Court Opinion

ID: 9901111
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-11-21 13:05:56.921132+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T09:21:26.358577
License: Public Domain

IN THE COURT OF APPEALS OF NORTH CAROLINA

                                      No. COA23-255

                               Filed 21 November 2023

Mecklenburg County, No. 22 CVS 17751

MECKLENBURG ROOFING, INC., Plaintiff,

             v.

JEREMY ANTALL & JOHNSON’S ROOFING SERVICE, INC., Defendants.

      Appeal by plaintiff from order entered 17 November 2022 by Judge Hugh B.

Lewis in Mecklenburg County Superior Court. Heard in the Court of Appeals 23

August 2023.

      Safran Law Offices, by Brian J. Schoolman, and Hendrick, Phillips, Salzman
      & Siegel, P.C., by Philip J. Siegel, for plaintiff-appellant.

      Smith, Currie & Hancock LLP, by Matthew E. Cox, for defendants-appellees.

      ZACHARY, Judge.

      Plaintiff Mecklenburg Roofing, Inc., (“MRI”) appeals from the trial court’s

order denying its motion for a preliminary injunction. After careful review, we

dismiss the interlocutory appeal for lack of jurisdiction.

                                 I.     Background

      In May 2019, MRI hired Defendant Jeremy Antall. MRI is a roofing contractor,

and Mr. Antall first worked in the MRI service department as a superintendent and

then was promoted to project manager. Mr. Antall described his responsibilities as
                       MECKLENBURG ROOFING, INC. V. ANTALL

                                  Opinion of the Court

“ensur[ing] that job materials were delivered to job sites, that safety was being

adhered to, and that the job was completed per the plans and specifications.”

      In July 2021, MRI promoted Mr. Antall to the position of estimator. According

to Alexander Ray, MRI’s Vice President, Mr. Antall “estimated over $64,000,000

worth of roofing projects for MRI across most of the states” that MRI served. Mr. Ray

averred that “Mr. Antall worked closely with MRI’s customers and potential

customers” and “was given increased access to MRI’s confidential information and

trade secrets, and estimated projects with the benefit of MRI’s pricing strategies,

gross profit percentage targets, man-hour targets, overhead allocation targets, and

net profit percentage targets.”

      As part of this promotion, Mr. Antall and MRI entered into an “Employment

Covenants Agreement” (“the Agreement”), which included the following non-compete

clause:

             [F]or so long as [Mr. Antall] is employed by [MRI] and for
             a period of two (2) years thereafter, [Mr. Antall] will not,
             individually or on behalf of any person, firm, partnership,
             association, business organization, corporation or other
             entity engaged in the “Business” (as defined above), engage
             or participate in the actual Estimating or Selling of
             commercial roofing services, including but not limited to
             roof removal, roof retrofit, roof replacement, and roof
             maintenance and repair, the retrofit, renovation or repair
             of the exterior building envelope and waterproofing
             including above and below grade, of commercial or public
             buildings and other operations incidental to the roofing
             and construction services described herein and provided by
             [MRI]; provided that the restrictions set forth in this
             section shall only apply within the one hundred (100) mile

                                         -2-
                        MECKLENBURG ROOFING, INC. V. ANTALL

                                     Opinion of the Court

              radius from [MRI]’s office . . . .

      In August 2022, Mr. Antall terminated his employment with MRI and accepted

a position as an estimator with Defendant Johnson’s Roofing Service, Inc. (“JRS”) in

Fort Mill, South Carolina, located within ten miles of MRI’s office.

      On 5 October 2022, MRI filed a verified complaint against Defendants alleging

claims for misappropriation of trade secrets, tortious interference with contract, and

tortious interference with existing and prospective relations. MRI also sought

injunctive relief to enforce the non-compete clause and other provisions of the

Agreement, and moved for the issuance of a preliminary injunction. Along with its

complaint, MRI filed an affidavit from Mr. Ray. Before filing their responsive

pleadings, on 10 November 2022, Defendants submitted affidavits from Mr. Antall

and Drew Brashear, the owner of JRS. The parties also submitted memoranda of law

opposing MRI’s motion for a preliminary injunction.

