May 26, 1999
Volume 5 -- Number 072

What follows is the case style or name, first paragraph, author's name, and the names of attorneys for the parties of each opinion released eletronically today to TBALink from Tennessee's three appellate courts.

This Issue (IN THIS ORDER):
 
00 New Opinion(s) from the Tennessee Supreme Court
00 New Opinion(s) from the Tennessee Supreme Court Workers' Compensation Panel
00 New Document(s) or Proposed Rule(s) from the Tennessee Supreme Court
05 New Opinion(s) from the Tennessee Court of Appeals
02 New Opinion(s) from the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals
00 New Judicial Ethics Opinion(s)
00 New Formal Ethics Opinion(s) from the Board of Professional Responsibility
 

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Lucian T. Pera
Editor-in-Chief, TBALink

C & C ALUMINUM BUILDERS     
SUPPLY
VS.
JOHN RYND and wife CONNIE RYND,                     
and EDMOND PARSON

Court:TCA

Attorneys:                          
GERALD L. EWELL, JR.
HAYNES, HULL, RIEDER & EWELL, P.A.
214 North Atlantic Street
P. O. Box 878
Tullahoma, Tennessee 37388
    Attorney for Plaintiff/Appellee

ROBERT S. PETERS
SWAFFORD, PETERS & PRIEST
100 First Avenue, S.W.
Winchester, Tennessee 37398
    Attorney for Defendant/Appellant
    
Judge:CANTRELL

First Paragraph:

The only issue in this case is whether the real property involved was
"residential real property" and thus immune from the attachment of a
material furnisher's lien.  The Chancery Court of Coffee County held
that the property did not fit the definition of residential real
property in Tenn. Code Ann. S 66-11-146(a)(1).  We affirm.

http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/Ccalum_opn.WP6






MARY SHEILA SUTOSKI         
HENNIGAN
VS.
ALVIN HENNIGAN, JR.

Court:TCA

Attorneys:                          
ROBERT TODD JACKSON
222 Second Avenue North
Suite 419
Nashville, TN 37201

ATTORNEY FOR THE DEFENDANT/APPELLANT

FRED C. STATUM, JR.
2200 First Union Tower
150 Fourth Avenue North
Nashville, TN 37219

ATTORNEY FOR THE PLAINTIFF/APPELLEE

Judge:COTTRELL

First Paragraph:

Appellant, Alvin Hennigan, (hereinafter referred to as Father) appeals
the trial court's order requiring him to pay his daughter's college
expenses pursuant to the Property Settlement and Child Custody Agreement
entered into with Appellee, Mary Sheila Sutoski Hennigan, (hereinafter
referred to as Mother) at the time of their divorce and a later
amendment.  For the reasons stated hereinafter, we affirm the judgment
of the trial court.

http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/Hennigan_opn.WP6






MARY E. LESSLEY
VS.
CHARLES F. SHOPE, JR.

Court:TCA

Attorneys:                          
COLLIER W. GOODLETT
Assistant Public Defender
19th Judicial Circuit 
Clarksville, Tennessee  37040

Attorney for Defendant/Appellant

JOHN KNOX WALKUP
Attorney General and Reporter

SUE A. SHELDON
Assistant Attorney General
2nd Floor, Cordell Hull Building
425 5th Avenue, North
Nashville, Tennessee  37243


Attorney for Plaintiff/Appellee

Judge:COTTRELL

First Paragraph:

This case involves an appeal of an order finding Defendant, Charles F.
Shope, Jr., in willful and deliberate civil contempt of court for
failure to pay child support.  The order gave Mr. Shope thirty-one days
from its entry date to pay $350.00 in child support arrearage to the
clerk of court or face imprisonment until such time as he purged himself
of the contempt.  Mr. Shope challenges the trial court's jurisdiction to
issue the contempt order on the basis of alleged procedural aspects of
an attachment issued against him. He also claims that the underlying
divorce judgment that originally set child support was invalid.  He also
argues that he was entitled to a jury trial.  We affirm the trial court.

http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/Lessleyp_opn.WP6






IN THE MATTER OF:
M.C.G.  

Court:TCA

Attorneys:                          
Kathleen G. Morris, Nashville, Tennessee
Attorney for Petitioner/Appellant.

Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter
Douglas Earl Dimond, Assistant Attorney General
Attorneys for Respondent/Appellee.

