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April 2009 |
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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.
Tuesday, April 7, 2009 | |
09:30 a.m. | |
4754 The State, Respondent, v. Jeffrey Louis Jones, Appellant. Chief Appellate Defender Joseph L. Savitz, III, and Deputy Chief Appellate Defender for Capital Appeals Robert M. Dudek, both 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, Senior Assistant Attorney General William Edgar Salter, III, all of Columbia, and Solicitor Donald V. Myers, of Lexington, for Respondent. In this capital case, Jones appeals his convictions and sentences, alleging the trial judge erred in: (1) permitting the State to subpoena a witness against Jones who was an expert the defense had engaged to challenge evidence, and (2) admitting “barefoot insole impression” evidence that was consistent with having worn a boot linked to the murder scene because it was not scientifically reliable.
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10:00 a.m. | |
4746 Ann G. Duncan, as Personal Representative of the Estate of Frankey Galloway, deceased, and Cleo Galloway, Respondents, v. Samuel D. Little, personally and as Personal Representative of the Estate of Joseph A. Galloway, a/k/a Avery Galloway, deceased; Betty Joy L. Iannazzone, personally and as Personal Representative of the Estate of Joseph A. Galloway, deceased; the Estate of Joseph A. Galloway, a/k/a Avery Galloway, deceased; and SunTrust Banks, Inc., formerly Central Carolina Bank, a/k/a CCB, Defendants, Of whom Samuel D. Little, personally and as Personal Representative of the Estate of Joseph A. Galloway, a/k/a Avery Galloway, deceased, is Appellant. Dallas D. Ball, of Pickens and Sally G. Calhoun, of Beaufort, for Appellant. Larry C. Brandt, of Walhalla, for Respondents. This appeal presents the question of whether the trial court erred in finding that the funds in a safe deposit box were held in constructive trust for the brother of the co-lessees and that the dead man’s statute did not bar the admission of one lessee’s testimony against the other lessee, who is now deceased.
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10:30 a.m. | |
4751 Ann G. Duncan, as Personal Representative of the Estate of Frankey Galloway, deceased, and Cleo Galloway, Appellants, v. Samuel D. Little, personally and as Personal Representative of the Estate of Joseph A. Galloway, a/k/a Avery Galloway, deceased; Betty Joy L. Iannazzone, personally and as Personal Representative of the Estate of Joseph A. Galloway, a/k/a Avery Galloway, deceased; The Estate of Joseph A. Galloway, a/k/a Avery Galloway, deceased; and SunTrust Banks, Inc., formerly Central Carolina Bank, a/k/a CCB, Defendants, of whom SunTrust Banks, Inc., formerly Central Carolina Bank, a/k/a CCB, is Respondent. Larry C. Brandt, of Walhalla, for Appellants. Bernie W. Ellis, of McNair Law Firm, of Greenville and Robert L. Widener, of McNair Law Firm,of Columbia, for Respondent. This appeal presents the question of whether the trial court erred in finding that the bank did not violate a duty to plaintiffs in allowing the personal representative of a co-lessee to forcefully open a safe deposit box without notice to the other lessee.
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11:00 a.m. | |
4747 Lisbeth A. Theisen, Respondent/Appellant, v. Joan Theisen and Richard Doris, as Personal Representatives of the Estate of George I. Theisen, deceased, and Claude I. Theisen, Respondents, v. Clifford R. Theisen, Appellant/Respondent, v. Joan Theisen, Eva Marie Theisen Fox, Thomas Fox, Susan Washburn, Brian Washburn and T&S Brass and Bronze Works, Inc.,and T&S Brass and Bronze Works, Inc., Respondents. Kymric Y. Mahnke, of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, of Greenville, for Appellant-Respondent. Robert C. Wilson, Jr., of Greenville, for Respondent/Appellant. John A. Hagins, Jr., and T.S. Stern, Jr., both of Covington Patrick Hagins Stern & Lewis, of Greenville, Joel W. Collins, Jr., Christian Stegmaier, Robert F. Goings and Amy L. Neuschafer, all of Collins & Lacy, of Columbia, for Respondent. These are cross-appeals by Lisbeth and Clifford Theisen, whose family owns an upstate business, T & S Brass. Lisbeth initiated this case against T & S in 2003 alleging, essentially, that she was fraudulently induced to sell her 119 shares of stock in T & S back to the company. The Defendants in Lisbeth’s action, Lisbeth’s mother, siblings, and T & S, answered and brought cross-claims against Lisbeth’s brother, Clifford, contending that if they were liable to Lisbeth, Clifford was also liable. Clifford answered and brought counterclaims and a shareholder’s derivative claim against his father, brother, and T & S, and 4th party claims against his mother, sisters and their husbands. The circuit court granted summary judgment to the defendants in two separate orders. As to Lisbeth, the court held her claims were barred by her 1998 mutual release, and that they were filed outside the statute of limitations. As to Clifford, the court held Clifford’s failure to make a pre-suit demand on the T & S Board barred his claims, that Clifford did not represent similarly situated shareholders so as to entitle him to bring a derivative suit, and that his April 2000 settlement agreement barred the remainder of his claims. Lisbeth and Clifford filed separate cross-appeals.
