{
  "id": 8527783,
  "name": "WILLIAM R. COLE v. NELL COLE GRAVES, Individually and as the Surviving Partner of Cole Pottery Company (also known as J. B. Cole Pottery), a Partnership",
  "name_abbreviation": "Cole v. Graves",
  "decision_date": "1991-01-15",
  "docket_number": "No. 9010SC590",
  "first_page": "396",
  "last_page": "399",
  "citations": [
    {
      "type": "official",
      "cite": "101 N.C. App. 396"
    }
  ],
  "court": {
    "name_abbreviation": "N.C. Ct. App.",
    "id": 14983,
    "name": "North Carolina Court of Appeals"
  },
  "jurisdiction": {
    "id": 5,
    "name_long": "North Carolina",
    "name": "N.C."
  },
  "cites_to": [],
  "analysis": {
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    "ocr_confidence": 0.776,
    "pagerank": {
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    "sha256": "71cd367e81631a420fb7cab4a3384b5532c5f9e428a843b1dc6144a1ed3ca9e4",
    "simhash": "1:73aeada4e534b6f7",
    "word_count": 1013
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  "last_updated": "2023-07-14T19:54:53.681770+00:00",
  "provenance": {
    "date_added": "2019-08-29",
    "source": "Harvard",
    "batch": "2018"
  },
  "casebody": {
    "judges": [
      "Judges WELLS and ORR concur."
    ],
    "parties": [
      "WILLIAM R. COLE v. NELL COLE GRAVES, Individually and as the Surviving Partner of Cole Pottery Company (also known as J. B. Cole Pottery), a Partnership"
    ],
    "opinions": [
      {
        "text": "HEDRICK, Chief Judge.\nThe only question presented on this appeal is whether the trial judge was correct in concluding that the partnership between plaintiffs father, Waymon H. Cole, and defendant dissolved upon the former\u2019s death and that \u201cITEM IV\u201d of his will \u201cconstitute[s] a settlement of and disposition of his partnership interest in a manner other than required by the partnership act.\u201d\nG.S. 59-61(4) of the Uniform Partnership Act provides that a partnership is dissolved \u201c[b]y the death of any partner, unless the partnership agreement provides otherwise.\u201d G.S. 59-84 of the Act further provides:\nWhen the original articles of partnership in force at the death of any partner or the will of a deceased partner make provision for the settlement of the deceased partner\u2019s interest in the partnership, and for a disposition thereof different from that provided for in this Chapter, the interest of such deceased partner shall be settled and disposed of in accordance with the provisions of such articles of partnership or of such will.\nIn the present case, there was no written partnership agreement. Therefore, the trial judge was correct in concluding that the partnership between Waymon H. Cole and defendant dissolved on the date of the former\u2019s death. Furthermore, since there was no partnership agreement which provided for the settlement of the deceased partner\u2019s interest in the partnership, the trial judge was correct in looking to the will of the deceased partner to determine the disposition of his interest in the partnership.\nWe hold that the plain language of \u201cITEM IV\u201d of the will of Waymon H. Cole settled and disposed of his interest in Cole Pottery Company pursuant to G.S. 59-84. Thus, the trial court did not err in entering summary judgment in favor of defendant. The judgment appealed from will be affirmed.\nAffirmed.\nJudges WELLS and ORR concur.",
        "type": "majority",
        "author": "HEDRICK, Chief Judge."
      }
    ],
    "attorneys": [
      "Moser, Ogbum, Heafner, Schmidly & Wells, by John N. Ogbum, Jr., and Stephen S. Schmidly, for plaintiff, appellant.",
      "O\u2019Briant, O\u2019Briant & Bunch, by Lillian B. O\u2019Briant and Pierre C. Oldham, for defendant, appellee."