      On 15 November 2022, MRI’s motion for a preliminary injunction came on for

hearing in Mecklenburg County Superior Court. After hearing the arguments of

counsel and reviewing the pleadings, affidavits, and memoranda submitted, the trial

court denied MRI’s motion by order entered on 17 November 2022. MRI timely filed

notice of appeal from the trial court’s order denying its motion for a preliminary

injunction.

                           II.    Appellate Jurisdiction

      MRI acknowledges the interlocutory nature of the order from which it appeals,

                                            -3-
                        MECKLENBURG ROOFING, INC. V. ANTALL

                                    Opinion of the Court

but asserts that this Court may properly exercise jurisdiction because the trial court’s

order affects a substantial right of MRI. We disagree.

      Ordinarily, this Court only hears appeals from final judgments. See N.C. Gen.

Stat. § 7A-27(b)(1)–(2) (2021). “A preliminary injunction is interlocutory in nature.”

Clark v. Craven Reg’l Med. Auth., 326 N.C. 15, 23, 387 S.E.2d 168, 173 (1990). “An

interlocutory order is one made during the pendency of an action, which does not

dispose of the case, but leaves it for further action by the trial court in order to settle

and determine the entire controversy.” Hanesbrands Inc. v. Fowler, 369 N.C. 216,

218, 794 S.E.2d 497, 499 (2016) (citation omitted). “An appeal from an interlocutory

order will be dismissed as fragmentary and premature unless the order affects some

substantial right and will work injury to [the] appellant if not corrected before appeal

from final judgment.” Id. (cleaned up); see N.C. Gen. Stat. §§ 1-277(a), 7A-27(b)(3)(a).

      Our Supreme Court has consistently defined a “substantial right” as “a legal

right affecting or involving a matter of substance as distinguished from matters of

form: a right materially affecting those interests which one is entitled to have

preserved and protected by law: a material right.” Hanesbrands, 369 N.C. at 219, 794

S.E.2d at 499–500 (cleaned up). Granted, this nebulous test is admittedly “more

easily stated than applied”; thus, “it is usually necessary to resolve the question in

each case by considering the particular facts of that case and the procedural context

in which the order from which appeal is sought was entered.” Id. at 219, 794 S.E.2d

at 500 (cleaned up); see also Radiator Specialty Co. v. Arrowood Indem. Co., 253 N.C.

                                           -4-
                          MECKLENBURG ROOFING, INC. V. ANTALL

                                   Opinion of the Court

App. 508, 520, 800 S.E.2d 452, 460 (2017) (“Generally, each interlocutory order must

be analyzed to determine whether a substantial right is jeopardized by delaying the

appeal.” (cleaned up)).

      “To confer appellate jurisdiction based on a substantial right, the appellant

must include in its opening brief, in the statement of the grounds for appellate review,

sufficient facts and argument to support appellate review on the ground that the

challenged order affects a substantial right.” Doe v. City of Charlotte, 273 N.C. App.

10, 21, 848 S.E.2d 1, 9 (2020) (cleaned up); N.C.R. App. P. 28(b)(4) (“When an appeal

is interlocutory, the statement must contain sufficient facts and argument to support

appellate review on the ground that the challenged order affects a substantial right.”).

“[I]f the appellant’s opening brief fails to explain why the challenged order affects a

substantial right, we must dismiss the appeal for lack of appellate jurisdiction.”

Denney v. Wardson Constr., Inc., 264 N.C. App. 15, 17, 824 S.E.2d 436, 438 (2019).

             Although this rule seems straightforward in the abstract,
             it is complicated by different rules concerning how a
             litigant must show that a substantial right is affected.
             Some rulings by the trial court affect a substantial right
             essentially as a matter of law. Sovereign immunity is an
             example. A litigant appealing the denial of a sovereign
             immunity defense need only show that they raised the
             issue below and the trial court rejected it—there is no need
             to explain why, on the facts of that particular case, the
             ruling affects a substantial right.