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Wednesday, April 8, 2009 | |
09:30 a.m. | |
4748 South Carolina Department of Revenue, Appellant, v. Anonymous Company A and Anonymous Company B, Respondents. Managing Counsel for Litigation Milton G. Kimpson, Counsel for Litigation Craig M. Pisarik, Director Ray N. Stevens, Chief of Staff Harry T. Cooper, Jr., and General Counsel for Litigation Nicholas P. Sipe, of Columbia, for Appellant. John D. Hawkins, of The Hawkins Law Firm, of Spartanburg, for Respondents. This is an appeal from the circuit court’s finding that an automobile dealer and finance company are eligible for tax deductions under S.C. Code Ann. § 12-39-90(2)(h).
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10:00 a.m. | |
4749 Joanne Levesque Gignilliat, Appellant, v. Gignilliat, Savitz & Bettis, L.L.P., Respondent. Thomas L. Moses and Timothy J. Monahan, both of Monahan & Moses, of Greenville, for Appellant. John Thomas Lay and Jenkins M. Mann, both of Ellis Lawhorne & Sims, of Columbia, and W. Duvall Spruill, of Turner, Padget, Graham & Laney, of Columbia, for Respondent. Joanne Levesque Gignilliat brought an action against Gignilliat, Savitz & Bettis for its continued use of her husband’s name, Julian Gignilliat, in the law firm name after his death. Levesque appeals from an order granting summary judgment in favor of Gignilliat, Savitz & Bettis on various claims, including infringement on the right of publicity, conversion, unjust enrichment, and quantum meruit.
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10:30 a.m. | |
4750 Frank W. Kerr, as Personal Representative for the Estate of Marta Butler Kerr, deceased, Appellant, v. Richland Memorial Hospital, Respondent. Charles L. Henshaw, Jr., of Furr, Henshaw & Ohanesian, of Columbia, for Appellant. William H. Davidson, II, and Andrew F. Lindemann, both of Davidson & Lindemann, of Columbia, for Respondent. This medical malpractice case involves statute of repose ramifications and liability for independent contractors in the context of a governmental hospital.
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11:00 a.m. | |
4752 The State, Respondent, v. Roland Robinson, Petitioner. 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, all of Columbia, and Solicitor John Gregory Hembree, of Conway, for Respondent. The Court granted petitioner’s request for a writ of certiorari to review the Court of Appeals’ dismissal of his direct criminal appeal which was filed over nine years after his trial in absentia.
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Thursday, April 9, 2009 | |
09:30 a.m. | |
4753 Dan F. Williamson and Dan F. Williamson and Company, Petitioners, v. Alfred C. Middleton, Respondent. Desa Ballard, of West Columbia, for Petitioners. James C. Parham, Jr., Wallace K. Lightsey and Patricia S. Ravenhorst, all of Wyche Burgess Freeman & Parham, of Greenville, for Respondent. The Court granted certiorari to review a decision by the Court of Appeals upholding an award of attorney’s fees.
