North Carolina is the Tar Heel State and the nickname of the University of North Carolina is the Tar Heels. While there are several interesting origins of the name, one underlying common element is the importance of pine tar in the state. Tar and timber in the state were important industries, especially in the 18th […]
Only seldom do I have a personal injury case where there was not a doctor or chiropractic visit sometime in the months or years prior to the event sparking the lawsuit. An injured plaintiff can only recover for damages that were actually caused by the defendant’s negligence. If the defendant can prove that a plaintiff’s […]
I frequently see on social media where someone has been called for jury duty. The post is frequently followed by half-joking advice on how to get of it by telling the lawyers you believe in the death penalty for littering or will vote the way the space aliens tell you. Far from my usual practice […]
The law in North Carolina tends to support the ability of people to work for who they want, and when they want. In most cases, with at-will employment, an employee can leave a job whenever they want to work for another company who may provide them more pay or benefits. On the other hand, the […]
In North Carolina, the Declarations (also called restrictive covenants) are the main governing document of a homeowner’s association. While the general statutes of the state remain the ultimate authority, they give a large amount of leeway to a planned community to craft its own governing documents. Usually the Declarations are pulled from a boilerplate set […]
I recently competed a semi-famous one-act play entitled “Box and Cox.” The play is a 19th century farce about two men. Cox works all day as a hatter, and Box works all night as a printer. An enterprising landlord, Mr. Bouncer, decides to rent them the same room without telling them. This works remarkable well, until […]
I’ve written before about the lien procedure required when a homeowner’s association is attempting to collect on past due assessments. Some of the HOAs I’ve worked with have annual assessments as low as $50, but still have a handful of people who neglect or refuse to pay. My staff is trained on the process of […]
When you are called to go to court for your own case, or as a witness in somebody else’s case, hopefully your attorney or the attorney calling you has prepared you for your testimony. You should have some idea as to the questions he will ask, the answers you will give, the cross-examination topics […]
One of the new laws for homeowner associations in North Carolina is a law “encouraging” parties with a dispute with their HOA to try and resolve the dispute before filing a lawsuit. The statute provides for a voluntary prelitigation mediation that is similar to a mediation required in every North Carolina Superior Court case. […]
English: Foreclosure signs, Mortgage crisis, (Photo credit: Wikipedia) With the downturn of the economy, and the burst of the housing bubble, large numbers of landlords find themselves unable to meet their mortgage payments and their rental property goes into foreclosure. If you a a tenant, with a valid lease on the foreclosed property, what rights […]
The following is a list of the steps our office does when assisting homeowner's associations in collecting on past due assessments. Usually, the matter is resolved after the lien is placed and seldom do we have to resort to a sale of the delinquent owner's property. Our office obtains a list of delinquent payers from […]
One popular reality show today is A&E's "Hoarders. "The show details the problems of pathological hoarding or disposophobia. The individuals acquire possessions and fail to discard them even when the items are worthless, hazardous, or unsanitary and impair mobility and interfere with basic functions of life. The show scratches a morbid curiosity and probably makes […]
In North Carolina, you can obtain an absolute divorce upon the filing of a lawsuit alleging that you are a North Carolina resident (you have lived in this state for at least six consecutive months prior to filing) and that you and your spouse have been separated continuously for one year. Like most U.S. States, […]
I’ve written before about the life of a lawsuit and how long stretches of time appear with nothing seeming to happen. As I said before, some of that is waiting on reactions from the other side and some of it is work done by the attorney that doesn’t require much from the client, especially if […]
The following is an excerpt of an article written for paralegals and attorneys by Steven Glass, a retired personal injury attorney from Florence, South Carolina, concerning the lack of attention that attorneys, and their clients, sometimes pay to the client’s treating physicians. Mr. Glass points out that the attorneys should be aware of their client’s […]