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South Carolina
Judicial Branch
Supreme Court - Roster of Cases for Hearing

   
The summary below each case is prepared to offer lawyers and the public a general overview of what issues are included in a case which will be argued. The summary is not a limit on what issues a party to a case may present at oral argument.
Wednesday, February 3, 2010
 09:30 a.m.
4896   Linda Erickson, Respondent/Appellant, v. Karen Winner, The Justice Seekers, Inc., Domestic Court Reform Movement, John Hill, Natalie Short n/k/a Natalie Brabant, Patricia Beal, Carl Beal, Kayla Keenan, Ernie Weaver, and Terry Wheatley, Individually and on behalf of the State of South Carolina Guardian Ad Litem Program, Defendants, of whom Patricia Beal, Carl Beal, Ernie Weaver and John Hill are Appellants/Respondents and Natalie Short, n/k/a Natalie Brabant is Respondent. Alvin C. Biggs, Appellant, v. Karen Winner, The Justice Seekers, Inc., Domestic Court Reform Movement, Patricia Beal, Carl Beal, and Natalie Short, Defendants, Of whom Patricia Beal, Carl Beal, Ernie Weaver and John Hill are Appellants/Respondents, and Natalie Short n/k/a Natalie Brabant is Respondent.

John K. Blincow, Jr., of Turner, Padget, Graham & Laney, of Charleston, and Stephanie Pendarvis McDonald, of Senn, McDonald & Leinbach, of Charleston, for Appellants/Respondents Patricia Beal and Carl Beal. Russell Stemke, of Island Law Offices, of Isle of Palms, for Appellant Alvin C. Biggs and Respondent/Appellant Linda Erickson. Eugene P. Corrigan, III, and Laura C. Waring, both of Grimball & Cabaniss, of Charleston, and William Jackson Cook, of Charleston, for Appellant/Respondent Ernie Weaver and Respondent Natalie Short, n/k/a Natalie Brabant. Chalmers Carey Johnson, of Tacoma, WA, for Appellant/Respondent John Hill.

These are cross-appeals following a jury verdict in two tort suits brought by a former Guardian ad Litem and a former family court judge.

 03:00 p.m.
4897   BOOST, a/k/a Business Owners Organized to Save Tourism, and Bart Viers, Petitioners, v. City of Myrtle Beach, Respondent.

Thaddaeus Viers, of Coastal Law, LLC, of Myrtle Beach, and J. Todd Kincannon, of Barnes Alford Stork & Johnson, of Columbia, for Petitioners. Michael W. Battle, of Battle, Vaught & Howe, of Conway, and Thomas Ellenburg, of Myrtle Beach, for Respondent.

In this case, Petitioners contest the validity of a Myrtle Beach City Ordinance requiring all motorcycle riders to wear helmets.

 03:30 p.m.
4902   George Jensen Aakjer, III, Leigh Andersen, Bobby Wayne Archer, Donald Lee Ard, Gary Philip Balcom, Thurman Odell Barnes, Ralph Hillary Bell, Jr., Marvin Simon Beverly, Steven M. Brinsfield, Laurie Ann Czerwieniec, Jeffery Jay Galbrath, Ronald Dewayne Gause, Gwendolyn Marie Harvey, Jessica Jane Hayes, Anthony Odell Hyman, Molly Infield, Mark Dale Infield, Bonnie Roberts Johnson, Emmett Earl Jones, Dawn Michell Kelly, Richard Allen Lester, Rodney Alan Louhoff, Rodney Alan Louhoff, Gary Edward Matson, Carla Williams Mercer, Richard O'Neil Mercer, Edward Dee Mitchum, Kathy Mitchum, Carol Justice North, Carol O'Day, William O'Day, III, Paul David Pinette, Steve Pinnell, Robert George Pinto, Debra A. Purcell, Rhonda Delette Robinson, Scott Allen Robinson, Rebecca Ann Rowan, Scott Rowan, Joseph Fred Ruddock, Jr, David Francis Speck, Anita Lynn Teachey, Robert Larry Thompson, Waddell H. Thompson, Michael James Timm, Debbie Timm, Rebel JM Tyler, Janice Waites, Susan Wall, and Edward Lucas Williams, Petitioners, v. City of Myrtle Beach and City of Myrtle Beach Municipal Court, Respondents.

Desa Ballard, of West Columbia, and James Thomas McGrath, of Richmond, VA, for Petitioners. Michael W. Battle, of Battle, Vaught & Howe, of Conway, for Respondents.

In this case, Petitioners contest the validity of a Myrtle Beach City Ordinance requiring all motorcycle riders to wear helmets. Petitioners also seek a writ of prohibition barring the municipal court from exercising jurisdiction over ordinance violations.

Thursday, February 4, 2010
 09:30 a.m.
4873   The State, Respondent, v. Ron O. Finklea, Appellant.