             By contrast, most interlocutory issues require more than a
             categorical assertion that the issue is immediately
             appealable. In these (more common) situations, the
             appellant must explain, in the statement of the grounds for

                                          -5-
                       MECKLENBURG ROOFING, INC. V. ANTALL

                                     Opinion of the Court

             appellate review, why the facts of that particular case
             demonstrate that the challenged order affects a substantial
             right.

Id. at 17–18, 824 S.E.2d at 438 (citation omitted).

      Here, in its statement of the grounds for appellate review, MRI fails to offer

the requisite explanation. Instead of explaining why the facts of this case

demonstrate that the trial court’s order affects a substantial right, MRI simply

parrots the oft-repeated proposition that “[i]n cases involving an alleged breach of a

non-competition agreement and an agreement prohibiting disclosure of confidential

information, North Carolina appellate courts have routinely reviewed interlocutory

court orders both granting and denying preliminary injunctions, holding that

substantial rights have been affected.” Kennedy v. Kennedy, 160 N.C. App. 1, 5–6, 584

S.E.2d 328, 331 (citation omitted), appeal dismissed, 357 N.C. 658, 590 S.E.2d 267

(2003). However, MRI’s simple reliance on such bare statements of law—absent a

clear and articulable demonstration of the factual basis underlying MRI’s asserted

substantial right—is insufficient.

      Our appellate courts have consistently reiterated that mere citation to

precedent is generally insufficient to invoke this Court’s interlocutory jurisdiction.

Indeed, a “fixation on . . . published case[s] that [the appellant] believe[s] to be

controlling” is “a mistake our Court has warned against for years.” Doe, 273 N.C. App.

at 22, 848 S.E.2d at 10. Rather, “[w]hether a particular ruling affects a substantial

right must be determined on a case-by-case basis.” Id. (cleaned up). “Consequently,

                                            -6-
                       MECKLENBURG ROOFING, INC. V. ANTALL

                                   Opinion of the Court

. . . the appellant cannot rely on citation to precedent to show that an order affects a

substantial right. Instead, the appellant must explain, in the statement of the

grounds for appellate review, why the facts of that particular case demonstrate that

the challenged order affects a substantial right.” Id. (cleaned up).

      And as explained below, here, MRI’s misguided fixation on existing caselaw—

at the expense of any context that might aid in our consideration of its interlocutory

appeal—is compounded by another fatal shortcoming: MRI’s failure to demonstrate

that the order “will work injury to [MRI] if not corrected before appeal from final

judgment.” Hanesbrands, 369 N.C. at 218, 794 S.E.2d at 499 (citation omitted). “The

appellant[ ] must present more than a bare assertion that the order affects a

substantial right; [the appellant] must demonstrate why the order affects a

substantial right.” Id. at 219, 794 S.E.2d at 499 (citation omitted).

      In its statement of the grounds for appellate review, MRI asserts that

“interlocutory review is appropriate because MRI will lose the benefit of the

noncompetition covenant in the absence of prompt review.” MRI baldly asserts—

without any supporting argument—that it “has a valid employment agreement

structured to be no broader than necessary to protect its legitimate business

interests” and that the trial court’s denial of its motion for a preliminary injunction

“permits [Mr.] Antall to violate the [A]greement while working for a competitor

within the narrow geographic limits proscribed in the [A]greement.”

      Relying solely on these unsupported, conclusory assertions and scattered

                                          -7-
                           MECKLENBURG ROOFING, INC. V. ANTALL

                                         Opinion of the Court

citation to a few, select opinions—ascribing great weight to an unpublished decision

of this Court1—MRI maintains that “because the covenants have only a two-year

period, the relief sought by MRI could be mooted if Mr. Antall is permitted to continue

competing with MRI.” Consequently, according to MRI, our “failure to hear [its]

appeal would involve a substantial right that may be lost before trial on the merits.”

Iredell Digestive Disease Clinic, P.A. v. Petrozza, 92 N.C. App. 21, 24, 373 S.E.2d 449,

451 (1988), aff’d, 324 N.C. 327, 377 S.E.2d 750 (1989).

