Over the weekend, the last undecided race for North Carolina’s appellate courts was resolved when Chief Justice Cheri Beasley conceded the race to Senior Associate—and Chief Justice-Elect—Paul Newby.   The race was extraordinarily close, with Chief Justice-Elect Newby ultimately prevailing by a margin of 50.0037% to 49.9963%. After two rounds of recounts, and with various protests still pending, Chief Justice Beasley and Chief Justice-Elect Newby announced the amicable resolution on social media.  The Justices’ dignified and measured responses to this most unusual scenario over the past several weeks reflect the high degree of professionalism for which our Supreme Court is…

Last week, the Court of Appeals reinforced the importance of the statutory presumption that a doctor has obtained valid informed consent.  The Hauser v. Brookview Women’s Center court affirmed the trial court’s instruction on the presumption over the plaintiff’s objections.  In a win for providers everywhere, the Court rejected the plaintiff’s arguments that the presumption was only applicable where there were allegations of fraud, deception, or misrepresentation and that it does not apply where there are allegations that the provider did not explain the alternatives to surgery.  The Court also affirmed the exclusion of certain “character” evidence offered by the…

Those who have known me for any length of time know that for more than a decade I have really, really wanted the Supreme Court to give appellate practitioners clarification on how various transcript-related issues should work in practice.  Today, the Supreme Court of North Carolina granted that wish by amending the North Carolina Rules of Appellate Procedure. For cases appealed on or after January 1, 2021, Appellate Rule 7 has been completely rewritten.   Related changes to Appellate Rules 9, 10, 11, 12, 18, 27, and 28, and Appendixes A and B, have also been adopted.  In my humble opinion,…