South Carolina Lawyers Weekly articles from November 2003

South Carolina Lawyers Weekly archives from November 2003

Homebuyers Could Rely On Alleged Misrepresentation About Easement, Rules S.C. Court Of Appeals.
November 3, 2003... Byline: Gregory Froom A couple who contracted to purchase a $1.2 million home in downtown Charleston could sue the sellers after their real estate agent allegedly misrepresented that there were no easements on the property, the Court of...

Asbestos Claim 'Arose' At Exposure, Not At Plaintiff's Later Diagnosis, Rules S.C. Supreme Court.
November 3, 2003... Byline: Gregory Froom A Virginia woman who contracted mesothelioma after being exposed to asbestos as a child in South Carolina could bring suit here -- even though she wasn't diagnosed until years after she had moved away, the Supreme...

South Carolina Legal Obituary: Larry McDonald.
November 3, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Larry Daniel McDonald died Sept. 26. He was 58 years old. McDonald was born and raised in Washington, D.C. He graduated from Furman University in 1967, where he was a member of the football...

Motley Rice Adds Two New Members.
November 3, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Motley Rice LLC announced that two new members have joined the firm. The new members are Jeff Thompson, a prominent trial lawyer with experience in asbestos, occupational disease, tobacco and...

Excerpts from Wilburn Brewer's memoirs.
November 3, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff In January of this year, Wilburn Brewer began working on his memoirs, which included a number of observations on law and the legal profession. Following are some excerpts from the book: ...

S.C. Circuit Court Case Summaries: November 3, 2003.
November 3, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Attorney Disciplinary Matter Numerous Acts of Misconduct - Disbarment Where the respondent committed numerous acts of misconduct, we agree with the Commission on Lawyer Conduct that the...

S.C. Court of Appeals Unpublished Case Summaries: November 3, 2003.
November 3, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Assault and Battery of a High and Aggravated Nature - Probation Revocation Where the appellant argues her failure to pay various fees, which were ordered as a condition of her...

S.C. Supreme Court Case Summaries: November 3, 2003.
November 3, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Certiorari Where we granted certiorari to review the Court of Appeals' opinion in this case, we dismiss certiorari as improvidently granted after careful consideration....

S.C. Workers' Compensation Court Case Summaries: November 3, 2003.
November 3, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Workers' Compensation Back Injury - Maximum Medical Improvement Where the claimant, who broke his back in three places on June 11, 1999, after he was thrown off of a forklift about 13...

Incomplete Form Didn't Justify Insurer's Refusal To Pay Auto Claim, Rules S.C. Court Of Appeals.
November 3, 2003... Byline: Michael Dayton Even though an insured motorist never completed a valid proof of loss form on his stolen truck, a jury properly found that an insurance company acted in bad faith when it used that as a reason for withholding...

S.C. Court of Appeals Case Summaries: November 3, 2003.
November 3, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Contract Real Estate Closing - Easement - Negligent Misrepresentation Where the sellers sued the appellant buyers for breach of contract after the buyers refused to purchase the property...

Commentary: Taking The Office On The Road.
November 10, 2003... Byline: Bruce Dorner Modern computing and Chinese food have much in common. First, you need to decide if you want to have a "take out" or "dine in" meal. If you only work at an office desk, then the "dine in" desktop machine is all...

S.C. Lawyers In The News: November 10, 2003.
November 10, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Charleston attorney C. Allen Gibson Jr. has co-authored a book for the American Bar Association entitled Construction Damages and Remedies. Gibson practices with Buist Moore Smythe & McGee where...

Marketing Doesn't Have To Be Expensive To Look That Way.
November 10, 2003... Byline: Michael M. Bowden Most marketing agencies will gladly work with a law firm to develop a unique "brand" and a distinctive advertising campaign - provided that firm is ready and able to fork over tens of thousands of dollars for the...

U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit Case Summaries: November 10, 2003.
November 10, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Class Certification - Health Plan Collapse In this litigation by health-care plan subscribers suing the failed plan's claims administrator as the plan's successor in...

