When the parties to a contract have negotiated and agreed to a mandatory forum selection clause, that clause is valid except when compelling reasons dictate otherwise.
The Court enforced a forum selection clause in a franchise agreement, and transferred venue of the case from Gaston County to Buncombe County.
In its first significant opinion of the new year, the Business Court interpreted the pricing mechanism contained in a contract between convenience store operator The Pantry and CITGO, its supplier of gasoline. The case, which handed a win to CITGO allowing it to charge higher prices than those urged by The Pantry, is