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10:00 a.m. | |
4745 Jesse Branham, Jr., as Guardian ad Litem for Jesse Branham, III, and Jesse Branham, Jr., Respondents, v. Ford Motor Company and Cheryl Jane Hale, Defendants, Of Whom Ford Motor Company is the Appellant. Elbert S. Dorn and Nicholas W. Gladd, both of Turner, Padget, Graham & Laney, of Columbia, C. Mitchell Brown, William C. Wood, Jr., Beth B. Richardson and A. Mattison Bogan, all of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, of Columbia, for Appellant. Ronnie L. Crosby, John E. Parker and Grahame E. Holmes, all of Peters, Murdaugh, Parker, Eltzroth & Detrick, of Hampton, John R. Hetrick and Robert J. Bonds, both of Hetrick, Harvin & Bonds, of Walterboro, H. Woodrow Gooding and Mark B. Tinsley, both of Gooding & Gooding, of Allendale, for Respondents. This is a products liability case in which Appellant challenges a jury verdict for actual and punitive damages.
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10:30 a.m. | |
4755 Lawrence Brayboy, Employee, Respondent, v. WorkForce, Employer and American Home Assurance, Carrier, Defendants, Of Whom WorkForce, Employer, is the Appellant. Kirsten Leslie Barr, of Trask & Howell, of Mt. Pleasant, for Appellant. Mattthew Jackson, of Joye Law Firm, of North Charleston, and John S. Nichols, of Bluestein & Nichols, of Columbia, for Respondent. This workers’ compensation case involves the appropriate standard of review when determining if the claimant was an employee.
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11:00 a.m. | |
4756 In the Matter of Kernard Edward Redmond, Respondent. Disciplinary Counsel Lesley M. Coggiola and Deputy Disciplinary Counsel Barbara M. Seymour, both of Columbia, for Office of Disciplinary Counsel. Kernard Edward Redmond, of Dillon, pro se. This is an attorney disciplinary matter.
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Tuesday, April 21, 2009 | |
09:30 a.m. | |
4757 Jeffrey M. Sapp, Jr., Appellant, v. Ford Motor Company, Respondent. Karl S. Brehmer, and L. Darby Plexico, III, both of Brown & Brehmer, of Columbia, for Appellant. Curtis Lyman Ott and Carmelo B. Sammataro, both of Turner, Padget, Graham & Laney, of Columbia, for Respondent. The issue in this direct appeal is whether the economic loss rule bars appellant’s actions for negligence and strict liability.
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10:00 a.m. | |
4762 Bryan D. Smith, Appellant, v. Ford Motor Company, Respondent. Karl S. Brehmer and L. Darby Plexico, III, both of Brown & Brehmer, of Columbia, for Appellant. Curtis Lyman Ott and Carmelo B. Sammataro, both of Turner, Padget, Graham & Laney, of Columbia, for Respondent. The issue in this direct appeal is whether the economic loss rule bars appellant’s actions for negligence and strict liability.
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10:30 a.m. | |
4758 Matrix Financial Services Corporation, Respondent, v. Louis M. Frazer; Linda S. Frazer, Matthew Kundinger; and Parks Grove Homeowners Association, Inc., Defendants, of whom Matthew Kundinger is the Appellant. Edward Scott Sanders, of Greenville, and David Alan Wilson, of Horton, Drawdy, Ward & Jenkins, of Greenville, for Appellant. Earle G. Prevost and Michael J. Giese, both of Smith, Moore, Leatherwood, of Greenville, for Respondent. This appeal asks whether the master properly utilized the doctrine of equitable subrogation to give a mortgage priority over a judgment.
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11:00 a.m. | |
4759 K&A Acquisition Group, LLC, Appellant, v. Island Pointe, LLC, South Carolina Department of Transportation, Elizabeth S. Mabry, in her Official Capacity as Executive Director of The South Carolina Department of Transportation; and City of Folly Beach, South Carolina, Respondents. C. Mitchell Brown, of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, of Columbia, Robert H. Brunson and Erin E. Richardson, both of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, of Charleston, for Appellant. Ellison D. Smith, IV, of Smith, Bundy, Bybee & Barnett, of Mt. Pleasant, Michael R. Daniel, of Elloree and James B. Richardson, Jr., of Columbia, for Respondent Island Pointe, LLC. Beacham O. Brooker, Jr., of Columbia, for Respondent South Carolina Department of Transportation. Otis Benjamin Peeples, Jr., of Charleston, for Respondent City of Folly Beach. In this declaratory judgment action, K&A Acquisition Group, LLC, raises several issues challenging the master-in-equity’s order involving the enforcement of a deed conveying a parcel of coastal property from the South Carolina Department of Transportation to a private landowner.
