Once upon a time there was abroad in the east a rogue with a tax scheme: set up a North Carolina nonprofit corporation, with the word, “Conservation,” in the name, have one-page minutes naming prominent folks like judges as directors, and file the same away. Not only would the directors not meet, but also they were never aware of the company or that they were named. Without any of the baseline data and other requirements for a conservation easement included in the 26 U.S.C Section 170(h) regulations, cause a deed to be made to the company and encourage owners of the land to take certain federal deductions for a conservation easement and certain state tax credits (at a time when those were allowed). See, e.g., Lukens Island Timber Enterprises, LLC, v. Coastal Hunting Land Conservation Group, Inc., 09 CVS 1901 (Carteret County Superior Court rescinded the conservation easement based on fraud of the creator). In some cases, the owners would just abandon the lands, after which in due course a tax foreclosure would follow.
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00RealPropertyhttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngRealProperty2021-06-30 09:38:212021-06-30 09:46:59When You Do Not Know What You Do Not Know: Are There Certain Interests Not Foreclosed In a Tax Foreclosure?
I became a paralegal a few years ago, not as a recent college graduate nor as my first profession, but as someone looking for divine intervention.
My younger self was a stay-at-home mom until my divorce. At the time, I was determined to support myself, and against the advice of my attorney, did not ask for alimony. Maybe not a great idea in retrospect, but knowing myself, I would most likely do it again. I did not have a college degree and had not worked outside of my home in over ten years. I was lucky, though; I found a job in New York City working for an oil broker. Within a year, I was the Office Manager. When they decided to move to Miami, I handled the logistics of moving the office, the brokers, and their families, as well as mine. Being a single Mom in an unfamiliar city, five hundred miles from all that I knew, I was miserable; I missed my family and friends. I connected with someone that knew someone, and as luck would have it, found a job immediately back in Midtown Manhattan. Back then, you could make a decent living without a college education. It was a different time. However, internally, I frequently felt “less than.”
Chief Administrative Law Judge Julian Mann III appointed Ashley B. Snyder as the Codifier of Rules effective July 1, 2021. The Codifier enters rules into the North Carolina Administrative Code, publishes the North Carolina Register, and reviews emergency rules. In addition, the Codifier serves as the Director of APA Services by managing and directing the Rules Division. The Division provides legal and administrative support to the Rules Review Commission and publishes the North Carolina Register and North Carolina Administrative Code. Ashley will replace Molly Masich who retired Jan. 1 after 41 years of service to the state.
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00Administrativehttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngAdministrative2021-06-23 09:55:532021-06-23 09:55:53Judge Mann Appoints New Codifier of Rules
Father and mother have two children together. Father has three other minor children from previous relationships – two of those other children live with him. Mother is a W-2 employee and father is self-employed. In its findings regarding father’s income, the trial court noted that father’s business had significant expenses but failed to take those expenses into consideration in its calculation of income for child support purposes – instead, the trial court utilized father’s gross monthly business income as his income for child support purposes. Additionally, because father was only listed as the father on the birth certificate of one of the two children living with him, the trial court only gave father credit for that one child. Father appealed. Read more
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00FamilyLawhttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngFamilyLaw2021-06-23 09:13:572021-06-23 09:44:05Case Law Update: Child Support
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00Pro Bonohttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngPro Bono2021-06-22 17:03:572022-10-25 13:22:362021 Pro Bono Award Winners Recognized
It’s no secret that the ability to form a trusting relationship with clients is one of the most important skills a lawyer can have. As a rule, “when a client’s capacity to make adequately considered decisions in connection with a representation is diminished because of minority . . . the lawyer shall as far as reasonably possible, maintain a normal client-lawyer relationship with the client.”[1] However, additional considerations should be made when the client is a minor child.
DiPrima v. Vann, COA20-545, Court of Appeals of North Carolina, May 18, 2021
A sixteen-year-old plaintiff sought a 50C order against a seventeen-year-old defendant after the defendant intimidated and harassed her by following and touching her without her consent, threatening to kill or harm her if she stopped being his friend, threatening to shoot up their school, telling her he wanted to kill and torture two teachers, cutting himself in class in front of her, telling her he wanted to fight her parents, and telling her that he had researched how to make bombs and shoot up the school.
https://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.png00FamilyLawhttps://ncbarblogprod.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/06/Blog-Header-1-1030x530.pngFamilyLaw2021-06-16 15:25:292021-06-16 15:25:29Case Law Update: AOC 50C Order
MIP’s Diverse Perspectives is a blog feature to spotlight a member from North Carolina’s community of diverse attorneys and legal professionals. Members have the opportunity to share a personal perspective through a brief set of interview questions.
