North Carolina Lawyers Weekly
N.C. R. App. P. 3.1(d) includes most of the steps in an Anders no-merit review but stops short of counsel’s motion to withdraw and the court’s independent review of the record; consequently, when counsel files a no-merit brief but the ...
Read More »Domestic Relations – Parent & Child – Termination of Parental Rights – Appeals – No-Merit Brief – Court’s Review
Domestic Relations – Divorce – Equitable Distribution – Unequal Distribution – Valuation of Marital Property 
Where plaintiff acknowledged that defendant was solely responsible for the mortgage on the former marital residence, had maintained and improved the property since the parties’ separation, and the property had diminished in value and would be difficult to sell, the ...
Read More »Domestic Relations – Child Support – Calculation of Income – Child Support Guidelines – Gifts as Income
Trial court was not required to find “bad faith” by parent where it did not impute income to parent but instead treated substantial, recurring gifts from parent’s parents as income to parent. We find no abuse of discretion by the ...
Read More »Criminal Practice – Malicious Conduct by Prisoner – Jury Instructions – Defense of Accident – Unintentional Conduct
The trial court had a duty to instruct the jury on defense of accident where a substantive feature of defendant’s case was that his spitting upon of a law enforcement officer was unintentionally caused by a coughing fit, but its ...
Read More »Domestic Relations – DVPO – Renewal Motion – Ex Parte Order
Contrary to defendant’s argument, plaintiff was not required to file her motion to renew her domestic violence protective order within one year of receiving an ex parte DVPO; rather, she correctly moved to renew within one year of receiving a ...
Read More »Domestic Relations – Parent & Child – Support Arrears – Improper Modification – Tax Deduction
Although the plaintiff-father may be liable to the defendant-mother for wrongfully claiming all four of the parties’ children as his dependents for a tax deduction, the mother’s child support arrears obligation is not for the benefit of the father, but ...
Read More »Domestic Relations – Parent & Child – Termination of Parental Rights – Neglect – Prior Findings – Failure to Visit or Complete Plan
Since the prior order adjudicating “Nancy” neglected applied the same standard of proof – clear, cogent and convincing evidence – as a termination of parental rights determination, the trial court could incorporate findings from its prior neglect adjudication order into ...
Read More »Domestic Relations – Parent & Child – Neglect Stipulation – Adjudication – Reunification & Visitation – Newborn’s Positive Drug Tests
The respondent-mother’s stipulation to the legal conclusion that newborn “Kevin” was neglected was ineffective to support the trial court’s adjudication of neglect. Nevertheless, cord blood test indicating that Kevin had been exposed to amphetamine, methamphetamine, Oxycodone, and Hydrocodone, along with ...
Read More »Domestic Relations – Parent & Child – Neglect Adjudication – Abuse of Another Child – Disposition Findings
Where respondents’ own children witnessed respondents abuse a four-year-old child, “Ryan,” who was left in respondents’ care for several months, respondents’ abuse of Ryan was relevant to whether or not respondents’ children were neglected. We affirm the adjudication of neglect. ...
Read More »Domestic Relations – Parent & Child – Termination of Parental Rights – Neglect – Insufficient Progress
While some of the trial court’s findings were not supported by the evidence, the findings that were supported by the evidence show that, during the 24-month period during which the child, “Asa,” was placed in foster care, the respondent-mother did ...
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