Senior Appellate Defender Joseph L. Savitz, III, of South Carolina Commission on Indigent Defense, of Columbia, for Appellant. Attorney General Henry Dargan McMaster, Chief Deputy Attorney General John W. McIntosh, Assistant Deputy Attorney General Donald J. Zelenka, all of Columbia, and Solicitor Donald Myers, of Lexington, for Respondent.

 10:00 a.m.
4898   Sea Cove Development, LLC, Appellant, v. Harbourside Community Bank and Harbourside Mortgage Company, Respondents.

W. H. Bundy, Jr., and M. Brent McDonald, both of Smith, Bundy, Bybee & Barnett, of Mt. Pleasant, for Appellant. Ehrick K. Haight, Jr., and Philip J. Rios, both of Minor Haight & Arundell, of Hilton Head, for Respondent.

Sea Cove Development, LLC brought this action for breach of contract and promissory estoppel against Harbourside Community Bank and Harbourside Mortgage Company after its loan application was denied. The circuit court granted summary judgment to Harbourside, finding Sea Cove's claims were barred by S.C. Code Ann. § 37-10-107 (2002). Sea Cove appeals, challenging the circuit court's findings and the constitutionality of section 37-10-107.

 10:30 a.m.
4899   Angela Youmans, as Personal Representative of the Estate of Deonte Elmore, Respondent, v. South Carolina Department of Transportation, Petitioner.

Marshall H. Waldron, Jr., of Griffith, Sadler & Sharp, of Beaufort, for Petitioner. Robert Norris Hill, of Newberry, and Mark B. Tinsley, of Gooding & Gooding, of Allendale, for Respondent.

The Court granted certiorari to review the decision in Youmans v. SCDOT, 380 S.C. 263, 670 S.E.2d 1 (Ct. App. 2008), in which the Court of Appeals reversed the trial court’s order granting SCDOT a new trial under the thirteenth juror doctrine.

Tuesday, February 16, 2010
 09:30 a.m.
4900   South Carolina Ambulatory Surgery Center Association; Ambulatory Surgery Center of Spartanburg, LLC; Blue Ridge Surgery Center; Low Country Orthopedics & Sports Medicine, LLC; Lowcountry Surgery Center, LLC; Midland Orthopaedics Surgery Center, LLC; Moore Orthopaedic Clinic Outpatient Surgery Center, LLC; Surgery Center at Pelham, LLC; Ocean Ambulatory Surgery Center; Upstate Surgery Center, L.L.C., Respondents/Appellants, v. The South Carolina Workers' Compensation Commission, Appellant/Respondent.

William H. Davidson, II, and Kenneth P. Woodington, both of Davidson & Lindemann, of Columbia, for Appellant/Respondent. Steven W. Hamm, and C. Jo Anne Wessinger Hill, both of Richardson, Plowden & Robinson, of Columbia, for Respondents/Appellants.

Both parties appeal from the circuit court's order granting in part both parties' cross motions for summary judgment, regarding an action filed by ambulatory surgery centers and their trade association challenging the revised schedule for maximum allowable payments to medical providers approved by the Workers' Compensation Commission.

 10:00 a.m.
4901   The Linda Mc Company, Inc., Respondent, v. James G. Shore and Jan Shore, Petitioners.

John Martin Foster, of Rock Hill, for Petitioners. James Ross Snell, Jr., of Lexington, for Respondent.

In this case, the Court granted Petitioners request for a writ of certiorari to review the Court of Appeals’ decision in Linda Mc Company, Inc. v. Shore, 375 S.C. 432, 653 S.E.2d 279 (Ct. App. 2007) affirming the trial court's issuance of an order to execute and levy a judgment against Petitioners.

 10:30 a.m.
4903   In the Matter of Karl P. Jacobsen, Respondent.

Disciplinary Counsel Lesley M. Coggiola and Assistant Disciplinary Counsel Barbara M. Seymour, both of Columbia, for Office of Disciplinary Counsel. Karl P. Jacobsen, of West Columbia, pro se.

This is an attorney disciplinary matter.

Wednesday, February 17, 2010
 09:30 a.m.
4904   Crossmann Communities of North Carolina, Inc., Beazer Homes Investment Corp., and Daniel Rogers, Respondents/Appellants, v. Harleysville Mutual Insurance Company, Cincinnati Insurance Company, and Associated Insurors, Inc., of Myrtle Beach, Defendants, of whom Harleysville Mutual Insurance Company is Appellant/Respondent.

C. Mitchell Brown, William C. Wood, Jr., Matthew D. Patterson and A. Mattison Bogan, all of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, of Columbia, Robert C. Calamari, of McAngus Goudelock & Courie, of Myrtle Beach, Clifford Leon Welsh, of Welsh & Hughes, of North Myrtle Beach, and David L. Brown, of Pinto Coates Kyre & Brown, of Greensboro, NC, for Appellant/Respondent. David B. Miller, of Bellamy, Rutenberg, Copeland, Epps, Gravely & Bowers, of Myrtle Beach, and Martin M. McNerney, Emily R. Sweet and Zachary D. Tripp, all of King & Spalding, of Washington, DC, for Respondent/Appellant.