This month’s perspective is courtesy of LaToya Powell, Assistant Legal Counsel, North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts, Raleigh.
What law school did you attend and what was your graduation year?
The University of North Carolina School of Law, 2005. Read more
Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP has announced that 24 attorneys have joined the firm’s offices, including Lissette C. Payne, who has joined the Charlotte office as an attorney in the Banking and Financial Services Practice Group. She is designated as a Certified Information Privacy Professional by the International Association of Privacy Professionals, with U.S. Private Sector (CIPP/US) and European (CIPP/E) concentrations. Payne received her B.A. in political science from the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill and her J.D. from the University of North Carolina School of Law.
New Firm, Harkey Litigation, Opens in Winston-Salem
Scott Harkey established Harkey Litigation, located in Winston-Salem. Harkey was the Senior Financial Crimes Prosecutor for the the North Carolina Conference of District Attorneys. He specializes in white collar defense, investigations, and complex civil litigation. A Board Certified Specialist in North Carolina Criminal Law, Harkey is a member of the North Carolina Bar Foundation Civic Education and Engagement Committee. He holds a B.A. from North Carolina State University and a J.D. from Campbell Law School.
Alexandria Tuttle Joins The Law Offices of James Scott Farrin
The Law Offices of James Scott Farrin announced that Alexandria Tuttle is now an associate attorney with the personal injury department. Tuttle obtained a B.A. in political science from North Carolina State University and a J.D. from North Carolina Central University School of Law. During law school, Tuttle worked full-time as a paralegal with The Law Offices of James Scott Farrin. As an attorney with the firm, she serves on the Social Services Committee to help local non-profits.
Alicia Mitchell-Mercer has been selected to receive the 2021 Distinguished Paralegal Award. The award will be presented at the 2021 NCBA Annual Meeting, which will take place virtually on Thursday and Friday, June 17-18. Mitchell-Mercer will be honored during the Awards & Recognitions Presentation on Thursday, June 17, at 5 p.m.
Mitchell-Mercer received a B.S. in Paralegal Studies from Charter Oak State College and an M.S. in Project Management from Missouri State University. She has earned paralegal certifications from NALA (ACP), NFPA (RP), the South Carolina Bar (SCCP), and the North Carolina State Bar (NCCP).
She holds advanced paralegal certifications in trial practice, contracts administration, e-discovery, and business organizations: incorporated entities from NALA. She is certified by the International Institute of Legal Project Management (IILPM) as a Legal Project Practitioner and by the Scrum Alliance as a Certified ScrumMaster.
Mitchell-Mercer works in Charlotte as a legal project manager and paralegal at Brown & Associates, PLLC and as a legal project manager consultant at Lex Project Management Consulting Group using traditional and Agile methodologies. She is a securities arbitrator with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).
Mitchell-Mercer is very involved in the legal community. She focuses her efforts on causes that advance the proper utilization of paralegals, access to justice, and that support the well-being of children.
She serves as the Communications Chair for the NCBA Paralegal Division, a role she has held for three years. She is the Chair of the division’s Technology Committee and the Publications Committee. She previously served as a member of the Paralegal Division Council (2015) and a participant in the Internet and Regulations Task Force (2016).
Mitchell-Mercer is currently serving on NALA’s Continuing Education Council which is charged with planning conference education sessions; developing, coordinating, and facilitating continuing education programs and certification review courses; and producing Facts & Findings magazine.
She is a Guardian ad Litem for abused and neglected children in the 26th Judicial District and was recently appointed to the North Carolina State Bar’s Subcommittee Studying Regulatory Change.
Mitchell-Mercer teaches CLEs and contributes to legal publications on the topic of legal project management and lives in Charlotte with her husband and son. She enjoys reading, traveling abroad, and time spent by the ocean. She also volunteers with Autism Speaks, Compassion International, and Central Church of God in Charlotte.
