A construction worker who was fired from his job working on a project in Charlotte—and physically assaulted by the project’s superintendent after complaining to management that the superintendent was drinking on the job—has won a $750,000 verdict against his former ...

Tagged with: Punitive Damages

Philips v. Pitt County Memorial Hospital, Inc. (Lawyers Weekly No. 15-16-0786, 7 pp.) (Chris Dillon, J.) Appealed from Pitt County Superior Court (Richard Doughton, J.) N.C. App. Unpub. Holding: In support of his claim for punitive damages, plaintiff incorporated by ...

Tagged with: apportionment Punitive Damages

Rasberry v. Jacobs (Lawyers Weekly No. 15-16-0384, 10 pp.) (Chris Dillon, J.) Appealed from Martin County Superior Court (Marvin Blount III, J.) N.C. App. Unpub. Holding: A key factual issue in this case is whether defendant Jacobs was under the ...

Tagged with: Medical Records Punitive Damages

Lacey v. Kirk (Lawyers Weekly No. 15-07-0017, 50 pp.) (Sam Ervin IV, J.) Appealed from Alamance County Superior Court (G. Wayne Abernathy, J.) N.C. App. Holding: The fact that plaintiffs received a large punitive damages award does not justify a ...

Tagged with: attorney's fees Punitive Damages

Blythe v. Bell : Based on the differences between corporations and limited liability companies, the court reaffirms its view that plaintiff may not proceed individually on a breach of fiduciary duty claim; instead, he must pursue that claim derivatively.

Tagged with: Punitive Damages

In re Gallo Despite having notice of the debtor’s bankruptcy, and despite notes in their own files about the misspelling of the debtor’s name, since the creditors’ software program failed to list the debtor’s name in a bankruptcy search result, the creditors continued their collection efforts against the debtor, going so far as to schedule a foreclosure.

Tagged with: Automatic Stay Bankruptcy Punitive Damages Real Property

Springs v. City of Charlotte Plaintiff presented evidence that defendant knew its bus driver had been involved in multiple preventable accidents but took no action beyond some counseling and an interview with him. Plaintiff’s evidence was sufficient to go to the jury on a claim for punitive damages.

Tagged with: Civil Practice Costs Judges Punitive Damages Tort/Negligence

Abraham v. Jauregui In their negligent misrepresentation claim, the plaintiff-purchasers allege that, by relying on appraisal management company HomeFocus Services, LLC’s and Bank of America’s actions in approving plaintiffs’ loan applications, plaintiffs were also relying, albeit indirectly, upon the defendant-appraisers’ representations provided to HomeFocus and Bank of America, which were contained in the appraisal reports. However, in order to state a claim for negligent misrepresentation, plaintiffs must allege direct rather than indirect reliance.

Tagged with: Appraisal Fraud Punitive Damages Real Property Tort/Negligence

Security Credit Corp. v. Mid/East Acceptance Corp. of N.C. Plaintiffs allege that, in support of a lawsuit brought against plaintiffs by a competitor, defendants lent money and provided free services to the competitor. Plaintiffs have failed to show how defendants’ alleged conduct falls within defendants’ regular business activities. Plaintiffs failed to allege that defendants’ actions were “in or affecting commerce”; consequently, plaintiffs failed to state a claim for unfair trade practices.

Tagged with: malicious prosecution Obstruction of Justice Punitive Damages Tort/Negligence Unfair Trade Practices

Kingsley v. Brenda & Gene Lummus, Inc. Plaintiff’s expert identified four mechanisms by which her decedent’s motorcycle tire could have been punctured, and all four mechanisms were within defendant’s control when its employee replaced the tire shortly before the motorcycle was involved in a fatal accident.

Tagged with: evidence expert witness Motorcycle Accident Punitive Damages Tort/Negligence Wrongful Death