The four civil cases decided by the Supreme Court on 15 December 2023 hang together by a focus on minimalism and, in three of them, dissenting opinions by Justice Earls. Based on the current composition of the Supreme Court, this minimalist approach, with a dissent, may be a harbinger of what to expect from the Supreme Court in the future.
Continue Reading A Majority Court and a Dissenting Justice: A Glimpse into the Future?
The Petition Tracker has been updated with the Supreme Court’s most recent allowed petitions for discretionary review. Although there were some special orders, the Court only allowed two petitions outright.
Continue Reading The Tracking Continues
Back in June, the Supreme Court of North Carolina sought feedback on a potential change to the citation format for North Carolina appellate court opinions. This week, the Court has
Continue Reading Supreme Court Adopts Universal Citation Format
The trial judge who presides over a hearing or trial is supposed to, and usually does, sign the resulting written order. But what happens if that normal process is not
Continue Reading Can You Appeal from a Nullity?
Suppose an appellate judge casts the deciding vote in a case, creating a majority in support of the lead opinion. Before the opinion is released, however, the judge retires or
Continue Reading Can an Appellate Judge’s Vote Count After Death or Retirement?
If you have ever litigated a medical-malpractice case, you likely know all about Rule 9(j). Rule 9—the repository of the exceptions to our “notice-pleading regime”—requires a med-mal plaintiff (who isn’t
Continue Reading Supreme Court Clarifies Special Pleading Requirement in Medical-Malpractice Actions
It has long been harder for a plaintiff to show standing in federal court than in North Carolina’s state courts. A juicy 2-1 decision from the North Carolina Court of
Continue Reading Could North Carolina Finally Adopt Federal Standing Requirements?
Statutory construction continues to be an important issue to the Supreme Court of North Carolina.
Consider this statute: “Only a county director of social services or the director’s authorized representative
Continue Reading Statutory Construction: The Saga Continues
Our State Supreme Court issues a lot of unanimous opinions. But this month’s batch of opinions contained two interesting examples of an area in which the justices may disagree: statutory
Continue Reading Disagreement in the Supreme Court of North Carolina: How to Interpret a Statute
As we discussed previously, the Supreme Court finds itself in need of a new clerk. Are you interested in applying? Do you know someone who might be? Here is
Continue Reading Job Posting for Supreme Court Clerk