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[W] Wise v. Valley Bank2/5/2002
DATE OF TRIAL COURT JUDGMENT: 02/25/2000
TRIAL JUDGE: HON. JOHN L. HATCHER
COURT FROM WHICH APPEALED:BOLIVAR COUNTY CIRCUIT COURT
NATURE OF THE CASE: CIVIL - TORTS - OTHER THAN PERSONAL INJURY AND PROPERTY DAMAGE
TRIAL COURT DISPOSITION: SUMMARY JUDGMENT AWARDED TO DEFENDANT.
DISPOSITION: REVERSED AND REMANDED - 02/05/2002
EN BANC
. Clara Wise appeals the decision of the Circuit Court of Bolivar County granting summary judgment to Valley Bank. Wise sued Valley Bank for damages contending the bank violated certain duties owed to her as a depositor in the course of investigating a fraudulent withdrawal from her savings account. Finding that there existed genuine issues of material fact for the jury to determine, we reverse and remand the case to the trial court.
FACTS
. Fifteen hundred dollars was withdrawn from Clara Wise's savings account with Valley Bank on January 3, 1997. The withdrawal was processed on the authority of a written withdrawal slip containing seemingly the signature of Clara Wise. After subsequent investigations by the bank and Wise, it was discovered that a bank employee had forged Wise's signature on the withdrawal slip and taken the money.
. Wise first noticed a discrepancy in her savings account balance when she inquired about her balance when withdrawing fifty dollars from the savings account in March of 1997. Wise was informed by the bank teller processing her transaction that her balance was approximately $1,500. Wise asserted that there was an error as she was certain that approximately $3,000 was contained in her account. Wise was then told that she should discuss the discrepancy with the bank's branch manager the next day. Wise returned to the bank the following day where she met with the branch manager. During this meeting, Wise alleges that the branch manager informed her that he had a videotape of her in the bank on the day the transaction occurred and that he could arrange to have the tape pulled in three days time. Wise asserts that she told the branch manager to get the tape. The branch manager never produced the tape and informed Wise that the tape had been destroyed. The branch manager denies making these statements to Wise. Pursuant to bank policy, the videotape in question would have been destroyed before the discrepancy in Wise's account was discovered.
. The bank conducted an investigation of the discrepancy by questioning its employees, including the teller who fraudulently converted the money, and asserted that she remembered Wise being in the bank on the date in question. The bank also had its officials compare the signature on the January withdrawal slip to the signature card Wise signed when the account was opened. The signatures closely resembled one another. Wise continued to assert throughout the bank's investigation that she had not withdrawn the money. Wise decided to consult an attorney in an effort to find a remedy to her situation. The attorney retained a handwriting expert who reviewed the withdrawal slips from Wise's savings account and determined that the signature on the January withdrawal slip was not Wise's signature but a tracing of it from an earlier withdrawal slip. Wise did not inform the bank of this discovery and proceeded to file the present litigation.
. After receiving notice that Wise had filed suit, Valley Bank further investigated the matter involving local law enforcement officials during the process. The law enforcement officials conducted lie detector tests of bank employees and the bank teller, who originally stated she remembered Wise in the bank and the transaction in qu
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