Legal Question in Consumer Law in North Carolina
Double jeopardy
On September 12th 2006 in Charlotte, Mecklenburg county, I WON a civil case as a DEFENDANT in which the Plentiff was seeking monetary refund from me for according to him, for ''NOT INSTALLING HIS ENGINE CORRECTLY''.
The Plentiff went to appeal in an ARBITRATION hearing on November 14th, 2006. I also WON the case in the Arbitration.
Now he has taken the same case to the same civil court in Charlotte, Mecklenburg County
Does this amount to a case of DOUBLE JEOPARDY ???
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Double jeopardy
It actually sounds more like triple jeopardy. But the answer unfortunately is that the plaintiff can do this. He is simply exercising his right(s) of appeal. If he ultimately loses the case (e.g. before a jury and then the appellate court), then he cannot come back in another suit. In the civil context (i.e. not criminal), we call this "res judicata," but it's basically the same concept as "double jeopardy." You'll have to keep fighting this guy for a while. You may want to consult an attorney.