Judge Gale’s decision earlier this month in Corwin v. British American Tobacco PLC, 2015 NCBC 74 dismissed all of the claims of the Plaintiff class. If the name Corwin is ringing a bell with you, his case is the shareholder class action over the now completed transaction among Reynolds American, Inc. (RAI), Lorillard, Inc.
Did It Need To Be In Writing?
Surratt v. Brown, 2015 NCBC 72, decided last week by the Business Court, involved an oral partnership to open and operate tattoo parlors throughout North Carolina.
Plaintiff and Defendant entered into an partnership (without any written agreement) to open a tattoo parlor in Winston-Salem. Defendant Brown was to finance the business for a
Be Very Careful If You Are Instructing Your Clients Not To Answer Questions At A Deposition
In an (unpublished) Order last week in Griggs v. Bittersweet Farms, LLC, Judge McGuire ruled that Plaintiffs’ counsel’s instruction to his client not to answer certain deposition questions was improper. He granted a Motion to Compel responses to the unanswered questions, denied a Motion for Protective Order to excuse the Plaintiffs from having to
The Meaning Of “Successors,” “Members,” And “Designees” In A Release
The words "successors," "members," and "designees," as used in a Release were at issue in Judge Bledsoe’s Opinion last week in TaiDoc Technology Corp. v. OK Biotech Co., 2015 NCBC 71.
Plaintiff TaiDoc had settled a related lawsuit previously pending in the Western District of North Carolina in which Defendant OK was not
If You Reach A Settlement At Mediation, And Say The Settlement Will Be The Subject Of A Forthcoming Formal Agreement, Do You Have A Binding Deal?
You have most likely walked out of a mediated settlement conference at which the shorthand version of the settlement put to paper by the lawyers and the mediator stated that there would be a later, more detailed agreement. And maybe, the next day, as work began on the "more formal agreement to be prepared later,"
When You Wish Upon A (Lode)Star: NC Business Court Cuts Fees Requested By Attorneys For Class Plaintiffs
The Business Court last week knocked down a fee request of Plaintiffs’ class action counsel to $500,000, from the $660,000 requested, in an Order in Nakatsukasa v. Furiex Pharmaceuticals, Inc., 2015 NCBC 68.
The Settlement Of The Class Action
The ruling was entered in conjunction with the approval of a settlement of four class
Don’t Overplay Your Hand In The Business Court
When you last heard about London Leasing LLC v. Arcus, the Business Court had entered a default in March 2015 against two of the Defendants for what I called their "defiant and obnoxious conduct."
It then seemed like the Plaintiff was just a hop, skip, and a jump away from obtaining a default
There’s A Difference Between “Confidential And Proprietary Information” And A Trade Secret
I can’t remember the last time that the Business Court granted a motion opposing the designation of a case as a mandatory complex business case. And since the Business Court Modernization Act went into effect in October 2014? I don’t think one has been granted.
But earlier this week, Judge Gale did exactly that, in
Something That You Might Not Have Known About Injunctions
I had always thought that you need to post a bond in order to obtain an injunction, both in federal and state court. It turns out that I was wrong.
The federal rule seems to require a bond. It says:
(c) Security. The court may issue a preliminary injunction or a temporary restraining order
Business Court: High To Low Posting of ATM Debit Card Transactions Properly Disclosed By Bank
The meaning of the word "item" was the definitive factor in the Business Court’s decision last week in Gay v. People’s Bank, 2015 NCBC 59.
The case was an attempted class action involving claims against the Bank for allegedly improperly imposing overdraft fees on checking accounts. The overdraft fees arose due to the