Justia North Carolina Supreme Court Opinion Summaries

Articles Posted in Injury Law
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After a house on property belonging to a motorcross park caught fire, an investigator for property's insurer (Farm Bureau) found evidence of arson. The investigator's findings also included allegations that the park's president and sole shareholder (Volpe) had failed to report to Farm Bureau that there was a deed of trust on the property when she insured it and when she filed a claim of loss after the fire. Volpe was subsequently charged with obtaining property by false pretenses based upon her sale of the burned property to a purchaser who did not know it was encumbered. The trial court found Volpe was not involved in the fire, that Farm Bureau caused a criminal proceeding to be instituted against Volpe, and that Farm Bureau was liable to Volpe for malicious prosecution. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court reversed in part, vacated in part, and remanded, holding that the insurance investigator's report to a law enforcement officer did not constitute the initiation of a malicious prosecution, and Farm Bureau's actions did not constitute an unfair and deceptive practice. View "N.C. Farm Bureau Mut. Ins. Co. v. Cully's Motorcross Park, Inc." on Justia Law

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Plaintiff filed a complaint against Harvey and Barbara Parrish, alleging that Defendants negligently stored their firearm, which Defendants' fifty-two-year-old son Bernie stole from their home and used to shoot Plaintiff. Plaintiff alleged that Defendants knew or should have known that Bernie posed a risk of serious harm to Plaintiff yet failed to take reasonable steps to secure their guns so they were not accessible to Bernie. The trial court dismissed the case. The court of appeals affirmed, holding that Defendants did not have a common law duty to secure their firearms from Bernie. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Defendants did not owe Plaintiff a legal duty, and therefore, Defendants were not liable for the criminal conduct of their son. View "Bridges v. Parrish" on Justia Law

Posted in: Injury Law
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Defendant, in his role as department head, wrote an annual review of Plaintiff, a tenured associate professor, in which Defendant concluded that Plaintiff did not meet the department's expectations and had engaged in disruptive behavior and conduct. Plaintiff filed a complaint in the superior court alleging that the annual review contained false and defamatory statements. Defendant filed a motion to dismiss, which the trial court denied. The court of appeals affirmed, concluding that sovereign immunity did not bar Plaintiff's claim because Plaintiff sought to sue Defendant in his individual capacity and that Defendant had published the review for the purposes of libel. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that Plaintiff's claim was barred by sovereign immunity, as the complaint did not specify whether Plaintiff was suing Defendant in his individual or official capacity, and therefore, the Court must presume Defendant was being sued in only his official capacity. View "White v. Trew" on Justia Law

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Plaintiff, a secretary and office assistant at a middle school, was sprayed when a fire extinguisher Defendant was handling was abruptly discharged. Defendant was the principal of the school. Plaintiff sued Defendant, alleging gross negligence and loss of consortium on the part of her husband. Specifically, Plaintiff alleged that Defendant willfully and wantonly engaged in reckless behavior when he was playing with the fire extinguisher, causing it to spray her, and that the spraying aggravated a preexisting medical condition. Defendant filed a motion to dismiss, contending that the trial court lacked subject matter jurisdiction because the North Carolina Workers' Compensation Act provided the exclusive remedy for Plaintiff's claim, as well as a summary judgment motion. The trial court denied both motions. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court reversed in part, holding (1) Plaintiff and Defendant were co-employees, allowing Plaintiff to sue Defendant personally under the exception to the Workers' Compensation Act's exclusivity provision established in Pleasant v. Johnson; but (2) Plaintiff failed to present sufficient evidence to survive Defendant's motion for summary judgment. View "Trivette v. Yount" on Justia Law

