• Blog Post

    Eliminating Funding to Legal Services for Low-Income North Carolinians Will Eliminate Equal Access to Justice

    “Eliminate Access to Civil Justice Funds” – that is the ominous title of a provision in the North Carolina’s House of Representatives Appropriations Committee’s proposed 2017 Budget. Not cut, eliminate. If passed, this provision would be devastating to legal services available to low-income North Carolinians who cannot otherwise hire an attorney, but are in desperate situations. Those hurt would be domestic violence victims, people on the verge of homelessness, and veterans trying to access benefits they earned with service to this country.   The proposed budget provision would eliminate $1.7 million in funding for Legal Aid of North Carolina (LANC), Legal Services of the Southern Piedmont (LSSP), and Pisgah Legal…

  • Blog Post

    Playing by the (New) Rules in the North Carolina Business Court: Part 3

    The North Carolina Business Court’s new Rules went into effect January 1, 2017 and apply to every civil action designated as a mandatory complex business case or assigned to a Business Court judge, regardless of whether it was filed prior to the Rules’ effective date. They are meant to supplement, rather than supplant, the Rules of Civil Procedure and General Rules of Practice, but if there is a conflict with local rules or standing orders from the county of venue, the Business Court’s Rules will govern.   Part 1 of this topic addressed the changes in Notices of Designation, filing, electronic filing technology problems, motions practice, and emergency motions. For…