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PATRICK KELLY, DANIEL MERLIN and MICHAEL WILSON succeed in their appeal to the North Carolina Court of Appeals

Metcalf v. Black Dog Realty, LLC involved the interpretation of two deeds conveying the same property from a patriarch of Asheville, George Willis Pack, to the City of Asheville in 1901. Over 100 years after Mr. Pack conveyed the property to Asheville, the city sold .2 acres of it to a private party to generate funds and to continue the improvement plan for the heart of the town. Alleged heirs of Mr. Pack challenged the sale and prevailed on summary judgment at the trial court level. The firm’s client, the purchaser of the property, appealed the judgment to the North Carolina Court of Appeals. The Court of Appeals found that the city had owned the property outright and therefore could do with it what it chose, including sell it. Consequently, the Court of Appeals reversed the trial court’s judgment in favor of the plaintiffs and instructed it to grant summary judgment in favor of the purchaser, Black Dog Realty, LLC.

The Court of Appeals opinion is reported at 684 S.E.2d 709 and can be downloaded here.

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