Previous recipients of the Distinguished Service Award were (2008) Teresa L. Bowling, (2010) Virginia M. Burrows, (2011) Phyllis M. Hines, (2012) Stephanie C. Crosby, (2013) Kaye H. Summers, (2014) Sarah Hall Kaufman, (2015) Yolanda N. Smith, (2016) Wanda Pitts Nicholson, (2017) Alicia Lewis of Raleigh, (2018) Sarah L. White and (2019) Lakisha Chichester.
When You Do Not Know What You Do Not Know: Are There Certain Interests Not Foreclosed In a Tax Foreclosure?
Real PropertyJames W. Narron
Taylor Avioli
By James W. Narron and Taylor Avioli
Once upon a time there was abroad in the east a rogue with a tax scheme: set up a North Carolina nonprofit corporation, with the word, “Conservation,” in the name, have one-page minutes naming prominent folks like judges as directors, and file the same away. Not only would the directors not meet, but also they were never aware of the company or that they were named. Without any of the baseline data and other requirements for a conservation easement included in the 26 U.S.C Section 170(h) regulations, cause a deed to be made to the company and encourage owners of the land to take certain federal deductions for a conservation easement and certain state tax credits (at a time when those were allowed). See, e.g., Lukens Island Timber Enterprises, LLC, v. Coastal Hunting Land Conservation Group, Inc., 09 CVS 1901 (Carteret County Superior Court rescinded the conservation easement based on fraud of the creator). In some cases, the owners would just abandon the lands, after which in due course a tax foreclosure would follow.
Read more
Paralegal Spotlight: Mary Accardi
Paralegal DivisionI became a paralegal a few years ago, not as a recent college graduate nor as my first profession, but as someone looking for divine intervention.
My younger self was a stay-at-home mom until my divorce. At the time, I was determined to support myself, and against the advice of my attorney, did not ask for alimony. Maybe not a great idea in retrospect, but knowing myself, I would most likely do it again. I did not have a college degree and had not worked outside of my home in over ten years. I was lucky, though; I found a job in New York City working for an oil broker. Within a year, I was the Office Manager. When they decided to move to Miami, I handled the logistics of moving the office, the brokers, and their families, as well as mine. Being a single Mom in an unfamiliar city, five hundred miles from all that I knew, I was miserable; I missed my family and friends. I connected with someone that knew someone, and as luck would have it, found a job immediately back in Midtown Manhattan. Back then, you could make a decent living without a college education. It was a different time. However, internally, I frequently felt “less than.”
Read more
Judge Mann Appoints New Codifier of Rules
Administrative LawChief Administrative Law Judge Julian Mann III appointed Ashley B. Snyder as the Codifier of Rules effective July 1, 2021. The Codifier enters rules into the North Carolina Administrative Code, publishes the North Carolina Register, and reviews emergency rules. In addition, the Codifier serves as the Director of APA Services by managing and directing the Rules Division. The Division provides legal and administrative support to the Rules Review Commission and publishes the North Carolina Register and North Carolina Administrative Code. Ashley will replace Molly Masich who retired Jan. 1 after 41 years of service to the state.
Read more
Case Law Update: Child Support
Family Law SectionCraven County o/b/o Wooten v. Hageb, Court of Appeals of North Carolina, June 1, 2021 (Child Support)
Father and mother have two children together. Father has three other minor children from previous relationships – two of those other children live with him. Mother is a W-2 employee and father is self-employed. In its findings regarding father’s income, the trial court noted that father’s business had significant expenses but failed to take those expenses into consideration in its calculation of income for child support purposes – instead, the trial court utilized father’s gross monthly business income as his income for child support purposes. Additionally, because father was only listed as the father on the birth certificate of one of the two children living with him, the trial court only gave father credit for that one child. Father appealed. Read more
2021 Pro Bono Award Winners Recognized
Pro Bono CommitteeThe 2021 Pro Bono Award winners were recognized during the virtual NCBA Annual Meeting on Thursday, June 17. The recipients are:
Read more
Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion (DEI) Series: Special Considerations When Representing Child Clients
Pro Bono CommitteeMegan Reilly-Dreas
Niya Fonville
By Megan Reilly-Dreas and Niya Fonville
It’s no secret that the ability to form a trusting relationship with clients is one of the most important skills a lawyer can have. As a rule, “when a client’s capacity to make adequately considered decisions in connection with a representation is diminished because of minority . . . the lawyer shall as far as reasonably possible, maintain a normal client-lawyer relationship with the client.”[1] However, additional considerations should be made when the client is a minor child.
