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Contract – Subcontractor’s Invoice – ‘Pay When Paid’ Provision – Unenforceable Condition Precedent
A provision in the contract between the defendant-general contractor and the plaintiff-subcontractor allowed the general contractor to withhold payment for the subcontractor’s work until the project owner paid the general contractor. This provision violated S.C. Code Ann. § 29-6-230’s clear prohibition on conditioning payment to a subcontractor upon the owner’s payment to the general contra[...]
Contract – Real Estate Agent – Real Property Inspection – Release & Indemnity Provision
Our courts have upheld liability waivers executed prior to the activities which were subject to the waivers, e.g., paintball games, McCune v. Myrtle Beach Indoor Shooting Range, Inc., 364 S.C. 242, 612 S.E.2d 462 (Ct. App. 2005). Here, the plaintiff-buyer signed a contract containing a release of the defendant-real estate agent from claims including those […]
Contract – Credit Card – Consumer Protection Code – Account Stated
Plaintiff bought a charged-off debt from a credit card issuer and brought this action against defendant, the purported credit card debtor. We hold that consumer credit cards are “lender credit cards” and “consumer loans” pursuant to the South Carolina Consumer Protection Code, and plaintiff should have sent defendant a right to cure notice before filing […]
Contract – Mechanic’s Lien – Summary Judgment – Standard of Review
The court clarifies that a mere scintilla of evidence is insufficient to defeat a motion for summary judgment; instead, the non-movant must show that there is a genuine issue of material fact. In this case, the plaintiff-contractor forecasted evidence that it wrote a check to pay for parts during the 90 days before it perfected […]
Contract – New York Law – Service to Real Property – Wi-Fi & Internet – Required Renewal Notice
The parties’ contract for wi-fi and internet services was governed by New York law. Because the contract required plaintiff to deliver the services “to the property” of the defendant-homeowners’ associations, the contract was one “for services to or for real property.” As such, New York General Obligations Law § 5-903 required plaintiff to serve defendants, […]
Contract – Real Property – Impossibility Defense – Preexisting Mortgage Woes
Where the defendant-sellers’ lender had already threatened foreclosure when defendants entered into a contract to sell their Charleston property to the plaintiff-buyer – a complication defendants chose not to tell plaintiff about – the lender’s unwillingness to consent to the sale of the property did not present a legal impossibility to defendants’ performance under their […]
Contract – Construction Defect – Crossclaims – General Contractor & Architect
In this construction defect case brought by the purchaser of a project, the general contractor has not stated independent claims against the project’s architect. We affirm partial summary judgment for the architect. The contractor lists the following actual damages: (1) Cost of windows purchased by the contractor that do not meet required wind load, which […]
Partnerships – Contract – Real Property – Division of Profits
Even though the parties have not strictly adhered to the terms of their written 1979 partnership agreement, this does not support the master-in-equity’s finding that no partnership existed. We affirm the master’s holding that plaintiff and defendant Fanning (defendant) each own an undivided one-half interest in the parcel in question, but we reverse the finding […]
Contract – Restaurant Renovation – Payments to Subcontractors – Extracontractual Work
During the underlying proceedings between the project owner and the general contractor, the owner settled a claim by electrical subcontractor Carolina Construction Solutions (CCS) for $50,000. CCS was only hired after the project owner became frustrated by construction delays, demanded that the general contractor hire additional electricians, and approved a change order listing a cost […]
Contract – Promissory Estoppel – Free Health Care – Labor & Employment – Retirement
The circuit court placed too high a burden on plaintiffs – retired city employees – in requiring them to prove they would have been better off if the defendant-city had fulfilled its promise of free health care during their retirement. Nevertheless, the retirees failed to prove that the city’s promise was unambiguous, that their reliance […]
Contract – Promissory Note – Guarantee – Consideration – Attorney’s Fee & Interest
Where (1) plaintiff made a short-term loan to defendant ISL Development, LLC, in part to pay the salary of defendant Stewart; (2) plaintiff declined to consider the loan an investment in ISL; and (3) plaintiff said she would extend the loan’s due date if Stewart would personally guarantee the loan, the trial court could find […]
At-will employment contractual, third-party suit OK
A former bank executive who was fired from his job will be able to move forward with a federal lawsuit against the co-worker who accused him of sexual harassment after the South Carolina Supreme Court ruled that at-will employment relationships are contractual relationships and South Carolina law recognizes a valid claim for third-party tortious interference […]
Business Law
- Economy forces attorneys to get down to business
- Business Court judges trawl for customers
- Va. company's Web site did not subject business to personal jurisdiction in S.C., appeals panel rules
- Former running back from S.C. wins courtroom victory in contract dispute
- Contract – Government Contract – Qui Tam – False Claims Act
- Tort – Business Tort – Va. Computer Crimes Act – Trade Secrets
- Consumer Protection – FCRA – Auto Loan – Bank Accounting Errors
- Licenses & Permits – Beer & Wine Permit – Restrictive Covenant – Suitable Location
- Licenses & Permits – Veterinarian – Vaccine Maintenance
- State regulators look at car dealer accused of lying to customers
- Textile firm, railroad settle Graniteville train wreck lawsuit
- Subprime mortgage meltdown hits securities law
Commentary
- High court justices cross the line of propriety
- High court’s term was rough on big business
- The flip side of generative AI in law and how to address it
- The fight for equal educational opportunity continues
- Letter From The Editor – Working from Home
- NLRB joins FTC in taking aim at non-competes
- Supreme Court leaves key internet protection untouched
- US Supreme Court bites back at parody’s use of the First Amendment
- My goal: Provide the information that you need now
- Case study: North Carolina courts provide guidance on scope, limitations of attorney-client privilege
- A Different Ode to Pro Bono Work
- N.C. Bar Association embraces homophobia
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