       MRI’s statement of the grounds for appellate review is wholly insufficient. Like

so many of its predecessors on appeal, MRI improperly and disproportionately relies

upon vague, conclusory statements and prior cases to demonstrate that the

challenged order affects a substantial right. Such assertions are ineffective to invoke

our appellate jurisdiction, absent the requisite factual or evidentiary support. “In

effect, [MRI] ask[s] this Court to comb through the record to understand the facts,

research the elements of [preliminary injunctions and non-compete clauses], and then

come up with a legal theory” to support its claim of a substantial right. Doe, 273 N.C.

App. at 21–22, 848 S.E.2d at 10. “That is not our role; we cannot construct arguments

for or find support for [the] appellant’s right to appeal from an interlocutory order.

       1 Although not determinative of our central analysis and ultimate disposition, we nevertheless

caution that the case upon which MRI most relies in this section of its brief is an unpublished decision
of this Court, which lacks precedential value. See generally Pinehurst Surgical Clinic, P.A. v.
Dimichele-Manes, 227 N.C. App. 225, 741 S.E.2d 927, 2013 WL 1901710 (2013) (unpublished). Cf. Doe,
273 N.C. App. at 22, 848 S.E.2d at 10 (admonishing the plaintiff-appellants for “fixati[ng] on a
published case that they believed to be controlling . . . . a mistake our Court has warned against for
years” (emphasis added)).

                                                 -8-
                       MECKLENBURG ROOFING, INC. V. ANTALL

                                   Opinion of the Court

The burden is on the appellant to do so, and [MRI] d[oes] not carry that burden here.”

Id. at 22, 848 S.E.2d at 10 (cleaned up).

      Again, “outside of a few exceptions such as sovereign immunity, [an] appellant

cannot rely on citation to precedent to show that an order affects a substantial right.”

Id. If there is any reasonable inference to draw from the oft-repeated proposition

(upon which MRI relies) that “North Carolina appellate courts have routinely

reviewed interlocutory court orders both granting and denying preliminary

injunctions,” Kennedy, 160 N.C. App. at 5, 584 S.E.2d at 331, it is not that appellants

seeking interlocutory review of any such order may safely assume our jurisdiction.

      Rather, ever cognizant of the general rules governing interlocutory appeals,

the cautious reader will infer from so generalized a proposition only that the

appellants in those “routine” cases appropriately invoked our interlocutory

jurisdiction pursuant to the substantial-right test of appealability—i.e., that the

appellants sufficiently demonstrated, based on the unique facts and procedural

context presented, that the challenged orders affected substantial rights and would

work injury to the appellants absent immediate review. See Hanesbrands, 369 N.C.

at 219, 794 S.E.2d at 500; Doe, 273 N.C. App. at 21–22, 848 S.E.2d at 10. We reiterate:

the appellant bears the burden in every case to “include in the statement of the

grounds for appellate review an explanation of how the challenged order would . . .

affect a substantial right based on the particular facts of that case.” Denney, 264 N.C.

App. at 19, 824 S.E.2d at 439 (emphasis added).

                                            -9-
                        MECKLENBURG ROOFING, INC. V. ANTALL

                                    Opinion of the Court

      To be sure, MRI makes arguments in its appellate brief concerning the merits

of its underlying claims and the reasonableness of the Agreement, particularly the

non-compete clause. However, in its statement of the grounds for appellate review,

MRI neglects to make the argument that it will prevail on the merits, or to show that

it will suffer irreparable injury. Indeed, the facts belie this contention.

      For example, although MRI relies in its merits argument on Precision Walls,

Inc. v. Servie, MRI makes only general and hypothetical allegations as to the sort of

trade secrets and information that Mr. Antall might disclose to JRS, and has made

none as definite as the allegation in Precision Walls that “one of [the] plaintiff’s

subcontractors had been contacted by [the] defendant on . . . [the] defendant’s first

day working for [his new employer], about performing subcontract work for” his new

employer. 152 N.C. App. 630, 638, 568 S.E.2d 267, 273 (2002). In fact, rather than

confirming that his “position with [his new employer] was almost identical to his job

with [the] plaintiff[,]” id., Mr. Antall here averred that “[t]he things that [he is] doing

at JRS are not the same as what [he] did at MRI, or for the same clientele.” Further,

Defendants’ counsel argued to the trial court that Mr. Antall “doesn’t have any trade

secrets. He uses mathematics, which is, to my knowledge, not a trade secret.” MRI

makes no specific showing to the contrary in its statement of the grounds for appellate

review.