Read more
Case Law Update: AOC 50C Order
Family Law SectionDiPrima v. Vann, COA20-545, Court of Appeals of North Carolina, May 18, 2021
A sixteen-year-old plaintiff sought a 50C order against a seventeen-year-old defendant after the defendant intimidated and harassed her by following and touching her without her consent, threatening to kill or harm her if she stopped being his friend, threatening to shoot up their school, telling her he wanted to kill and torture two teachers, cutting himself in class in front of her, telling her he wanted to fight her parents, and telling her that he had researched how to make bombs and shoot up the school.
Read more
MIP’s Diverse Perspectives: LaToya Powell
Minorities In the ProfessionMIP’s Diverse Perspectives is a blog feature to spotlight a member from North Carolina’s community of diverse attorneys and legal professionals. Members have the opportunity to share a personal perspective through a brief set of interview questions.
This month’s perspective is courtesy of LaToya Powell, Assistant Legal Counsel, North Carolina Administrative Office of the Courts, Raleigh.
What law school did you attend and what was your graduation year?
The University of North Carolina School of Law, 2005. Read more
Checking In: June 15, 2021
Checking InCompiled by Jessica Junqueira
Payne Joins Bradley Arant Boult Cummings
New Firm, Harkey Litigation, Opens in Winston-Salem
Alexandria Tuttle Joins The Law Offices of James Scott Farrin
Read more
2021 Distinguished Paralegal Award Winner: Alicia Mitchell-Mercer
Paralegal DivisionAlicia Mitchell-Mercer
Alicia Mitchell-Mercer has been selected to receive the 2021 Distinguished Paralegal Award. The award will be presented at the 2021 NCBA Annual Meeting, which will take place virtually on Thursday and Friday, June 17-18. Mitchell-Mercer will be honored during the Awards & Recognitions Presentation on Thursday, June 17, at 5 p.m.
Mitchell-Mercer received a B.S. in Paralegal Studies from Charter Oak State College and an M.S. in Project Management from Missouri State University. She has earned paralegal certifications from NALA (ACP), NFPA (RP), the South Carolina Bar (SCCP), and the North Carolina State Bar (NCCP).
She holds advanced paralegal certifications in trial practice, contracts administration, e-discovery, and business organizations: incorporated entities from NALA. She is certified by the International Institute of Legal Project Management (IILPM) as a Legal Project Practitioner and by the Scrum Alliance as a Certified ScrumMaster.
Mitchell-Mercer works in Charlotte as a legal project manager and paralegal at Brown & Associates, PLLC and as a legal project manager consultant at Lex Project Management Consulting Group using traditional and Agile methodologies. She is a securities arbitrator with the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA).
Mitchell-Mercer is very involved in the legal community. She focuses her efforts on causes that advance the proper utilization of paralegals, access to justice, and that support the well-being of children.
She serves as the Communications Chair for the NCBA Paralegal Division, a role she has held for three years. She is the Chair of the division’s Technology Committee and the Publications Committee. She previously served as a member of the Paralegal Division Council (2015) and a participant in the Internet and Regulations Task Force (2016).
Mitchell-Mercer is currently serving on NALA’s Continuing Education Council which is charged with planning conference education sessions; developing, coordinating, and facilitating continuing education programs and certification review courses; and producing Facts & Findings magazine.
She is a Guardian ad Litem for abused and neglected children in the 26th Judicial District and was recently appointed to the North Carolina State Bar’s Subcommittee Studying Regulatory Change.
Mitchell-Mercer teaches CLEs and contributes to legal publications on the topic of legal project management and lives in Charlotte with her husband and son. She enjoys reading, traveling abroad, and time spent by the ocean. She also volunteers with Autism Speaks, Compassion International, and Central Church of God in Charlotte.
Previous recipients of the Distinguished Service Award were (2008) Teresa L. Bowling, (2010) Virginia M. Burrows, (2011) Phyllis M. Hines, (2012) Stephanie C. Crosby, (2013) Kaye H. Summers, (2014) Sarah Hall Kaufman, (2015) Yolanda N. Smith, (2016) Wanda Pitts Nicholson, (2017) Alicia Lewis of Raleigh, (2018) Sarah L. White and (2019) Lakisha Chichester.