BEASLEY , Justice . The primary issue in this appeal is whether an insured may, in a situation in which there is more than one at-fault driver responsible for the accident causing the insured's injuries, recover under his or her underinsured motorist (UIM) policy before exhausting the liability insurance policies of all the at-fault drivers. We conclude that the insured is only required to exhaust the liability insurance coverage of a single at-fault motorist in order to trigger the...
EDMUNDS, Justice. Following the 2010 Decennial Census, the General Assembly of North Carolina enacted redistricting plans for the North Carolina Senate and House of Representatives, and for the North Carolina districts for the United States House of Representatives. Plaintiffs challenge the legality of these plans, arguing that they violate the constitutions of the United States and of North Carolina, controlling federal statutes, and applicable decisions of the Supreme Court of the United...
NEWBY , Justice . In this case we determine whether the various credits defendant Bobby E. Bowden has accumulated during his incarceration must be applied to reduce his sentence of life imprisonment, thereby entitling him to immediate and unconditional release. Our previous holdings regarding the particular class of inmates that includes defendant mandate the conclusion that defendant remains On 20 December 1975, defendant was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder and one count of...
PER CURIAM . DISCRETIONARY REVIEW IMPROVIDENTLY ALLOWED.
JACKSON , Justice . In this case we consider whether certain documents in the possession of the Cumberland County Health System, Inc. ("CCHS") are shielded from discovery by section 131E-95 of the North Carolina General Statutes, which protects "[t]he proceedings of a medical review committee, the records and materials it produces and the materials it considers." N.C.G.S. 131E-95(b) (2013). Because we conclude that CCHS failed to demonstrate the existence of a medical review committee...
PER CURIAM . Justice HUNTER took no part in the consideration or decision of this case. The remaining members of the Court are equally divided, with three members voting to affirm and three members voting to reverse the decision of the Court of Appeals. Accordingly, the decision of the Court of Appeals is left undisturbed and stands without precedential value. See, e.g., Amward Homes, Inc. v. Town of Cary, 365 N.C. 305, 716 S.E.2d 849 (2011). AFFIRMED.
EDMUNDS , Justice . Defendants GrailCoat Worldwide, LLC and GrailCo, Inc. (collectively, "GrailCoat") provided an express twenty-year warranty for its product SuperFlex, 1 a stucco-like material that plaintiffs purchased to cover the exterior of their new home. When the product later failed and plaintiffs brought suit for damages, GrailCoat claimed that North Carolina's six-year statute of repose barred plaintiffs' attempt to enforce the warranty. We conclude that by contracting for a...
JACKSON, Justice. In this case we consider whether the order of the North Carolina Utilities Commission ("the Commission") authorizing a 10.5% return on equity ("ROE") for Duke Energy Carolinas ("Duke") contained sufficient findings of fact to demonstrate that the order was supported by competent, material, and substantial evidence in view of the entire record. See N.C.G.S. 62-94 (2013). Because we conclude that the Commission made sufficient findings of fact regarding the impact of...
HUNTER , Justice . The case before us involves a dispute between Michael Falk, Trustee of the Charlotte Falk Irrevocable Trust (Trust), and the Federal National Mortgage Association (Fannie Mae), concerning which party's mortgage lien on the Ridgewood Apartments, located in Guilford County, has priority status. The solution to the dispute involves application of our State's "life of lien" statute, N.C.G.S. 45-37(b). 1 Subsection 45-37(b) establishes a conclusive presumption that the...
NEWBY, Justice. In this case we consider the effect of a waiver on claims arising from a guarantor-lender relationship, including claims under the federal Equal Credit Opportunity Act ("ECOA"). In exchange for a lender's willingness to restructure loans after default, a guarantor may waive prospective claims against the lender. Because we hold that defendant waived any potential claims, including those under the ECOA, we reverse the decision of the Court of Appeals. In 2006 Regions Bank...
JACKSON, Justice. In this case we consider whether the order of the North Carolina Utilities Commission ("the Commission") authorizing a 10.2% return on equity ("ROE") for Duke Energy Progress ("DEP") contained sufficient findings of fact to demonstrate that it was supported by competent, material, and substantial evidence in view of the entire record. See N.C.G.S. 62-94 (2013). Because we conclude that the Commission made sufficient findings of fact regarding the impact of changing...
PARKER, Chief Justice. The issue in this case is whether the Court of Appeals erred by holding that the Full Faith and Credit Clause precludes the use of intrinsic fraud to defeat a foreign monetary judgment pursuant to North Carolina's Uniform Enforcement of Foreign Judgment Act and N.C.G.S. 1A-1, Rule 60(b)(3). For the reasons stated herein, we modify and affirm the decision of the Court of Appeals. DocRx, Inc. (plaintiff), an Alabama corporation, filed a breach of contract action against...
NEWBY, Justice. In this case we consider whether a loan officer's statements about lien priority in a home mortgage transaction support a borrower's claims for breach of fiduciary duty and negligent misrepresentation against the lender. Generally, the home loan process is regarded as an arm's length transaction between parties of equal bargaining power and, absent exceptional circumstances, will not give rise to a fiduciary duty. Because a loan officer's initial discussion of lien priority in...
JACKSON, Justice. In this appeal we consider whether governmental immunity bars plaintiffs' claims alleging that defendant Wilson County ("the County") negligently failed to inspect and maintain a county office building. Because the County's operation of the building is governmental in nature, we hold that plaintiffs' claims against the County are barred by governmental immunity. Accordingly, we reverse the decision of the Court of Appeals. On 1 November 2006, the County entered into an...
JACKSON, Justice. In this case we consider whether the North Carolina Utilities Commission ("the Commission") erred by approving certain adjustments made by Dominion North Carolina Power ("Dominion") to a study of the costs of providing retail electric service to a large industrial customer. In addition, we consider whether the order of the Commission, which authorized a 10.2% return on equity ("ROE") for Dominion, contained sufficient findings of fact to demonstrate that it was supported by...
JACKSON, Justice. In this appeal we consider whether the Court of Appeals erred by affirming the trial court's order denying plaintiffs' motion for class certification. We hold that analyzing the substantive merits of plaintiffs' inverse condemnation claim is improper at the class certification stage and therefore, the trial court and the Court of Appeals erred in doing so. We also conclude that because of the unique nature of property, coupled with the large number of diverse tracts involved...
PER CURIAM. DISCRETIONARY REVIEW IMPROVIDENTLY ALLOWED.
PER CURIAM. Justice BEASLEY took no part in the consideration or decision of this case. The remaining members of the Court are equally divided, with three members voting to affirm and three members voting to reverse the decision of the Court of Appeals. Accordingly, the decision of the Court of Appeals is left undisturbed and stands without precedential value. See, e.g., Goldston v. State, 364 N.C. 416 , 700 S.E.2d 223 (2010). AFFIRMED.
EDMUNDS, Justice. Before defendant's trial for narcotics offenses, the State notified defendant that, pursuant to North Carolina General Statutes subsection 90-95(g), it intended to introduce a laboratory report of the results of a chemical analysis of the contraband without calling the testing chemist as a witness. At defendant's trial, the report was admitted over defendant's objection. The Court of Appeals reversed defendant's conviction for trafficking in opium by possession, holding that...
PER CURIAM. DISCRETIONARY REVIEW IMPROVIDENTLY ALLOWED.
