NORTH CAROLINA’S LARGEST LAW FIRMS 2012

• Numbers improving, but they only tell part of the story  Perhaps you had to squint a bit to see them, but there were signs in 2011 that the worst may be fading for North Carolina law firms.
• A note from the editor
• The List: North Carolina’s Largest Law Firms 2012 

COMMENTARY

• How social media has shaped the case of Trayvon Martin 

  Without social media, the killing of Martin, an unarmed teenager in Sanford, Fla., probably would have remained forever a four-paragraph news brief in the local newspaper. However, within social media channels, millions of people have taken sides as to whether the shooting was justified.

• It’s outrageous to jail jurors for using social media 
• If you don’t trouble yourself with business, it will trouble you 
• Commentary: Many lessons to learn from fantasy football 

Most Important Opinions

1. Criminal Practice – Second-Degree Murder – High-Speed Chase – Evidence – Shoplifting Spree – Malice — Driving Without a License – Post-Accident Conduct – Jury Instructions 

   State v. Rollins Defendant had been shoplifting before the high-speed chase that ended in a fatal crash. Evidence of the shoplifting spree was admissible to explain why defendant was trying so aggressively to evade the officers chasing him. The voluminous and organized nature of the shoplifting expedition explained why defendant was driving in the manner that he was for purposes of the malice element of second-degree murder.

2. Criminal Practice – Retrial – First Trial’s Transcript – Denial – New Trial 

   State v. Tyson When defendant’s first trial ended in a hung jury and mistrial, the trial court ordered an immediate re-trial, rejecting defendant’s request for a transcript of the first trial. Although defendant argued he needed the transcript to effectively cross-examine the state’s witnesses, the trial court’s ruling – that the prospect of a witness changing his testimony was mere speculation – would apply to any case and makes no determination why defendant has no need for a transcript in this particular case, especially in light of the fact that the state’s case rested entirely on the victim’s identification of defendant as the perpetrator.

3. Real Property – Eminent Domain — Civil Practice – Class Action – Certification Denied – Winston-Salem Northern Beltway – Map Act 

   Beroth Oil Co. v. North Carolina Department of Transportation In preparation for a proposed northern beltway around Winston-Salem, the N.C. Department of Transportation has placed many tracts of land in regulatory limbo – the DOT is not yet buying most of the land, but it is restricting the owners’ ability to use the land. Given the uniqueness of land and the variety of uses to which the affected owners have put or may wish to put their land, the owners do not form a class within the meaning of N.C. R. Civ. P. 23.