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Supreme Court Seal
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.
Tuesday, April 30, 2013
Supreme Court Courtroom
 09:30 a.m. (Time Limits: 10-10-5)  
2011-194506   The State, Respondent, v. Paris Avery, Petitioner.

Appellate Defender David Alexander, of South Carolina Commission on Indigent Defense, of Columbia, for Petitioner. Attorney General Alan Wilson, Chief Deputy Attorney General John W. McIntosh, Assistant Deputy Attorney General Salley W. Elliott and Assistant Attorney General Mark R. Farthing, all of Columbia, and Solicitor Isaac McDuffie Stone, III, of Bluffton, for Respondent.

The Court granted certiorari to review the court of appeals' opinion affirming the circuit court's denial of Petitioner's motion for directed verdict on her charge of homicide by child abuse.

 10:00 a.m. (Time Limits: 15-15-5)  
2011-202168   Hard Hat Workforce Solutions, LLC, Appellant, v. Mechanical HVAC Services, Inc., Great American Insurance Company, and Liberty Mutual Insurance Company, Defendants, Of Whom Great American Insurance Company is the, Respondent.

Henry Pickett Wall, of Bruner Powell Wall & Mullins, LLC, of Columbia, for Appellant. Charles Harry McDonald, of Robinson McFadden & Moore, PC of Columbia, for Respondent.

This case has been certified for the Court's review pursuant to Rule 204(b), SCACR. Appellant's challenged the circuit court's grant of summary judgment in favor of Respondents.

 10:30 a.m. (Time Limits: 10-10-5)  
2012-207526   Action Concrete Contractors, Inc., Respondent, v. Elvira Chappelear, Craig Chappelear, Premier Southern Homes, LLC, Henry G. Beal, Jr. and First Citizens Bank and Trust Co., Inc., Defendants, Of whom Elvira Chappelear and Craig Chappelear are, Appellants.

Joshua Allan Bennett and Franklin H. Turner, III, both of Rogers Townsend & Thomas, PC, of Columbia, for Appellants. John T. Crawford, Jr. and F. Lee Prickett, III, both of Kenison Dudley & Crawford, LLC, of Greenville, for Respondent.

The homeowners appeal an order granting summary judgment to a subcontractor who perfected a mechanic's lien despite the homeowners' assertion of a payment defense.

Wednesday, May 1, 2013
Supreme Court Courtroom
 09:30 a.m. (Time Limits: 15-15-5)  
2012-213234   Thalma Barton, Appellant, v. South Carolina Department of Probation Parole and Pardon Services, Respondent.

Travis Dayhuff and Gary Lee Capps, both of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP, of Columbia, for Appellant. Matthew C. Buchanan, of Columbia, for Respondent.

Appellant challenges the Administrative Law Court's order affirming the South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole, and Pardon Services' decision denying Appellant parole.

 10:00 a.m. (Time Limits: 15-15-5)  
2011-201949   Kriti Ripley, LLC and Ashley River Properties Two, LLC, Appellants, v. Emerald Investments, LLC and Stuart Longman, Respondents.

William C. Cleveland, of Womble Carlyle Sandridge & Rice, LLP, of Charleston, for Appellants. Richard S. Rosen, Daniel Francis Blanchard, III and James Atkinson Bruorton, IV, all of Rosen Rosen & Hagood, LLC, of Charleston, for Respondents.

A judgment creditor brought suit to collect on a foreign judgment and moved to foreclose the judgment lien through foreclosure on the judgment debtor's interest in a limited liability company. The judgment creditor appeals the denial of the motion.

 10:30 a.m. (Time Limits: 10-10-5)  
2011-200626   Health Promotion Specialists, LLC, and Palmetto Dental Care, LLC, Plaintiffs, of Which Health Promotion Specialists,LLC, is Appellant, v. South Carolina Board of Dentistry, Respondent.

Desa Allen Ballard and Stephanie Nicole Weissenstein, both of Ballard Watson Weissenstein, of West Columbia, for Appellants. Andrew F. Lindemann, William H. Davidson, II, and Kenneth P. Woodington, all of Davidson & Lindemann, PA, of Columbia, for Respondent.

