CIVIL FILINGS: Lincoln County

May 7
George Toppings vs. Lulie E. Price, Cookie's Bar
PA- C. Joseph Stevens; J- Jay M. Hoke
* Toppings seeks Declaratory Judgment settling possession of real estate in Duval District relative to a March 2005 land contract. Plaintiff says he fully paid the $20,000 purchase amount under contract which provides "Sellers shall remain in exclusive possession of said property during each Sellers natural lifetime." Citing Paragraph 10 of the contract, Toppings says Seller's exclusive possession terminates if occupation of the residence is less than 18 continuous days. He argues that Herbert H. Price is deceased, Defendant vacated the property three years ago, and she "now wrongly maintains ... a life estate in said real estate ..."
Case number: 12-C-53

May 10
Danny Lovejoy as Administrator of Estate of Tommy Allen Lovejoy, Decedent vs. C.W. Enterprises, LLC, d/b/a Woody's Sports Bar
PA- Jon D. Hoover, Scott W. Andrews; J- Jay M. Hoke
* Complaint reviews events of October 2011, when decedent was riding his four-wheeler and went to Woody's with friends. He "consumed several alcoholic beverages, played pool, and gave rides on his four-wheeler to female patrons and employees of Woody's," D. Lovejoy says. An employee took Lovejoy's vehicle keys, says complaint, and had him go to sleep at a table in the rear of the bar. Place closed at 2 a.m., but complaint contends an employee woke Lovejoy near midnight and told him to leave, returning his vehicle keys. On W.Va. 3 in West Hamlin just after midnight, while going west, the four-wheeler struck a guard rail, then struck a tree on the edge of the roadway. Lovejoy was thrown from his vehicle and fatally injured. Estate charges negligence and vicarious liability resulted in wrongful death and seeks jury awards of decedent's past and future income; exemplary, compensatory and punitive damages, court costs, and such other relief deemed just and proper.
Case number: 12-C-56

May 15
Vanderbilt Mortgage & Finance, Inc. vs. Ronald S. Cook Jr., Ronald D. Cook and Ruth Cook
PA- Marc B. Lazenby; J- Jay M. Hoke
* Ronald S. and Ronald D. Cook defaulted on payments for a $32,556 loan, complaint charges, and refuse to vacate the Hamlin residence that was subject of a properly conducted foreclosure sale last April. Vanderbilt wants immediate possession.
Case number: 12-C-58

May 18
Vanderbilt Mortgage & Finance, Inc. vs. Pamela L. Legue and Christine Cooper
PA- Marc B. Lazenby; J- Jay M. Hoke
* Past due monthly payments go back to November 2011, complaint reports, on a $24,389 loan Legue acquired to purchase a 1995 Oakwood mobile home. Defendant has not cured her loan default and remains in the West Hamlin home. Vanderbilt wants Court to order occupants out of the unit to enable it to take immediate possession.
Case number: 12-C-59

May 22
Wayne and Brenda Williamson vs. West Virginia Department of Transportation Division of Highways and Paul A. Mattox Jr., Commissioner
PA- C. Joseph Stevens; J- Jay M. Hoke
* Highway improvement project for W.Va. 10 in Harts involving so-called "Toney curve" has brought accusations from Williamsons that state has not properly acquired right-of-way or filed condemnation proceedings for a portion of their property. And, Williamsons claim, DOH trespasses by hauling debris across their property that also threatens damage to a family cemetery. (Their Petition For Rule of Mandamus and Declaratory Judgment and Rule To Show Cause was answered June 5 by a Motion to Dismiss from DOH District Two Counsel Samuel P. Cook.)
Case number: 12-C-61