Fourth Circuit Upholds Verdict In FMLA Wrongful Termination Case.
November 10, 2003... Byline: Gregory Froom A Midlands woman who was fired from her phone book ad sales job after she went on sick leave was entitled to protection under the Family and Medical Leave Act, the U.S. 4th Circuit Court of Appeals has ruled. The...

Worker Limited To Comp Remedy For Injuries From Toxic Chemical Exposure, Rules S.C. Court Of Appeals.
November 10, 2003... Byline: Michael Dayton Even though an employer allegedly concealed the dangers of toxic workplace chemicals, an Horry County man who said the exposure made him ill has a workers' compensation claim as his sole remedy, the Court of Appeals...

S.C. Court of Appeals Case Summaries: November 10, 2003.
November 10, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Arbitration Purchase Agreement - Motion to Compel Arbitration - Waiver Where the appellants sold a direct mail processing business to the respondents through a purchasing agreement that...

S.C. Court of Appeals Unpublished Case Summaries: November 10, 2003.
November 10, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Contract Lease Agreement - Breach - Ambiguousness Where the respondents, who signed two lease agreements with the appellant that identified ABC Co. as the lessee, did not indicate they...

S.C. Law Firm Haynsworth Baldwin Johnson & Greaves Releases COBRA Compliance Manual.
November 10, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff The Greenville firm of Haynsworth Baldwin Johnson & Greaves recently announced the publication of the COBRA Compliance Manual. The manual was authored by firm members Robert S. Phifer and Brian M....

S.C. Supreme Court To Rehear Decision On Insurability Under Purchase Option.
November 10, 2003... Byline: Gregory Froom The state Supreme Court will review a dispute over whether a lease with an option to buy created an insurable interest in a residence. The high court recently granted certiorari in the case of Belton v. Cincinnati...

Abuse Exclusion Barred Coverage Of Negligent Hiring, Supervision Claim, Rules S.C. Court Of Appeals.
November 10, 2003... Byline: Gregory Froom A York County couple could not tap a day care's insurance coverage in a lawsuit over their infant son's shaken baby syndrome, the Court of Appeals ruled Nov. 3. The reason: a policy endorsement excluded coverage...

S.C. Supreme Court Case Summaries: November 10, 2003.
November 10, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Attorney Disciplinary Matter Money- Leasing Transactions - Bank Fraud - Disbarment Where the respondent was involved in a money-leasing scheme and pled guilty to bank fraud, we disbar the...

S. C. Workers' Compensation Court Case Summaries: November 10, 2003.
November 10, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Workers' Compensation Multiple Injuries - Temporary Total Disability Where the claimant sustained injuries to his neck, face, teeth, left arm and brain as a result of a work-related...

S.C. Bar Ethics Opinion: Practices Can't Be Sold During Suspension, Disbarment.
November 17, 2003... Byline: Gregory Froom A suspended or disbarred lawyer is not allowed to sell the intangible assets of his or her law practice, the Bar's Ethics Advisory Committee has ruled. The reason: an attorney who has already been sanctioned with...

Fatal Collision With Railroad Equipment Nets Estate $12 Million.
November 17, 2003... Byline: Gregory Froom The estate of a water department worker who was killed at an overgrown railroad crossing in Swansea has won a $12 million verdict against CSX Transportation. The worker died Jan. 3, 2001 after his truck was struck...

Update In Commercial Real Estate News.
November 17, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Low Lease Rates Are Not Reflected In Building Prices With vacancy rates in commercial real estate continuing at record high levels and lease rates near 10-year lows, you would think the...

S.C. Court of Appeals Case Summaries: November 17, 2003.
November 17, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Tort Negligence - Dog Bite - Lease Agreement - Third- Party Beneficiary Where the appellant sued a tenant and the tenant's landlord to recover for personal injuries she sustained when the...

Verdicts & Settlements November 17, 2003 Accident Victim's Estate Wins Suit Over Railroad Crossing Collision.
November 17, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff $12 Million Verdict Gregory Stanley Williams was killed on Jan. 3, 2001, when a piece of railroad equipment known as a ballast regulator struck his vehicle as he proceeded across a grade...