Respondents filed a declaratory judgment against the insurance company to determine whether coverage existed under Respondents commercial general liability (CGL) policy. The trial court ruled coverage existed and the insurance company appealed.

 10:00 a.m.
4905   State Accident Fund, Appellant, v. South Carolina Second Injury Fund, Respondent. In Re: Leola Wyman, Employee/Claimant, v. South Carolina Department of Education, Employer/Carrier.

Mary Sowell League, of Ellis Lawhorne & Sims, of Columbia, for Appellant. Latonya Dilligard Edwards, of Columbia, for Respondent.

State Accident Fund appeals from the order of the circuit court affirming the appellate panel's finding that claimant's morbid obesity was neither a permanent condition nor serious enough obstacle to claimant's further employment.

 10:30 a.m.
4906   In the Interest of Morgan Blake H., a minor under the age of seventeen, Appellant.

Donald Bruce Clark, of Charleston, and Jessie J. Glenn, of North Charleston, for Appellant. Attorney General Henry Dargan McMaster, Chief Deputy Attorney General John W. McIntosh, Assistant Deputy Attorney General Salley W. Elliott, Assistant Attorney General William M. Blitch, Jr., all of Columbia, and Solicitor Scarlett Anne Wilson, of Charleston, for Respondent.

Thursday, February 18, 2010
 09:30 a.m.
4907   Grinnell Corporation, d/b/a Grinnell Fire Protection, Petitioner, v. John Wood, Respondent. American Home Assurance Company, Petitioner, v. Government Employees Insurance Company, Respondent.

Amy M. Snyder, of Clarkson, Walsh, Terrell & Coulter, of Greenville and Charles C. Eblen, of Shook, Hardy and Bacon, LLP of Kansas City, Missouri, for Petitioner Grinnell Corporation. Peter H. Dworjanyn, Christian Stegmaier and Amy L. Neuschafer, all of Collins & Lacy, of Columbia, for Petitioner American Home Assurance Company. David Wesley Whittington, of Knight Law Firm, of Summerville, for Respondent John Wood. Stephen F. DeAntonio, of DeAntonio Law Firm, of Charleston, for Respondent Government Employees Insurance Company.

This is an appeal from a trial court’s decision in a declaratory judgment action. The trial court determined that the insurer did not make a meaningful offer of UM/UIM to the insured.

 10:00 a.m.
4909   Oncology and Hematology Associates of SC., LLC, d/b/a Cancer Centers of the Carolinas, Petitioner, and (US Oncology Inc., Intervenor), Petitioners, v. South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control and Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System, d/b/a The Village at Pelham Cancer Center, Respondents.

Raymon E. Lark, Jr., of Austin & Rogers, of Columbia, and Lewis T. Smoak, of Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart, of Greenville, for Petitioners. Travis Dayhuff, Stuart M. Andrews, Jr., Alice Harris and Holly Gillespie, all of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, of Columbia, for Respondent Spartanburg Regional Healthcare System. Nancy S. Layman, of Columbia, for Respondent South Carolina Department of Health and Environmental Control.

The Court granted certiorari to review the Administrative Law Court’s orders compelling discovery.

 10:30 a.m.
4910   Harris Teeter, Inc., Appellant, v. Moore & Van Allen, PLLC, and W. Howell Morrison, Respondents.

A. Camden Lewis, Mary G. Lewis and Ariail E. King, all of Lewis & Babcock, of Columbia, for Appellant. G. Trenholm Walker, Clayton B. McCullough and Daniel S. McQueeney, Jr., all of Pratt-Thomas & Walker, of Charleston, for Respondents.

In this legal malpractice case, Harris Teeter contends the circuit court committed numerous errors in granting summary judgment to Respondents.

 

Cases to be Submitted Without Oral Argument

Rebecca Price, Respondent, v. Michael D. Turner, Appellant.

Derek J. Enderlin, of Ross & Enderlin, of Greenville, and Appellate Defender Katherine H. Hudgins, of South Carolina Commission on Indigent Defense, of Columbia, for Appellant. Rebecca L. Price, of Westminster, pro se Respondent. Susan King Dunn, of Charleston, and Calvin Andrew Carroll, of North Charleston, for Amici Curiae The American Civil Liberties Union Foundation, South Carolina National Office, The Brennan Center for Justice, The National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, The National Legal Aid & Defender Association and The South Carolina Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers in Support of Appellant Michael R. Turner.

Eric Bernard Epps, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent.

Appellate Defender LaNelle C. DuRant, of South Carolina Commission on Indigent Defense, of Columbia, for Petitioner. Attorney General Henry Dargan McMaster, Chief Deputy Attorney General John W. McIntosh, Assistant Deputy Attorney General Salley W. Elliott and Assistant Attorney General Julie M. Thames, all of Columbia, for Respondent.