhibits -- but the issue will remain open because several prior Appeals...

N.C. Court of Appeals Case Summaries: October 13, 2003.
October 13, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Attorneys Tort/Negligence - Personal Injury - Settlement Proceeds - Multiple Lienholders - Failure to Pay One Lien - Appeals - Affirmed Where our Court of Appeals held, Even though the...

U.S. District Court Eastern District Case Summaries: October 13, 2007.
October 13, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Rights Police Officers - Theft & Destruction of Property - Due Process - Search & Seizure - Municipal - Supervisory Liability Where the plaintiff-landlord alleges that the...

U.S. District Court Western District Case Summaries: October 13, 2003.
October 13, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Preliminary Injunction - Contract - Legal Remedy - Peruvian Mine Where the plaintiff's claims are all based on its contractual rights with the owner of a Peruvian mine, if...

N.C. Business Court Case Summaries: October 13, 2003.
October 13, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Class Action - Certification - Products Liability - EIFS Manufacturer Where the plaintiffs seek to certify a class of "all persons who have an ownership interest in a...

Verdicts & Settlements October 13, 2003: UM Claim Over Closed Head Injury.
October 13, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Uninsured motorist arbitration Description: The plaintiff was rear-ended by uninsured motorist. Suit filed against driver and plaintiff's uninsured motorist carrier served as...

N.C. Lawyers In The News: October 13, 2008.
October 13, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Marie D. Lang has joined Duffus & Associates in an of counsel capacity. Before joining the firm, the William and Mary law graduate had a general litigation practice in Virginia for 15 years. She...

Daubert Case Leads N.C. Supreme Court Petition List.
October 13, 2003... Byline: Ertel Berry The Supreme Court has agreed to hear a case that could clarify how far trial judges should go, and what factors they should consider, in carrying out their role as evidence gatekeepers. That case, which arose after...

Verdicts & Settlements October 13, 2003: Condemnation.
October 13, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Land condemnation Injuries Alleged: Taking of restaurant and site improvements, damage to remainder Name of Case: North Carolina Department of Transportation v. Pan-Pan...

U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit Case Summaries: October 20, 2003.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Rights Child Neglect Investigation - Qualified Immunity A child protective service worker has qualified immunity from a civil rights suit filed by a mother whose children, one of...

Chief Justice Lake Defends Latest Changes In Judicial Code In N.C.
October 20, 2003... Byline: Michael Dayton Seeking to deflect growing criticism of a revised ethics code for judges, Chief Justice I. Beverly Lake Jr. has taken the unusual step of explaining several controversial changes and defending others as political...

Update: Choice-Of-Law Ruling On Jury Waiver Withdrawn.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff A federal judge has rescinded an order that would have enforced a jury waiver under a New York choice-of-law contract clause. That holding, which struck a jury demand in a dispute over...

N.C. Appeals Court Rules Filing Deadline Stood Despite Rowan County Ice Storm.
October 20, 2003... Byline: Michael Dayton A Rowan County plaintiff who claimed an ice storm kept her from meeting a filing deadline on a personal injury suit has been frozen out of court by an Oct. 7 Appeals Court decision. The plaintiff's case arose...

U.S. Eastern District Court Rules Racial Remark Flap Could Show Hostile Workplace.
October 20, 2003... Byline: Ertel Berry Four African-American employees of Weyerhauser who were humiliated when a supervisor called new workers "Sambos" will get a jury trial on Title VII claims for a hostile work environment, and state law claims for...

Wilson Law-Business Lectures Underway in Winston-Salem.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Lawrence A. Cunningham, professor of law and business at Boston College, will keynote the inaugural Wilson law and business lecture series at Wake Forest University's Worrell Professional Center...

U.S. District Court Eastern District Case Summaries: October 20, 2007.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Service of Process - Rule 4(i)(1) - U.S. Agency - U.S. Attorney Where the complaint alleges the plaintiff was discriminated against in his employment at a U.S. commissary...

U.S. District Court Middle District Case Summaries: October 20, 2003.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Subject Matter Jurisdiction - Statute of Limitations - Administrative - Tort/Negligence - Personal Injury - Auto Accident - FTCA Where the plaintiff was struck and injured...

U.S. District Court Western District Case Summaries: October 20, 2003.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Res Judicata - Contract - Labor & Employment - ERISA - Fund Contributions - Tennessee Litigation Where a court in Tennessee has entered a default judgment against the...

Verdicts & Settlements October 20, 2003: State Condemned 2,223 Acres - $24M Settlement.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Brief statement of claim: The state filed an action in October 2000 to condemn 2,223 acres known as the "Waterfall Tract" acquired by the defendants from Sterling Diagnostic Imaging, a successor...

N.C. Women Attorneys Association Elects New Officers.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff The North Carolina Association of Women Attorneys held its 25th annual conference at Wrightsville Beach in early October. At the annual meeting, conducted in conjunction with the conference, the...

U.S. Eastern District Rules Prison Officer's Harassment Claims Survive Summary Judgment.
October 20, 2003... Byline: Ertel Berry A jury must decide whether a former Central Prison officer was sexually harassed by a superior, then transferred to less desirable jobs when she complained, a federal judge has ruled. U.S. Eastern District Chief...

N.C. Court of Appeals Unpublished Case Summaries: October 20, 20.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Administrative Immigration - Medicaid - Visitor's Visa - Residency Requirement - Asylum Application Even though the petitioner has applied for asylum in the U.S., since she came here on...

Verdicts & Settlements October 20, 2003: Soft-Tissue Injury Results In Minor Fender-Bender.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Description: There was no property damage to Defendant's vehicle and the investigating officer opined that the "ding" in Plaintiff's bumper was inconsistent with the minor impact and must have...