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Wednesday, April 22, 2009 | |
09:30 a.m. | |
4760 Andre Kevin Rosemond, Petitioner, v. William D. Catoe, Commissioner, South Carolina Department of Corrections and Charles M. Condon, South Carolina Attorney General, Respondent. David I. Bruck, of Blume, Weyble and Norris, of Columbia, and Robert Edward Lominack, of Columbia for Petitioner. Attorney General Henry Dargan McMaster, Chief Deputy Attorney General John W. McIntosh and Assistant Deputy Attorney General Donald J. Zelenka, all of Columbia, for Respondent. This is a PCR case that stems from an underlying murder conviction and sentence of death.
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10:00 a.m. | |
4761 Ken Buffington, Louis Shepard, Mary E. Williams, Brian Meece and Shirley Jones, Respondents, v. T.O.E. Enterprises, A South Carolina General Partnership and T.O.E. Residential, LLC, Petitioners. W. Grady Jordan, of Olson, Smith, Jordan & Cox, of Easley, for Petitioners. J. Falkner Wilkes, of Greenville, for Respondents. The Court granted a writ of certiorari to review the Court of Appeals' decision affirming the circuit court’s ruling that Petitioners were enjoined from using two lots for commercial purposes pursuant to the restrictive covenants.
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10:30 a.m. | |
4763 The State, Petitioner, v. Kenneth Navy, Jr., Respondent. Attorney General Henry Dargan McMaster, Chief Deputy Attorney General John W. McIntosh, Assistant Deputy Attorney General Salley W. Elliott, Senior Assistant Attorney General Norman Mark Rapoport, Assistant Attorney General Michelle J. Parsons and Solicitor Warren Blair Giese, all of Columbia, for Petitioner. Deputy Chief Appellate Defender for Capital Appeals Robert M. Dudek, of South Carolina Commission on Indigent Defense, of Columbia, for Respondent. The Court granted certiorari to consider the decision of the Court of Appeals reversing this criminal appeal.
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11:00 a.m. | |
4764 Ernest Lamar Bradley and Esther K. Bradley, Petitioners, v. John Doe and AccuSweep, Inc., Respondents. Donald Higgins Howe, of Howe & Wyndham, of Charleston, and Walter Bilbro, Jr., of Charleston, for Petitioners. Margaret Fanning Horn, of Wilson & Heyward, of Charleston, for Respondents. This Court granted a petition for a writ of certiorari to review the decision of the Court of Appeals in Bradley v. Doe, 374 S.C. 622, 649 S.E.2d 153 (Ct. App. 2007), which held that circumstantial evidence regarding an accident presented by the insured’s affiants failed to meet the requirements in section 38-77-170 of the South Carolina Code for uninsured motorist (UM) coverage.
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Cases to be Submitted Without Oral Argument | |
Ron G. Taylor, Respondent, v. State of South Carolina, Petitioner. |
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Attorney General Henry Dargan McMaster, Chief Deputy Attorney General John W. McIntosh, Assistant Deputy Attorney General Salley W. Elliott and Assistant Attorney General Ashley McMahan, of Columbia, for Petitioner. Deputy Chief Appellate Defender Wanda H. Carter, of South Carolina Commission on Indigent Defense, of Columbia, for Respondent. |
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Harold B. Turner, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent. |
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Deputy Chief Appellate Defender Wanda H. Carter, 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 Prentiss Counts, all of Columbia, for Respondent. |
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William D. Tanks, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent. |
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Appellate Defender M. Celia Robinson, of South Carolina Commission on Indigent Defense, of Columbia, for Petitioner. Attorney General Henry Dargan McMaster, Chief Deputy Attorney General John W. McIntosh and Assistant Deputy Attorney General Salley W. Elliott, all of Columbia, for Respondent. |
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Anthony Rivera, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent. |
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Appellate Defender Kathrine H. Hudgins, 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 Matthew Friedman, all of Columbia, for Respondent. |
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Ervin McMillian, Petitioner, v. State of South Carolina, Respondent. |
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Appellate Defender Robert M. Pachak, 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 E. Elliott and Assistant Attorney General Brian T. Petrano, all of Columbia, for Respondent. |