{
  "id": 8555997,
  "name": "LEE W. ASHE v. AKERS MOTOR LINES, INC., and DUNCAN E. MACKENZIE, TRUSTEE",
  "name_abbreviation": "Ashe v. Akers Motor Lines, Inc.",
  "decision_date": "1975-05-07",
  "docket_number": "No. 7527SC39",
  "first_page": "657",
  "last_page": "658",
  "citations": [
    {
      "type": "official",
      "cite": "25 N.C. App. 657"
    }
  ],
  "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": {
    "cardinality": 194,
    "char_count": 3288,
    "ocr_confidence": 0.599,
    "pagerank": {
      "raw": 2.0446031217563963e-07,
      "percentile": 0.7531205487269721
    },
    "sha256": "9bf22415845e539582a206b8d5e5d5c0b3e487025ee4b7be5a1fc6299109bd74",
    "simhash": "1:b4e877a0cce3df9d",
    "word_count": 519
  },
  "last_updated": "2023-07-14T15:30:12.075015+00:00",
  "provenance": {
    "date_added": "2019-08-29",
    "source": "Harvard",
    "batch": "2018"
  },
  "casebody": {
    "judges": [
      "Judges Parker and Hedrick concur."
    ],
    "parties": [
      "LEE W. ASHE v. AKERS MOTOR LINES, INC., and DUNCAN E. MACKENZIE, TRUSTEE"
    ],
    "opinions": [
      {
        "text": "CLARK, Judge.\nThe plaintiff, for 23 years prior to 31 December 1973, was an employee of Akers Motor Lines, Inc., (hereinafter Akers). Akers in prior years had set up the Akers Motor Lines, Inc., Retirement Trust which is a noncontributory profit sharing trust for its employees. Under the terms thereof and because of his retirement from Akers, plaintiff became entitled to receive benefits thereunder.\nOn 31 December 1973, plaintiff submitted two letters of resignation to Akers, one to his supervisor and the other to the trustee in charge of the Retirement Trust. Both letters were dated 31 December and specifically referred to his resignation as \u201ceffective\u201d that date.\nRetirement benefits under the plan are determined pursuant to the terms of the trust agreement which provide that the amount of employees\u2019 benefits are to be determined on the \u201celigibility date\u201d of each year, a term defined as \u201c . . . December 31, 1952 and each succeeding anniversary thereof.\u201d For any one participating employee in the plan who withdraws voluntarily, the terms of the trust provide that he will be deemed participating for purposes of determining his retirement benefits \u201c ... only through the eligibility date next preceding or coincident with his date of withdrawal.\u201d (Emphasis added.)\nThe trustees of the Retirement Trust ruled that the eligibility date for computing his benefits under the trust was 31 December 1973, and that his share amounted to the sum of $9,683.48. The plaintiff instituted this action alleging that the applicable eligibility date was 31 December 1972, and that his share amounted to the sum of $14,178.00. The judgment of the trial court upheld the ruling of the trustees, and plaintiff appealed.\nPresumably, the value of the trust securities had decreased during the year of 1973 because of depressed market conditions. Plaintiff elected to date and present his letters of withdrawal on 31 December 1973, and it is obvious he must be \u201cdeemed participating for purposes of determining his retirement benefits\u201d on the date of 31 December 1973, which is \u201ccoincident with his date of withdrawal.\u201d Plaintiff does not contend that his withdrawal on that date was involuntary or that he was in any way misled by his employers or the trustees of the Retirement Fund.\nAffirmed.\nJudges Parker and Hedrick concur.",
        "type": "majority",
        "author": "CLARK, Judge."
      }
    ],
    "attorneys": [
      "Basil L. Whitener and Anne M. Lamm for the plaintiff.",
      "Hollowell, Stott & Hollowell by L. B. Hollowell, Jr., for the defendants."
    ],
    "corrections": "",
    "head_matter": "LEE W. ASHE v. AKERS MOTOR LINES, INC., and DUNCAN E. MACKENZIE, TRUSTEE\nNo. 7527SC39\n(Filed 7 May 1975)\nPensions \u2014 date of resignation \u2014 determination of retirement benefits\nThe eligibility date for computing plaintiff\u2019s benefits under a noncontributory profit sharing trust for defendant\u2019s employees was 31 December 1973, the date plaintiff submitted letters of resignation to defendant and on which date the resignation was made effective, since the terms of the trust provided that an employee would be deemed participating for the purposes of determining his retirement benefits \u201c. . . only through the eligibility date next preceding or coincident with his date of withdrawal.\u201d\nAppeal by plaintiff from Hasty, Judge. Judgment entered 30 December 1974 in Superior Court, Gaston County. Heard in the Court of Appeals 13 March 1975.\nBasil L. Whitener and Anne M. Lamm for the plaintiff.\nHollowell, Stott & Hollowell by L. B. Hollowell, Jr., for the defendants."
  },
  "file_name": "0657-01",
  "first_page_order": 685,
  "last_page_order": 686
}