    ],
    "corrections": "",
    "head_matter": "WILLIAM R. COLE v. NELL COLE GRAVES, Individually and as the Surviving Partner of Cole Pottery Company (also known as J. B. Cole Pottery), a Partnership\nNo. 9010SC590\n(Filed 15 January 1991)\nPartnership \u00a7 8 (NCI3d)\u2014 death of partner \u2014dissolution of partnership-disposition of partnership interest according to partner\u2019s will\nThe trial court properly concluded that a partnership between plaintiff\u2019s father and defendant dissolved upon the former\u2019s death and that Item IV of plaintiff\u2019s father\u2019s will constituted a settlement and disposition of his partnership interest in a manner other than required by the partnership act. N.C.G.S. \u00a7 59-84.\nAm Jur 2d, Partnership \u00a7\u00a7 1140, 1142, 1150; Wills \u00a7 1534.\nAPPEAL by plaintiff from Allen (StevenI, Judge. Judgment entered 22 March 1990 in Superior Court, RANDOLPH County. Heard in the Court of Appeals 12 December 1990.\nThis is a civil action wherein plaintiff seeks to have the court: (1) require defendant to make a final settlement of all of the partnership assets pursuant to G.S. 59-83 and \u201cpay over to . . . [p]laintiff his share of such assets bequeathed to him by the [w]ill of his father, Waymon H. Cole . . . \u201d; (2) require defendant \u201cto appear . . . and show cause why she should not be required to post a bond . . . pursuant to G.S. 59-74 conditioned upon her faithful performance of her duties in the settlement of the partnership affairs, or in the alternative, why a collector of the partnership should not be appointed pursuant to the provisions of G.S. 59-75 and G.S. 59-83\u201d; (3) direct \u201c[t]hat a determination of the value of the tangible and intangible assets of the . . . partnership as of the date of the death of Waymon H. Cole be made . . . and that the value of the interest of [p]laintiff in said assets be determined and paid over to him\u201d; (4) order defendant to compensate plaintiff for \u201cany and all damages suffered by him\u201d as a result of defendant\u2019s breach of her fiduciary duty and mismanagement; and (5) determine whether or not \u201can improper distribution of the partnership interest of Waymon H. Cole has been made by his estate and, if necessary, to order the reopening of said estate . . . .\u201d\nThe following facts are uncontroverted: Plaintiff\u2019s father, Waymon H. Cole, and defendant were partners in Cole Pottery Company (also known as J. B. Cole Pottery). There was \u201cno written partnership agreement.\u201d Waymon H. Cole died on 1 September 1987, and \u201cITEM IV\u201d of his will, probated 2 October 1987, makes the following bequests to defendant:\nall of the testator\u2019s \u2018interest in all inventory, accounts receivable and work in process in Cole Pottery Company\u2019 and, in addition, bequeaths to her all of the testator\u2019s \u2018interest in all other properties of Cole Pottery Company, including, but not limited to, equipment in the business and any motor vehicles in which I (the testator) am listed as co-owner with Nell C. Graves for and during the term of her life.\u2019\nThe will bequeathed to plaintiff \u201ca vested remainder in my interest in Cole Pottery Company hereinabove devised to Nell C. Graves for her lifetime . . . .\u201d\nDefendant filed a motion for summary judgment, and on 22 March 1990, the trial court entered judgment for defendant on her motion concluding:\n1. That the will of Waymon H. Cole constitute^] a settlement of and disposition of his partnership interest in a manner other than required by the partnership act.\n2. That defendant is entitled to a life estate in the partnership of Waymon Cole.\n3. That until the death of defendant, plaintiff has no right to possess any specific partnership property or to manage any partnership property.\n4. That plaintiff is entitled to an account of the value of the goodwill of the business and a list of the business debts as of the date of dissolution of the partnership on September 1, 1987.\n5. That plaintiff is not entitled to have the partnership wound up, terminated, settled, distributed or valued.\n6. There is no genuine issue as to material fact and defendant is entitled to judgment as a matter of law.\nPlaintiff appealed.\nMoser, Ogbum, Heafner, Schmidly & Wells, by John N. Ogbum, Jr., and Stephen S. Schmidly, for plaintiff, appellant.\nO\u2019Briant, O\u2019Briant & Bunch, by Lillian B. O\u2019Briant and Pierre C. Oldham, for defendant, appellee."
  },
  "file_name": "0396-01",
  "first_page_order": 424,
  "last_page_order": 427
}