If you have found yourself responsible for administering an estate, you will undoubtedly have many questions. Acting as the executor of a will is a great responsibility that should not be taken lightly. Executors are held to a high standard of fiduciary duty and can be held personally liable if they do not uphold the integrity of an estate.  As executor, your responsibilities include: Managing the estate assets. Read More

Introduction Whether you are buying, selling, or refinancing real estate, an attorney is a required part of the process in North Carolina. You may have received a referral for an attorney from your real estate agent, lender, or even a friend. Perhaps you have reached out to an attorney that you have worked with before. No matter how you have chosen your attorney, most likely the first person you will talk to within Read More

A new Court of Appeals ruling allows LGBTQ North Carolinians to get domestic violence protections under state law.   The Court of Appeals issued an opinion on December 31, 2020 in M.E. v. T.J., a domestic  violence case from Wake County. The trial court denied Plaintiff's request for a DVPO because  she and defendant were a same-sex couple in a dating relationship. The trial court found that Read More

In the Fall of 2020, the Supreme Court is scheduled to hear oral arguments in a case involving faith-based adoption agencies and same-sex couples. This Fall, the Supreme Court will review the case of Fulton v. City of Philadelphia. The case centers on a taxpayer-funded religious foster care agency that refused to license same-sex couples to be foster parents based on the agencies’ religious beliefs in Read More

Adoption is the social, emotional, and legal process in which children become full and permanent legal members of another family.  Adoption may be an option for stepparents, relatives, or same-sex couples who want to create a more unified family unit. Adoption law in North Carolina is complex and can be found in Chapter 48 of the North Carolina General Statutes. Each adoption situation has unique circumstances, but Read More

The Supreme Court hears a large variety of cases. The purpose of this court is to serve as a “checks and balance” system for Congress, the President, and the states to make sure that when laws are passed they do not violate the United States Constitution, including all of its Amendments (the first 10 of which make up the Bill of Rights). The interpretation of these words and former cases (a process known as stare Read More

Where do Surplus Funds come from? Regardless of who owns a piece of real property, or land, the taxes, homeowner’s association dues, and mortgage must be paid. If these are not paid, the lender can foreclose on the land and any home on the property.  The goal of the foreclosure is to recover the money owed to the lender due to back taxes, overdue homeowner’s association dues, or the unpaid mortgage, as well Read More

One of the most frequent questions people want to know about divorce is: “When is it okay to start dating again?” What does it mean to be legally separated in North Carolina? First, in North Carolina, a legal separation means that both parties are physically separated from one another and are no longer living in the same residence, with at least one party having the intent to divorce. You must be physically Read More

Selling or Buying property can cause a person to yell, “What the Heck!” or some other colorful language to describe their stress and confusion. At Stott, Hollowell, Windham & Stancil, PLLC we know that the sale or purchase of a home can be hectic at the best of times.  Below are 10 “What the Hecks” we commonly hear from our clients during the selling/buying process. Read More

As a general rule, lawyers are not people that the average person wants to see on a regular basis. Personally, I cannot imagine why people would not want to hang out with someone who analyzes every word, answers every question with “it depends,” or talks about the consequences of every text message, Facebook post, the difference between “may” and “shall,” and of course, death. That being said, I am never surprised Read More