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Recent Articles from Amy Stevens
Bar is high and issues complex in worker’s comp cases
Worker’s compensation law has a long and winding history in the North Carolina. The cases – which are difficult, emotional, and time-consuming – also become more complicated as the workplace changes and legal standards evolve. The majority of worker’s compensation case claims are dealt with on an administrative level. The more complex cases are handled via hearings before the Industrial Co[...]
Plastic surgery case can go to trial, appeals court rules
A plaintiff who suffered nerve damage during surgery can go forward with her case against a pair of doctors who treated her, the North Carolina Court of Appeals ruled. A trial court had previously granted summary judgment to the defendants, saying there was no evidence of direct negligence.
Once commonplace, executions a rarity – for now
Executions for capital crimes, once a common occurrence in North Carolina, have seen a dramatic slowdown in recent years. But the death penalty remains a hot-button topic, albeit one with an uncertain future. “The death penalty has been a part of North Carolina law since the state was a British colony,” says Jeffrey Welty, University of North Carolina professor of public law and government. �[...]
Doctors, developer defeat bank’s recovery effort
A recent verdict by a Union County jury found a group of doctors and a developer not liable for damages of nearly $3 million after a bank foreclosed on their commercial loan. CML-NC Waxhaw, LLC had purchased the loan with an “as is” disclaimer and notice that the loan had multiple problems associated with the previous lenders, the jury concluded.
If a gun falls in the forest …
A recent Court of Appeals case strayed into the realm of existential mindbenders with this question: If a man unloads the bullets from his gun before he holds up a store, is he still guilty of armed robbery? In October 2011, Mario Bell of Rutherford took a gun from his grandfather’s house, unloaded it, left […]
Online hotel brokers can proceed with tax challenge
A group of online hotel reservation companies can proceed with their suit against the North Carolina Department of Revenue and Durham County over a hotel occupancy tax the companies believe unfairly and unconstitutionally targeted their business. The case focuses on the state’s sales tax on the rental of hotel rooms, and Durham County’s “room occupancy tax” on hotel rooms within the county[...]
Bond investors could face more taxes from Business Court ruling
A North Carolina Business Court decision focused on the taxability of a certain kind of bond income has some investors looking at a higher tax bite and their attorneys holding out hope that the decision won’t survive an appeal.
Best way to keep emails secret: Don’t send them
Email etiquette is lacking in many companies. Recently NPR devoted a segment to how professionals may want to reconsider signing off with “x” and “o” or “love ya” on their work emails. (That last one is just plain creepy.) Now it is apparent that large law firms may want to offer a class on what […]
Forensic technology better, but experts hold less sway
When introduced in court, evidence is typically seen as black and white, the inarguable facts of a criminal case. But as science has advanced over the last 25 years, attorneys have begun to focus more on the gray areas of forensic evidence.
Bad excuse better than no excuse
“My client made me do it.” Let’s agree that’s not the best way to impress a court when you’ve violated the law and flirted with crossing the line of ethical appropriateness. When Asheville attorney Eugene W. Ellison’s client was injured in a car accident, she received $70,000 from the State Health Plan. Ellison informed client […]
Arbitration agreement ruled to be binding, even though nobody signed it
A recent North Carolina Business Court decision to enforce arbitration, despite the fact neither party to the suit ever signed the contract containing the clause, has left lawyers wondering what impact the decision will have on contract law in the future.
The no-excuse excuse
Want to skip work? Our staff of in-house miscreants has compiled a handy list of excuses for your use: My car wouldn’t start. I don’t feel well. My Uncle Zeke died. I have jury duty. Uh, wait a minute. You might need to use a bit of caution with that last one. Recently, an employee […]
Top Legal News
- Hunter Biden pleads not guilty to gun charges
- Details emerge on Trump era executions
- US court in Virginia resolves NC insurance case
- Post on X leads to lawsuit against Musk
- Two more bills draw vetoes by Cooper
- Police chief who led newspaper raid resigns
- May trial date set for indicted senator
- Insurance appeal dismissed after intervening settlement
- Supreme Court opens new term today
- Judge blocks 2 provisions in NC abortion law
- Connecticut tightens laws on gun control
- Garland says he’d resign if asked to target Trump
Commentary
- Amotion sees resurgence after almost a decade
- The flip side of generative AI in law and how to address it
- The fight for equal educational opportunity continues
- Court’s term was rough on big business
- Ex-president, bar association have made their choice
- Ruling sharpens boundaries in attorney-client privilege
- Lawyers Weekly debuts new and improved web experience
- US Supreme Court bites back at parody’s use of the First Amendment
- Supreme Court leaves key internet protection untouched
- Case study: North Carolina courts provide guidance on scope, limitations of attorney-client privilege
- A Different Ode to Pro Bono Work
- A roadmap to attracting, developing, retaining great associates
