Supreme Court to hold argument docket at WVU College of Law,
decide moot court competition

MORGANTOWN, W.Va. – The Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia will hear arguments in four cases and judge the annual George C. Baker Cup moot court competition on Tuesday, March 10, at the West Virginia University College of Law in Morgantown.

The justices will hear arguments from 10 a.m. to noon in the Marlyn E. Lugar Courtroom at the College of Law. They will judge the moot court competition beginning at 1:30 p.m. at the same location. Both events are open to the public.

This will be the Court’s nineteenth visit to the College of Law. Justices Robin Jean Davis, Margaret Workman, Menis Ketchum, and Senior Status Justice Thomas McHugh are graduates of the College of Law. Chief Justice Brent Benjamin has undergraduate and law degrees from The Ohio State University.

The cases the Court will hear are

Sue J. Erps and William G. Erps v. West Virginia Human Rights Commission, et al.  

Sue J. Erps and William G. Erps, doing business as Improvements Unlimited, appeal a Human Rights Commission order, which affirmed the decision of a commission administrative law judge. The judge concluded that Improvements Unlimited had subjected Victor T. Peoples to a hostile work environment, racial discrimination, retaliatory discharge and retaliation for filing this complaint. Improvements Unlimited appeals issues of liability and damages.

Russell Stuyvesant, Administrator v. the Preston County Commission. Russell Stuyvesant, as administrator of the estate of Timothy Daft, appeals the circuit court’s order dismissing his wrongful death and negligence action based upon the statute of limitations. He asserts application of the discovery rule. 

State of West Virginia v. Michael S. Hutzler. Defendant appeals following his guilty plea to felony destruction of property, having reserved the right to appeal two issues related to the circuit court’s denial of his motion to dismiss. Defendant raises issues related to venue, jurisdiction and the destruction of evidence. Defendant seeks a reversal of the circuit court’s decision and a dismissal of the indictment.

Dan’s Carworld, LLC v. David Serian. Defendant/counterclaim plaintiff David Serian appeals the circuit court’s order granting summary judgment in favor of plaintiff/counterclaim defendant Dan’s Carworld, doing business as Dan Cava’s Toyota World. Serian asserts, among other things, that the court incorrectly ruled that the West Virginia Consumer Credit and Protection Act does not apply to this case involving an auto loan payoff figure used in documents for the purchase of a new vehicle.