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Erik Williams drowned at a park owned by defendant county and operated by defendant county parks and recreation department. Williams' estate filed a claim against Defendants alleging negligence. Defendants made a limited motion for summary judgment, contending that Williams's allegations were barred by the doctrines of governmental and sovereign immunity. The trial court denied Defendants' limited motion, concluding that Defendants were not entitled to governmental immunity because they charged and collected a fee for the use of the park. The court of appeals affirmed. The Supreme Court held that because the decision of the court of appeals that Defendants were not entitled to governmental immunity turned predominantly upon the fact that the services Defendants provided could also be provided by nongovernmental entities, without consideration of a number of additional factors, the case must be vacated and remanded for additional proceedings. View "Estate of Williams v. Parks & Recreation Dep't" on Justia Law

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The driver and passenger of an automobile were killed when the condition of a state-maintained road caused the vehicle to veer off the roadway. The driver lost control of the car and struck an oncoming automobile head-on. Plaintiffs, the estates of the decedents, sued DOT for negligence under the State Tort Claims Act (STCA). The Industrial Commission determined that Plaintiffs' claims were barred by the public duty doctrine and granted DOT's motion to dismiss. The court of appeals reversed, concluding that the public duty doctrine did not bar Plaintiffs' claims. The Supreme Court affirmed, holding (1) the limitation placed on the use of the public duty doctrine by the General Assembly's 2008 amendment to the STCA applied in this case; and (2) consequently, the doctrine did not bar Plaintiffs' claims. View "Ray v. N.C. Dep't of Transp." on Justia Law

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The suit arose from Plaintiff's visit to the dentist for a routine tooth extraction, which Plaintiff alleged resulted in a broken jaw. The trial court granted Defendants' motions for summary judgment for Plaintiff's failure to comply with N.C. R. Civ. P. 9(j) in proffering her only expert witness. The court of appeals reversed, concluding that the expert witness could have been reasonably expected to qualify under N.C. R. Evid. 702 as required by Rule 9(j). The Supreme Court affirmed, holding that Plaintiff's proffered expert witness could have been "reasonably expected to qualify as an expert witness" under Rule 702, and therefore, Plaintiff satisfied the preliminary requirements of Rule 9(j). Remanded. View "Moore v. Proper" on Justia Law

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Salem Logistics entered into a loan agreement with Ark Royal Capital that required Salem to instruct its customers to send payments directly to an account maintained by Ark at Wachovia Bank. Salem subsequently agreed to provide freight bill auditing services to Variety Wholesalers. Salem requested that Variety send the amounts on the master invoices directly to the Wachovia account but did not inform Variety that the account was actually controlled by Ark. Variety later terminated its contract with Salem and filed suit for recovery of money it had forwarded to Salem that had not been paid to carriers. When Variety discovered the Wachovia account actually belonged to Ark, Variety added Ark as a defendant. The trial court entered summary judgment for Variety on its claim of conversion against Ark and for Ark on Variety's claim of constructive trust and ordered Ark to pay Variety $888,000. The court of appeals reversed and entered summary judgment for Ark on both issues. The Supreme Court reversed and remanded on both issues, holding (1) summary judgment was improper because there were genuine issues of material fact to be resolved; and (2) accordingly, the trial court also erred in its award of damages to Variety. View "Variety Wholesalers, Inc. v. Salem Logistics Traffic Servs." on Justia Law

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A couple and their boy and girl were riding in the family's Ford Taurus when the car began to accelerate rapidly and slammed into a light pole. The children received serious injuries. The children, through their guardian ad litem, sued Ford Motor Company, claiming that the Taurus's seat belt system caused their enhanced injuries. After evidence was presented showing the children's father placed the girl's seatbelt behind her back, the trial court entered judgment in favor of Ford. At issue on appeal was the product alteration or modification defense provided to manufacturers and sellers in products liability actions by N.C. Gen. Stat. 99-B-3. The court of appeals reversed, holding that Plaintiffs were entitled to a directed verdict on Ford's affirmative defense under section 99B-3, reasoning that section 99B-3 gives a manufacturer or seller no defense when the product modifier is not a party to the action at the time of trial. The Supreme Court reversed, holding that the General Assembly did not limit the use of this defense to those occasions when the one who alters or modifies the product is a party to the action at the time of trial. Remanded. View "Stark v. Ford Motor Co." on Justia Law