A business plan to promote vodka sales in North Carolina, with a particular focus on Duke University sports fans, was key to a North Carolina Business Court decision that GameDay Vodka had sufficient contacts with the state...more
For the golf fan curious about the finances and back-office maneuvering of “Big Golf,” nothing has been better than the LIV Golf-PGA Tour throwdown played out in dueling press conferences, snippy tweets, and Saudi-funded...more
The minority shareholders of a podiatry practice felt like they had been kicked around by the alleged financial misadventures of two colleagues who together controlled an 80 percent interest....more
Robert Martin was the president of a medical device company, Vent Tech Corporation, during times that the company alleges he embezzled funds and through lax oversight allowed the company to be “pillaged” by its former CFO....more
Wary of the old maxim about giving inches and losing miles, the North Carolina Department of Revenue appealed an Office of Administrative Hearings decision that favored a taxpayer by $371. In N.C. Dep’t of Revenue v. Clifton,...more
Facing a $12.8 million judgment, a plaintiff sought recourse in a legal malpractice claim against his trial counsel for its alleged role in that unhappy result. But his undoing was the Business Court’s focus on whether he...more
6/21/2022
/ Attorney Malpractice ,
Breach of Duty ,
Business Court ,
Cash Transactions ,
Damages ,
Fraudulent Transfers ,
Non-Payment Clauses ,
Personal Liability ,
Proximate Cause ,
Summary Judgment ,
Unfair or Deceptive Trade Practices
In Oliver v. Brown & Morrison, Ltd., 2022 NCBC 16, the Business Court weighed a challenge to an allegedly “sprawling, 247-paragraph Complaint, largely padded by needless detail” that defendants claimed violated Rule 8(a)’s...more
An intra-congregational dispute over control of church bank accounts led the Wakefield Missionary Baptist Church to a schism that forced out a senior pastor, saw church doors locked, and resulted in competing factions...more
As failed commercial property deals go, the one at the heart of Miriam Equities, LLC v. LB-UBS-2007-C2 Millstream Road LLC, 2022 NCBC 3, was not outside the norm for a Business Court transaction autopsy. There was a missed...more
5/12/2022
/ As-Is Clauses ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Auction ,
Breach of Contract ,
Business Court ,
Commercial Real Estate Contracts ,
Discovery ,
Inspections ,
Liquidated Damages ,
Pre-Closing Issues ,
Property ,
Property Access
The North Carolina Supreme Court ruled recently that a company’s allegedly fraudulent efforts to raise capital from outside investors can avoid sanction as an unfair or deceptive trade practice because the conduct is not...more
In the Land of Technology Oz a yellow brick road apparently leads to “breakthrough” software technology so breathtaking that prospective investors need not see it, but merely wire funds and click their heels together three...more
Plaintiff Lee Norris and defendant James Schaafsma are the sole member-managers of a development company – defendant Greymont Development, LLC – and disagree about the propriety of a derivative action initiated by Schaafsma...more
Longtime college basketball commentator Billy Packer is credited with one of the better Yogi Berra-isms in NCAA hoops lore: “This is going to be a long three minutes here.” And that’s about how long it took for litigation...more
In 2017, British American Tobacco (BAT) purchased a North Carolina-based tobacco company, Reynolds American Inc., for $49 billion. The deal allowed BAT to acquire the 57.8% of Reynolds it didn’t already own and brought many...more
At Least Make Sure You’re Still in the Water if you Must Try It-
Sometimes, when discovery in a commercial case has been a mess, a party that imposes unusual roadblocks upon an adversary can successfully shield from the...more
The CBD product market, by some estimates, could skyrocket to $19.5 billion by 2025. With farmers, manufacturers and distributors scrambling for a seat at this lucrative table, it’s not surprising to see the Business Court...more
Amidst a “bitter family dispute” over future control of a closely held oil company, can the same law firm represent the directors paving the way for their son to take the reins and the company that minority shareholders seek...more
Hog Supplier Allowed Discovery to Prove Smithfield Foods Impermissibly Favored Other Vendors Despite Contract Clause-
The paths that lead to the North Carolina Business Court are often paved with the broken hearts of...more
Discord within a faith community comes with all the challenges of a secular dispute, but carries with it the special responsibility that members of a congregation share in a collective spiritual undertaking. Yet, there are...more
When a motion for reconsideration hearing features a plaintiff’s accusation that the court made arguments for the other side, the effort to flip a prior ruling – already a tough get – has gone a bit off the rails. In Bayport...more
At one of Charlotte’s finest golf courses, Myers Park Country Club, the summer weather isn’t all that’s leaving some members hot under the collar. As the club embarks on a $27 million renovation plan tied to its 100th...more
In a case closely watched by public transit activists and “government in the sunshine” advocates, the North Carolina Supreme Court last week affirmed a 2020 Business Court decision that found the North Carolina Railroad...more
Rule 1.5(c) of the North Carolina Rules of Professional Conduct provides protection to clients with its requirement that “[a] contingent fee arrangement shall be in a writing signed by the client.” In Rossabi Law PLLC v....more
As a still-young judicial panel, the Business Court frequently has an opportunity to define its boundaries in the face of challenges to its jurisdictional reach. In Inhold, LLC v. PureShield, Inc., 2021 NCBC 2, the Court...more
Discovery in a complex commercial case can feature its fair share of mayhem, particularly where it includes a large document production. Yet, where parties plan and execute information exchanges with reasonable diligence,...more