Health Promotion Specialists, LLC (Appellant), an employer of dental hygienists who work in public health settings, brought suit against the South Carolina Board of Dentistry (Respondent) based on Respondent's enactment and enforcement of an emergency regulation addressing the authorization required for certain procedures performed by dental hygienists in school settings. Appellant appeals the circuit court's order granting summary judgment to Respondent. Appellant primarily contends the circuit court erred in: (1) concluding Respondent is immune from suit under the South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act, and (2) denying Appellant's motion to amend the Complaint.

Thursday, May 2, 2013
Supreme Court Courtroom
 09:30 a.m. (Time Limits: 20-20-10)  
2012-210888   Ex Parte: TLC Laser Eye Centers (Piedmont/Atlanta), LLC; TLC The Laser Center (Institute), Inc., Appellants, In Re: John Hollman, Respondent, v. Dr. Jonathan Woolfson, individually; Dr. Michael A. Campbell, individually; Optical Solutions, Inc.; and Optical Solutions of Bluffton, LLC, Defendants, and Danielle Hollman, Respondent, v. Dr. Jonathan Woolfson, individually; Dr. Michael A. Campbell, individually; Optical Solutions, Inc.; and Optical Solutions of Bluffton, LLC, Defendants.

Steven Edward Buckingham and W. Howard Boyd, both of Gallivan, White & Boyd, PA, of Greenville, for Appellant. Stephen R.H. Lewis and Douglas F. Patrick, both of Covington Patrick Hagins Stern & Lewis, P.A., of Greenville, for Respondents.

Appellants seek reversal of an order denying their motion to compel respondent's counsel to prepare an order denying appellants' motion for reconsideration as directed by the trial court, to compel observance of a protective order, and for sanctions. Appellants further ask this Court to reach the merits in order to interpret the terms of the protective order.

 10:00 a.m. (Time Limits: 10-10-5)  
2011-194606   The State, Respondent, v. James C. Miller, Petitioner.

Appellate Defender David Alexander, of South Carolina Commission on Indigent Defense, of Columbia, for Petitioner. Tommy Evans, Jr., of South Carolina Department of Probation, Parole and Pardon Services, of Columbia, for Respondent.

Appellant contends the Court of Appeals erred in holding the circuit court properly tolled the date of his probation until his release from civil commitment as a sexually violent predator.

 10:30 a.m. (Time Limits: 15-15-5)  
2011-193846   Thomas M. Carter, Debra Carter, and Christopher Michael Carter, Respondents, v. The Standard Fire Insurance Company and Frank L. Siau Agency, Inc., Defendants, of whom The Standard Fire Insurance Company is the, Petitioner.

William Pearce Davis, of Baker Ravenel & Bender, LLP, of Columbia, for Petitioner. Robert Norris Hill, of Law Offices of Robert Hill, of Newberry and William P. Hatfield, of The Hyman Law Firm, LLP, of Florence, for Respondents.

Petitioner contends the court of appeals erred in reversing the circuit court's grant of summary judgment in favor of Petitioner pursuant to section 38-77-160 of the South Carolina Code because the insurance policy at issue validly excluded the stacking of UIM coverage by a family member of the named insureds.

Tuesday, May 14, 2013
Supreme Court Courtroom
 09:30 a.m. (Time Limits: 15-15-5)  
2011-200466   Darren L. Pollack, Employee, Appellant, v. Southern Wine & Spirits of America, Employer, and Specialty Risk Services, Inc., Carrier, Respondents.

Stephen Benjamin Samuels, of Samuels Law Firm, LLC, of Columbia, for Appellant. Carmelo Barone Sammataro and Cynthia C. Dooley, both of Turner Padget Graham & Laney, PA, of Columbia, for Respondent.

In this direct appeal from a decision of the Workers' Compensation Commission, Darren Pollack argues he is entitled to temporary total disability benefits.

 10:00 a.m. (Time Limits: 10-10-5)  
2011-202407   Margaret Stroud and D5 Citizens Ensuring the Implementation of the Referendum, Inc., Respondents, v. Kim Murphy, Appellant.

