North Carolina Lawyers Weekly

RALEIGH (AP) — The North Carolina Supreme Court has stopped the release of a handful of inmates sentenced to life in prison so it can consider the case further. The high court's stay was issued Friday after a lower court ruling that some inmates sentenced to life more than 30 years ago should be released because of a legal quirk.

RALEIGH (AP) — The North Carolina Supreme Court says a Wake County man cannot annul his 12-year marriage because his wife was still married to another man. The ruling reverses a 2011 Court of Appeals decision that Nikki Palmer-Mussa was still required to officially terminate her previous marriage, even though the union was legally invalid.

Tagged with: Bigamy

RICHMOND, Va. (AP) — A federal appeals court on Friday upheld a decision barring the federal government from requiring tobacco companies to put large graphic health warnings on cigarette packages to show that smoking can disfigure and even kill people.

Tagged with: FDA First Amendment Free Speech

ELIZABETH CITY (AP) — A North Carolina woman intimidated by CSX Transportation Inc. railroad supervisors and targeted by vandals is getting more than $685,000 plus interest.

CHAPEL HILL (AP) — Chapel Hill will appeal a judge's order blocking the town from enforcing a ban on cell-phone use while driving. Mayor Mark Kleinschmidt said Wednesday night the documents could be filed with the Court of Appeals within days.

RALEIGH (AP) — The state of North Carolina and the federal government signed an agreement Thursday that could move thousands of residents in adult care homes with serious mental illness into community housing and avoids potential costly litigation.

A former North Carolina police chief and his son have been indicted by the Brunswick County grand jury.

A North Carolina appeals court defended the power of tax collectors to recalculate the returns of multi-state companies that shift assets to avoid or diminish corporate income bills.

Tagged with: Court of Appeals

The lawyer appointed by a federal judge to administer the seized assets of the online auction site ZeekRewards.com has set up a Web page to communicate with victims of the alleged scam.

An appeals court has upheld a lower court decision that says North Carolina cannot deny at-risk children admission to the state's pre-kindergarten program.