Verdicts & Settlements October 20, 2003: Auto Collision - Back Injury.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Brief statement of claim: At about 8:00 p.m. on a September Friday night, the plaintiffs were returning home from work at their upholstery shop in their full-size van with a load of furniture that...

N.C. Superior Court Awards $3.7M In Corporate Piracy Case.
October 20, 2003... Byline: Ertel Berry A Union County company and its owner have won a $3.7 million judgment on claims they were cheated out of profits on a contract to run a wastewater plant at an Oklahoma air base. VERDICT REPORT Superior Court...

N.C. Lawyers In The News: October 20, 2008.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff It was a family affair when new Alamance County lawyer Dawn Allen took the oath recently. She was presented to the court by her father-in-law, Judge J.B. Allen Jr, and was sworn in by Judge Brad...

Resolution of the North Carolina Association of District Court Judges Fall Conference 2003.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Whereas, since its inception, the North Carolina Code of Judicial Conduct has held judges to the highest ethical standards. Whereas, historically, the purpose of the Code of Judicial Conduct...

North Carolina legal obituaries: October 20, 2003.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Owen W. Cook Fayetteville lawyer Owen W. Cook died Sept. 19 at age 69. He was past president of the Cumberland County Bar Association. He served in the military as a captain in the U.S. Air...

U.S. Bankruptcy Court Case Summaries: October 20, 2003.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Bankruptcy Claim - Contract - Construction - Subcontractor - Replacement Where the subcontract only required the contractor to pay for materials already delivered to the construction...

Verdicts & Settlements October 20, 2003: Former Officer, Employee Sued.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Brief statement of the claim: Magnetic striped ticket manufacturer sued a former officer and former employee of the company for breach of fiduciary duty, misappropriation of trade secrets, breach...

Verdicts & Settlements October 20, 2003: Tractor-Trailer Tire Blowout - Crossed Line - Broken Leg.
October 20, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Type of Action: Motor vehicle accident Description: This is a tractor trailer case where the defense denied liability as the result of a tire blow-out resulting in an alleged sudden...

N.C. Court of Appeals Case Summaries: October 27, 2003.
October 27, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Arbitration Insurance - Auto - UIM - Time Limit - No Waiver - Suit Against Tortfeasor Where, following the liability carrier's settlement, the plaintiff promptly ceased pursuing...

NC Court of Appeals Unpublished Case Summaries: October 27, 2003.
October 27, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Workers Compensation Employer's Lien - Reduction - Litigation Costs - Tort/Negligence - Personal Injury - Third- Party Settlement Even though, when the plaintiff settled her third-party...

U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit Case Summaries: October 27, 2003.
October 27, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Bankruptcy Dischargeability of Debt - Student Loans - Ch. 7 In this chapter 7 bankruptcy case, the district court erred in holding that nondischarge of a chiropractor's $63,000 in...

U.S. District Court Western District Case Summaries: October 27, 2003.
October 27, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Bankruptcy Chapter 13 Reorganization - Disposable Income - Private School Tuition Where the debtors' Chapter 13 plan proposes to pay only $450 per month, thereby paying their unsecured...

EEOC Settles Racial Harassment Suit Against Penhall Company.
October 27, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission last week announced a $65,000 settlement of a racial harassment lawsuit against Penhall Company, a nationwide concrete cutting and wrecking...

N.C. Court of Appeals Rules Subcontractor Gets Trial On Oral Guaranty Of Payment.
October 27, 2003... Byline: Michael Dayton The owners of an Orange County construction project who allegedly made an oral guaranty of payment to an electrical subcontractor now face a trial over that promise, the Court of Appeals ruled Oct. 21. The latest...

N.C. Lawyers In The News: October 27, 2003.
October 27, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff David B. McLean, Jennifer F. Adams, and Jeffrey M. Davis have joined the Greensboro firm of Hunter, Huggins, Miles, Elam & Benjamin. McLean, who got his law degree at Wake Forest and has...

N.C. Appeals Court Rules Former Husband's Remarks Breached 'No Interference' Deal.
October 27, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff A Wake County husband's remarks to his former wife -- such as "It's finally time for you to pay for what you've done" -- violated a "no interference" clause in the couple's separation agreement,...

U.S. Middle District Court Rules Loss-Of-Sight Coverage Didn't Require Total Blindness.
October 27, 2003... Byline: Ertel Berry A man who retained 20/25 vision in his injured eye may collect accident insurance even though the policy only covered an "entire" loss of sight, a federal judge has ruled. The reason: the injury left the insured...

N.C. Appeals Court Rules Wreck Settlement Started Clock On UIM Arbitration.
October 27, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff A three-year time limit for arbitrating UIM claims under a Farm Bureau policy started when the insured was offered a settlement of her underlying wreck claim by the defendant's liability carrier,...

Verdicts & Settlements October 27, 2003: Rest Home Patient Assaulted By Other Resident - Died.
October 27, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Statement of Case: An 84-year-old female nursing home resident, Letha Alverson, was physically assaulted by a male resident who was known to the home operators over several years to have assaulted...

Verdicts & Settlements October 27, 2003: Patient Died From Perforated Stomach During Surgery.
October 27, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Statement of Case: At the age of 10, the decedent, Darryl Johnson, developed a neurological disorder, Olivoponto Cerebellar Degeneration, which progressively ravaged his physical and mental...

U.S. District Court Middle District Case Summaries: October 27, 2003.
October 27, 2003... Byline: North Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Diversity Jurisdiction - Amount in Controversy - Labor & Employment - Wrongful Discharge - Lost Wages - REDA Where the plaintiff's state-court complaint seeks lost wages...