Robert Guild, of Columbia, Katie Renee Parham, of The Parham Law Firm, of Irmo and Jerry Jay Bender, of Baker Ravenel & Bender, LLP, of Columbia, for Appellant. Todd Raymond Ellis, of Law Office of Todd Ellis, P.A., of Irmo, for Respondent. Kenneth L. Childs, John Marshall Reagle and Tyler Ryan Turner, all of Childs & Halligan, PA, of Columbia, for Amicus Curiae, Richland/Lexington School District Five. Scott Thomas Price, of Columbia, for Amicus Curiae, South Carolina School Boards Association.

Kim Murphy appeals the circuit court's order denying her motion to dismiss Respondents' claim for abuse of process and enjoining her from filing any further appeals challenging permitting approvals for various construction projects authorized by the District 5 School Board.

 10:30 a.m. (Time Limits: 15-15-5)  
2011-204246   Sue Taylor Colson Widenhouse, Respondent, v. Tammy Batson Colson, Appellant.

David D. Armstrong, of Armstrong Law Firm, of Greenville, for Appellant. Matthew D. Lincoln and Scott Michael Tyler, both of Moore & Van Allen, PLLC, of Charlotte, North Carolina, for Respondent.

Appellant challenges the circuit court's order granting Respondent's motion to enforce a foreign judgment on the basis that the foreign judgment in an action for alienation of affection and criminal conversation violates South Carolina public policy.

Wednesday, May 15, 2013
Supreme Court Courtroom
 09:30 a.m. (Time Limits: 15-15-5)  
2011-198266   The State, Respondent, v. William Mark Brockmeyer, Appellant.

Chief Appellate Defender Robert Michael Dudek, of South Carolina Commission on Indigent Defense and Allen Mattison Bogan and Miles Edward Coleman, both of Nelson Mullins Riley & Scarborough, LLP, of Columbia, for Appellant. Attorney General Alan McCrory Wilson, Chief Deputy Attorney General John W. McIntosh and Senior Assistant Deputy Attorney General Donald J. Zelenka, all of Columbia, and Solicitor Donald V. Myers, of Lexington, for Respondent.

William Mark Brockmeyer appeals his convictions and sentences for murder and the possession of a weapon during the commission of a violent crime, arguing the trial court erred in denying his motion to enforce a subpoena, permitting the State to establish a chain of custody by means other than live testimony of the parties handling the evidence, and admitting certain photographs and testimony.

 10:00 a.m. (Time Limits: 15-15-5)  
2012-206390   Francina A. Bardsley, as Personal Representative of the Estate of Frederic William Bardsley, III, Respondent, v. Government Employees Insurance Company and State Farm Fire & Casualty Insurance Company, Defendants, Of whom Government Employees Insurance Company is the Appellant.

David L. Moore, Jr., of Nexsen Pruet, LLC, of Greenville, for Appellant. Carroll H. Roe, Jr., William A. Coates and Joseph Owen Smith, all of Roe Cassidy Coates & Price, PA, of Greenville, for Respondent.

An automobile crashed into a home owned by a husband and wife, killing the husband and damaging their home. After collecting the policy limits from the insurance policies on the automobile, Respondents, the wife and the estate of her deceased husband, collected property damage proceeds from their homeowner's policy and sought to collect underinsured property damage proceeds from their automobile insurance policy. Appellant, their automobile policy insurer, denied coverage, and Respondents filed suit. Both parties moved for summary judgment and the circuit court granted summary judgment for Respondents finding the policy ambiguous and subject to the collateral source rule. Appellant appeals from the grant of summary judgment.

 

Cases to be Submitted Without Oral Argument

Lavona Hill, Appellee, v. Bert Bell/Pete Rozelle NFL Player Retirement Plan; Retirement Board of the Bert Bell NFL Player Retirement Plan, Defendant, v. Barbara H. Sullivan, Appellant.

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In the Matter of Christopher John Van Son, Respondent.

Disciplinary Counsel Lesley M. Coggiola and Deputy Disciplinary Counsel Barbara Marie Seymour, of Columbia, for the Office of Disciplinary Counsel Office of Disciplinary Counsel. Christopher John Van Son, of California, pro se Respondent.