Publisher's Note: This article originally appeared in the Beaufort Observer.

    recent filing outlines the issues, but doesn't give a clue about when they will be settled

    The lawyers are having a field day with the Fountain issue. Meanwhile, it appears when one rides by the plant on Whichard's Beach Road that little is going on there. The parking lot remains mostly empty.

    But there has been a recent development of interest to those who are tracking the story.

    On March 8, 2011 Reggie Fountain sued the new owners/operators of Fountain Powerboats. The complaint was filed in Beaufort Superior Court but later moved to the N. C. Business Court in Greensboro. But you can read the essence of Reggie's case against the new owners by clicking here.

    On August 10, 2011 the new owners (Fountain Powerboats, Inc) filed their First Answers and a Counterclaim. You can review this by clicking here.

    Then on November 23, 2011 Reggie filed his Reply to the Counterclaim. You can read that by clicking here.

    The essence of these three documents give a pretty clear picture about what the disputes are between Reggie Fountain as the founder and former owner of Fountain and the new owners. What the documents do not tell us is whether Fountain, under whatever ownership, is going to re-start production at the Whichard's Beach facility.

    What is clear is the lawyers are having a field day on this matter. You can read all the back and forth by clicking here.

    It is a gross over-simplification of the matter, but what the new owners are alleging is that Reggie caused them damage and violated some agreements they had together and Reggie is claiming he did nothing wrong and the new owners are the ones who have sunk Fountain. While all this is fodder for a soap opera or a book someday, in the meantime former employees of Fountain in Beaufort County are literally out in the cold. Those who are intimately interested in Fountain will want to read the three documents above to gain an updated sense of the issues, but with no clue when they will be settled and the future of Fountain determined.

    Click here to review a layman's summary of the major filings in the Fountain case to date, including links to the original documents themselves.