Woman can sue Charlotte over sewage-flooded home, appeals court rules
A federal appeals court on Wednesday ruled in favor of a woman whose home was flooded by sewage and against the city of Charlotte, reversing a lower court’s decision.
The Fourth U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals found that Stephanie Walker, a widow in her 70s whose home was connected to the city’s sewer system and flooded in February 2022, should be allowed to make her case to a jury.
The city at first offered to pay $15,000, then $45,000 to fix the house if Walker did not sue. Left homeless by the flooding, she eventually took the $45,000, Judge James Wynn wrote in a majority opinion.
In North Carolina, a contract can be voided if it was reached through undue influence — if there is such a power imbalance that someone who agreed to a contract did not act freely.
At issue is a note Walker at first wrote when signing for the money: “I’m homeless and I don’t have another choice!”
The city responded that it could not accept the agreement with that note, Wynn wrote in his opinion, and Walker eventually turned in a clean signature.
“Under North Carolina law, when a negligent actor creates physical peril for a victim and then conditions rescue funds on the release of the victim’s claims, there is at least a question of fact on whether the release was obtained through undue influence,” the judge found.
That question needs to be settled by a jury, he added. Judge DeAndrea Benjamin concurred with the opinion.
Judge Paul Niemeyer dissented partially.
Walker “executed her settlement of her own will, weighing her own financial plight and the amount and timing of the City’s offer,” Niemeyer wrote.
It was “her own financial condition” that “brought pressure on her,” he argued.
The city could ask for another review of the case. Unless that is granted, it will move toward a trial.
Ryan Oehrli covers criminal justice in the Charlotte region for The Charlotte Observer. His work is produced with financial support from the nonprofit The Just Trust. The Observer maintains full editorial control of its journalism.
This story was originally published April 10, 2026 at 5:00 AM.