Faucette v. 6303 Carmel Road, LLC

775 S.E.2d 316, 242 N.C. App. 267, 2015 N.C. App. LEXIS 629
CourtCourt of Appeals of North Carolina
DecidedJuly 21, 2015
DocketNo. COA14–1248.
StatusPublished
Cited by17 cases

This text of 775 S.E.2d 316 (Faucette v. 6303 Carmel Road, LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering Court of Appeals of North Carolina primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Faucette v. 6303 Carmel Road, LLC, 775 S.E.2d 316, 242 N.C. App. 267, 2015 N.C. App. LEXIS 629 (N.C. Ct. App. 2015).

Opinion

DIETZ, Judge.

*268This appeal is the culmination of a long-running dispute over $5,000. Plaintiff Christopher A. Faucette is a dentist who owns a commercial condominium. Defendant 6303 Carmel Road, LLC owns several adjacent condominium units. Defendant Bradley Winer is the member-manager of the Defendant LLC and also the president of the 6303 Carmel Road Condominium Association.

In December of 2010, a pipe burst above one of Defendants' units that shares a common interior wall with Faucette's unit. The resulting flood caused extensive damage to both units. Faucette recovered from his own insurance policy, but had to pay a $5,000 deductible. Defendants *269made a claim on the condominium association's insurance policy and received a large settlement that included $5,000 to reimburse Faucette for his deductible.

Instead of releasing those funds to Faucette, Defendants kept the money for leverage in an ongoing dispute with Faucette over payment of condominium association dues. What followed was a series of demand letters, threats of lawsuits, and ultimately a bench trial for conversion and unfair and deceptive trade practices. The trial court entered judgment in favor of Faucette for $5,000, trebled the award to $15,000, and awarded $27,000 in attorneys' fees.

On appeal, Defendants argue that one superior court judge improperly overruled another *320in the interpretation of a summary judgment order, that the trial court improperly excluded evidence at the bench trial, and that Faucette failed to prove his unfair and deceptive trade practices claim or show his entitlement to attorneys' fees.

For the reasons discussed below, we reject Defendants' arguments. The trial court's interpretation of the summary judgment order was permissible, any error in the exclusion of the challenged evidence was harmless, and the trial court's findings and conclusions on the Chapter 75 claim and corresponding attorneys' fees award are supported by competent evidence. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

Facts and Procedural Background

Plaintiff Christopher A. Faucette owns Unit 102 in a commercial condominium building located at 6303 Carmel Road in Charlotte, North Carolina, where he has operated a dental practice for nearly twenty years. Defendant 6303 Carmel Road, LLC, owns four condominium units in the same building, including Unit 103, which is adjacent to and shares an interior wall with Faucette's unit. Defendant Bradley Winer is a member-manager of Defendant LLC.

Defendant Winer is also the president of 6303 Carmel Road Condominium Association, Inc., the entity that manages the condominium complex. The North Carolina Secretary of State administratively dissolved the condominium association on 30 October 2006 for failure to pay taxes, and it remained dissolved at the time of trial. Defendant Winer is the sole signatory on the condominium association's bank account, and the statements for that account are mailed to Winer's personal residence. The condominium association was never a party to this litigation.

On 15 December 2010, a pipe burst above Defendants' Unit 103, causing a flood that damaged both Unit 103 and Faucette's Unit 102. Faucette *270maintains an insurance policy on his unit through State Farm, and he submitted a claim on this policy for extensive damage resulting from the flood. State Farm reimbursed Faucette for the cost of repairs, issuing a check for the amount owed reduced by Faucette's $5,000 deductible.

After the flood, Defendants similarly submitted a claim to the condominium association's insurance company, which issued a $21,000 settlement check to Defendants in late January 2011. The check included $5,000 to reimburse Faucette for his deductible. Defendants refused to turn this money over to Faucette, however, despite Faucette's written demand that Defendants do so. Instead, citing an ongoing dispute with Faucette over payment of condominium association dues, Defendants held the funds, placed them in the condominium association's bank account, and later gave them to Defendants' attorney to deposit in the law firm's trust account.

On 31 January 2011, Faucette, through counsel, wrote Defendant Winer a letter demanding payment of $10,626. State Farm also sent Winer a letter notifying Defendants of its subrogation rights and demanding payment of the $5,000 owed to its insured. Defendant Winer issued a written response to these letters, through his attorney, on 15 March 2011, offering to settle the dispute. In the settlement offer, Winer proposed to direct the condominium association to pay Faucette $5,165 in exchange for a release of all potential claims against Defendant Winer and the condominium association. Faucette did not accept the terms of this offer.

Defendant Winer testified at deposition that Defendants refused to return Faucette's $5,000 deductible in part because of an ongoing disagreement with Faucette over unpaid condominium association dues. Defendant Winter testified that he understood the money belonged to Faucette but refused to return it:

Q. All right. And you did that intentionally because you were basically pissed off at Dr. Faucette?
A. Yes.
Q. But you understand that's his money?
A. Uh-huh. Yes.
Q. And he has asked for it back?
A. Yes.
Q. And you haven't given it to him?
A. No. That means no. Sorry.

*321*271Faucette and his wife filed a complaint against Defendants on 16 December 2011, and the parties attended a mediated settlement conference as required by court order. Mediation failed, and Plaintiffs later voluntarily dismissed the action, without prejudice, on 25 September 2012. Faucette, his wife, their minor children, and Faucette's dental practice subsequently commenced this lawsuit against Defendants on 7 December 2012, asserting claims for negligence, trespass, conversion, unfair and deceptive trade practices, piercing the corporate veil/alter ego, and punitive damages. All of the claims stemmed from the flood and Defendants' refusal to pay the $5,000 for Faucette's deductible.

In response to the September 2012 lawsuit, Defendants immediately contacted Faucette's attorney regarding a possible settlement, but no negotiations followed. On 15 January 2013, Defendants moved to dismiss the negligence and trespass claims asserted by all of the plaintiffs other than Faucette. Defendants also moved to dismiss the unfair and deceptive trade practices claim in its entirety. The trial court decided Defendants' motion by order entered 3 March 2013, accepting a stipulation that only Faucette and the dental practice were asserting the trespass claim and denying the remainder of Defendants' motion.

Defendants moved for partial summary judgment on 12 March 2013.

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Cite This Page — Counsel Stack

Bluebook (online)
775 S.E.2d 316, 242 N.C. App. 267, 2015 N.C. App. LEXIS 629, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/faucette-v-6303-carmel-road-llc-ncctapp-2015.