      Additionally, MRI asserts in its appellate brief that “MRI and JRS bid against

each other constantly, aggressively, and are direct competitors in the same market.”

                                           - 10 -
                       MECKLENBURG ROOFING, INC. V. ANTALL

                                   Opinion of the Court

Yet Mr. Antall stated in his affidavit that he was “unaware of any jobs that [he] bid

for MRI that JRS was also bidding at the same time.” Although MRI provided a “non-

exhaustive list of examples” of the two companies bidding against each other, Mr.

Brashear explained in his affidavit that JRS only bid on one of the listed projects, and

that Mr. Antall did not work on that bid. Mr. Brashear even provided documentation

showing that MRI did not bid on that particular project. Ultimately, MRI has made

many accusations about Defendants’ conduct, both before the trial court and this

Court on appeal, but has not supported those accusations with evidence other than

the assertions made in its verified complaint and by Mr. Ray in his affidavit, all of

which are contradicted by Defendants.

      Regardless, this Court lacks jurisdiction to review MRI’s arguments when its

statement of the grounds for appellate review is insufficient to invoke our

interlocutory jurisdiction to reach those arguments. See Hanesbrands, 369 N.C. at

219–20, 794 S.E.2d at 500 (dismissing the interlocutory appeal where the appellant

“appear[ed] to suggest that she may suffer some unspecified prejudice from th[e] case

being tried in Business Court,” but did “not explain[ ] how she would be prejudiced”

or “identif[y] a specific material right that she would lose if the order [were] not

reviewed before final judgment nor [did she] explain[ ] how the order in question

would work injury to her if not immediately reviewed” (cleaned up)); Doe, 273 N.C.

App. at 21, 848 S.E.2d at 10 (deeming insufficient a statement of the grounds for

appellate review in an appeal claiming a substantial right based on the risk of

                                          - 11 -
                        MECKLENBURG ROOFING, INC. V. ANTALL

                                    Opinion of the Court

inconsistent verdicts, where the appellants “asserted, categorically and in a single

sentence, that all the claims in this case involve the ‘same facts and legal questions’

concerning probable cause, without explaining how or why a jury’s consideration of

those facts in the various state and federal claims in this case could lead to

irreconcilable results”); Denney, 264 N.C. App. at 19, 824 S.E.2d at 439 (dismissing

for lack of jurisdiction where the crux of the appellant’s arguments—that a res-

judicata defense always creates a risk of inconsistent verdicts, obviating the need for

case-by-case applications of the substantial-right test—was, “in effect, simply an

assertion that [the appellant] should not be forced to endure the burden of a trial

when [it] ha[s] asserted a defense on which [it] believe[s] [it] will prevail on appeal”).

      In essence, MRI asks us to assume—for the sake of our jurisdiction, no less—

that the barebones assertions in its statement of the grounds for appellate review are

self-evident and supported by the record; and yet, MRI only begins to expound upon

those assertions in the merits section of its brief. This approach improperly assumes

that the appellant’s burden is met, and instead, places the burden upon this Court to

divine the basis for the exercise of our interlocutory jurisdiction. But it is not the duty

of an appellate court “to construct arguments for or find support for [an] appellant’s

right to appeal. Where the appellant fails to carry the burden of making such a

showing to the court, the appeal will be dismissed.” Hanesbrands, 369 N.C. at 218,

794 S.E.2d at 499 (cleaned up). Accordingly, MRI’s appeal is properly dismissed.

                                 III.   Conclusion

                                           - 12 -
                      MECKLENBURG ROOFING, INC. V. ANTALL

                                Opinion of the Court

       For the foregoing reasons, we dismiss the interlocutory appeal for lack of

jurisdiction.

       DISMISSED.

       Judges DILLON and WOOD concur.

                                       - 13 -