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 […]
Last week I participated in the Ask a Lawyer Day program in Wilmington NC. This is similar to Justice4All program where local attorneys field legal questions for free from the general public. Oftentimes it involves explanations of legal issues or concepts, similar to what I do sometimes in this blog. Other times it is to […]
I love alternative history stories. Things like “What if the Soviet Union had won the Cold War ?” or “What if JFK had not been assassinated?” I find fascinating and oftentimes help me better understand actual history. I even like alternative takes on imaginary history like “What If Spider-Man had been bitten by a radioactive […]
English: The current TARDIS seen at BBC TV Centre and taken by me Zir (talk) 23:04, 20 January 2009 (UTC) Please credit © zir.com if used outside of Wikipedia Category:Doctor Who images (Photo credit: Wikipedia) Homeowner Associations exist to manage planned communities. Part of that duty is to enforce the restrictive covenants of the community. […]
I recently had a homeowner’s association question regarding the conveyance of common elements. Basically, the HOA owned property between a small river and about six member lots. The HOA and the rest of the property owners did not have any access to the property except by the river. The land is mostly marsh and wetlands […]
In North Carolina, the first investigation of any motor vehicle crash is by the police. In order to assist their investigation, they use a special form published by the North Carolina Division of Motor Vehicles—“Crash Report Form DMV-349.” The form, also known as the crash report, accident report, or police report, is an essential piece […]
I had a call today from a residential tenant with problem—She found a copperhead snake in her back yard. Now this being North Carolina, which happens to have the distinction as having the highest rate of venomous snake bites in the country, I didn’t see much of an issue. She told me the wildlife removal […]
I’ve written before about amending the Declarations for a homeowner association. A new case handed down this month by the North Carolina Court of Appeals could make it harder for an HOA to amend the Declarations to their liking. The Linville subdivision in north Raleigh began construction in 2003. As an incentive to builders to […]
One of the more frustrating things a homeowner association board deals with is unpaid assessments. I’ve written before about how the fees and costs of collecting a valid assessment can greatly exceed the amount of the assessment. Occasionally, a board will try and put social pressure on delinquent owners to pay by publishing lists of […]
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 […]
A few days ago, I spoke at a local middle school for a careers class. Thanks to some links from the North Carolina Bar Association, I was able to download and print out for the students a mini-mock trial for them to do in class. I had 4 witnesses, 3 lawyers for the plaintiff and […]
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 […]
Our kids spend thousands of hours in the public schools of North Carolina. Not only are they on school grounds for classroom work, they participate in a vast amount of after school activities such as cheerleading, baseball, football and other sports. Just like a store or a private residence, negligence can occur from the actions […]
Cropped screenshot of title from the trailer for the film Double Indemnity (Photo credit: Wikipedia) Has this ever happened to you? You are getting ready to race go-karts, rent a truck, scuba dive, or lease a storage unit and the owner hands you a document to sign. Maybe you read over it, maybe you just […]
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 […]
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. […]
What if a spouse would like to leave their property to a person other than their current spouse? A person may create a will that leaves none of their property to their spouse. However, the spouse, may dissent from or reject the provisions of the will and take a share of the property of […]
In North Carolina, a person has a right to represent themselves in court, even if they are not a lawyer. However, even though a corporation or LLC is considered a “person” for many legal issues, they are not capable of representing themselves in court. Even a small corporation that is owned 100% by one individual, […]
Recently, a retired police officer in Southport NC challenged a rule by his homeowner’s association prohibiting religious or political gatherings at the community’s amenities center. The homeowner felt that this was an infringement of his constitutional rights. After holding meetings and gathering petition signatures, the HOA board agreed to change the rule. Some people may […]