Rogers Townsend & Thomas Attorney Appointed To Board Of The Mortgage Bankers Association.
November 17, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Columbia attorney Samuel C. Waters, a shareholder and chairman of the board of Rogers Townsend & Thomas, P.C., has been elected to serve a two-year term as an associate board member for the...

S.C. Supreme Court Case Summaries: November 17, 2003.
November 17, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Attorney Disciplinary Matter Fraud Upon the Court - False Documents - Definite Suspension Where the respondent committed misconduct in two matters, including creating false divorce...

S.C. Workers' Compensation Court Case Summaries: November 17, 2003.
November 17, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Workers' Compensation Hand and Wrist Injuries - Carpal Tunnel Syndrome Where the claimant suffered injuries to his left hand as a result of an admitted on-the-job accident, the appellate...

Columbia Attorney Sanctioned For Drawing Up Fake Divorce Papers.
November 17, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff A Columbia lawyer has been suspended for drawing up fake divorce documents so a client could shock his wife into mending their marriage. In issuing a one-year definite suspension, the Supreme...

S.C. Court of Appeals Unpublished Case Summaries: November 17, 2003.
November 17, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Distribution of Crack Cocaine - Guilty Plea - Amended Indictment Where the trial court accepted the appellant's guilty plea on the indictment that was amended from possession...

Verdicts & Settlements November 17, 2003: Woman Injured In Accident Wins Pay-Out Under UIM Policy.
November 17, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff $200,000 Verdict Tort -- personal injury. Principal injuries (in order of severity): Fractured ankle, 14 percent impairment to whole body. Special damages: n/a Tried or Settled:...

Nexsen Pruet Partner Inducted As Fellow In ACTL.
November 24, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Columbia attorney Susan P. McWilliams, a partner in the firm of Nexsen Pruet Jacobs & Pollard, LLC, has become a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, one of the premier legal...

S.C. Appeals Court Ruling: No Privilege Between UIM Carrier's Lawyer, Named Defendant.
November 24, 2003... Byline: Gregory Froom The attorney-client privilege did not shield discussions between the at-fault driver in an Upstate accident and the lawyer who represented the plaintiff's UIM carrier, the Appeals Court ruled Nov. 17. In an...

Trial Judge Had Equitable Authority To Relocate Easement By Necessity.
November 24, 2003... Byline: Gregory Froom An easement by necessity across a Berkeley County tract could be relocated over the objections of the easement holders, the Court of Appeals has ruled in a first-impression decision. The reason: the trial court...

Discovery Abuse Rule Given Strict Reading By S.C. Appeals Court.
November 24, 2003... Byline: Gregory Froom A Nov. 17 Appeals Court decision has applied a strict interpretation to civil procedure Rule 30(j)(3), mandating that lawyers move for a protective order within five days of advising a witness not to answer a...

S.C. Court of Appeals Unpublished Case Summaries: November 24, 2003.
November 24, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Homicide by Child Abuse - "Extreme Indifference" - Directed Verdict Where the appellant, who was found guilty of homicide by child abuse "under circumstances manifesting extreme...

S.C. Workers' Compensation Court Case Summaries: November 24, 2003.
November 24, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Workers' Compensation Arm Injuries - Claim Denial Where the claimant alleges she injured both of her arms while working for her employer, the appellate panel affirmed the single...

S.C. Court of Appeals Case Summaries: November 24, 2003.
November 24, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Criminal Murder - Guilty Plea - Solicitor's Comment - Due Process Where the appellant alleges that a solicitor's statement, "don't be in a hurry because it's a sure thing he will be...

U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit Case Summaries: November 24, 2003.
November 24, 2003... Byline: South Carolina Lawyers Weekly Staff Civil Practice Class Action - Attorney's Fees - RICO A Maryland federal District Court did not err in holding that the plaintiff attorney was not entitled to any attorney's fees for work...