Consider the following scenario: Seller claims $100.00 is due for goods provided.  Buyer claims that only $75.00 is owed.  Buyer then mails a check to Seller for $80.00, marked “paid in full”.  What are the consequences if the Seller deposits…

As part of the continuing series of articles identifying important construction contract clauses, perhaps the most impactful clause in a contract can be the standard termination for convenience clause. Imagine this scenario: your firm expended time and material in bidding…

My first job out of law school was situated two blocks from the White House, working in a cubicle for the Internal Revenue Service.  I worked as a tax lawyer in the Exempt Organizations Group and reviewed organizations for a…

So, a Sheriff returns a Writ of Execution and reports that no assets were found by which the judgment could be satisfied.  To many creditors, that is the point where they give up, write off the debt and assume that…

By:  Chad J. Cochran   Non-compete agreements can have huge ramifications.  Sometimes, they serve to protect a company’s vital clients.  At other times, they prohibit an employee from finding gainful employment to support his family.  As a result, judges generally…

Have you ever heard of the Servicemembers Civil Relief Act (SCRA)?  If not, you will as it appears it has reared its head in the court system, again.  The basic premise of the SCRA is to prevent those in the…

Generally speaking, secured lending is defined as a loan or extension of credit in which the borrower pledges an asset as collateral for the loan. A secured loan or transaction generally involves a two document system: an acknowledgment of the…

The Federal Reserve administers a key economic indicator, the federal-funds rate.  Banks use the federal-funds rate to conduct overnight transactions which trade account balances maintained at the Federal Reserve.  When the Fed raises this key rate, personal and business loan…

Every now and then the listserv for the North Carolina Bar Association’s Bankruptcy Section lights up with a discussion which is of interest to creditors. One such discussion occurred recently regarding the duty of a creditor to report payments to…

By:  Chad J. Cochran Yesterday at lunch, a woman ahead of me in line asked to pay for her sandwich with a check.  The deli worker looked a bit startled and then replied, “I’ve been working here three months and…

“The health of a democratic society may be measured by the quality of functions performed by private citizens” – Alexis de Tocqueville, Democracy in America, 1835. In August of 2013, Governor McCrory signed into law House Bill 857 (codified as…

During the economic downturn in 2008-10, contractors on North Carolina public projects suffered significant losses due to the double payment risks in the then existing Little Miller Act.  Taking their concerns to the legislature and working closely with other groups…

If you are like most folks this time of year, you have already seen more television ads, heard more on the radio, and had more robo-calls than you can stomach – and the primary election has only just come and…

All too often, desires to “get the deal done” or “get it signed” or “get it built” result in poor contractual administration and eventual (often avoidable) problems.  That is somewhat understandable, given the fact that most contractual arrangements begin with…