Judge:FARMER

First Paragraph:

Christy Gower (Mother) appeals the trial court's judgment terminating
her parental rights to her minor son, M.C.G.  We affirm the trial
court's judgment based on our conclusion that the record contains clear
and convincing evidence to support the court's findings that the Mother
had abandoned M.C.G. and that termination of the Mother's parental
rights was in M.C.G.'s best interests.

http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/Mcg_opn.WP6






JOHN G. TABOR, Individually,       
and TABOR CONSTRUCTION, INC.
VS.
CHRISTI EAKIN, GETTYSVUE           
PARTNERS, L.P., CLUB PARTNERS,   
INC., and WANG LAU and wife,      
FLORENCE LAU

Court:TCA

Attorneys:                          
For Appellants              For Appellees Christi Eakin,
                            Gettysvue Partners, L.P.,
THOMAS R. HENLEY            and Club Partners, Inc.
Lufkin, Henley & Conner
Knoxville, Tennessee        RICKY L. APPERSON
                            Spicer, Flynn & Rudstrom, PLLC
                            Knoxville, Tennessee


                            For Appellees Wang Lau and
                            Florence Lau

                            JAMES Y. (BO) REED
                            JAMES C. CONE
                            Jenkins & Jenkins, PLLC
                            Knoxville, Tennessee
                            
Judge:SUSANO

First Paragraph:

The plaintiffs, John G. Tabor and Tabor Construction, Inc.
(collectively, "Tabor"), brought this action for damages against Christi
Eakin ("Eakin"), Gettysvue Partners, L.P., Club Partners, Inc., and Wang
Lau and his wife, Florence Lau ("the Laus"), alleging that the
defendants were guilty of "libel and slander and defamation."  The trial
court dismissed each of Tabor's claims against the various defendants,
Tabor appeals, raising the following issues for our consideration:

1.  Did the trial court err in dismissing the Laus on the ground that
they did not publish the libelous letter from Eakin?

2.  Did the trial court err in dismissing the Laus on the ground that
their libelous communications were absolutely privileged?

3.  Did the trial court err in dismissing Eakin, Gettysvue Partners,
L.P., and Club Partners, Inc., on the ground that the libelous letter
from Eakin was an absolutely privileged communication?


We affirm.

http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/Taborjg_opn.WP6






CHARLES BOBO
VS.
STATE OF TENNESSEE

Court:TCCA

Attorneys:                          
For Appellant:                      For Appellee:

Deborah Black Huskins               John Knox Walkup
Office of District Public Defender  Attorney General and Reporter
142 East Market Street              425 Fifth Avenue North
Johnson City, TN 37601              Nashville, TN  37243-0493

Charles Bobo, #129349               Ellen H. Pollack
P.O. Box 5000                       Assistant Attorney General
Mountain City, TN 37683             Criminal Justice Division
                                    425 Fifth Avenue North
John E. Herbison                    Nashville, TN  37243-0493
2016 Eighth Avenue South
Nashville, TN 37204

Judge:OGLE

First Paragraph:

The petitioner, Charles Bobo, appeals the Washington County Criminal
Court's dismissal of his petition for post-conviction relief.  On
appeal, the petitioner essentially raises the following issues for our
consideration: 1.   Whether the applicable statute of limitations bars
the petitioner's claims that the jury instructions in his case violated
the holdings of the United States Supreme Court in Sandstrom v. Montana,
442 U.S. 510, 99 S.Ct. 2450 (1979), and Cage v. Louisiana, 498 U.S. 39,
111 S.Ct. 328 (1990); and

2.  Whether the Tennessee Supreme Court's decision in State v. Brown,
836 S.W.2d 530 (Tenn. 1992), should be applied retroactively to the
petitioner's case.

Following a review of the record and the parties' briefs, we affirm the
judgment of the trial court.

http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/Bobo_pc.WP6






STATE OF TENNESSEE
VS.
DAVID LYN GRIBBLE

Court:TCCA

Attorneys:                          
FOR THE APPELLANT:
    
    JULIE A. MARTIN
    P.O. Box 426
    Knoxville, TN  37901-0426
    (On Appeal)
    
    MACK GARNER
    District Public Defender
    419 High Street
    Maryville, TN 37804
    (At Hearing)

FOR THE APPELLEE:
    
    JOHN KNOX WALKUP
    Attorney General and Reporter
    
    ELLEN H. POLLACK
    Assistant Attorney General
    Cordell Hull Building, 2nd Floor
    425 Fifth Avenue North
    Nashville, TN  37243-0493
    
    MICHAEL L. FLYNN
    District Attorney General
    
    KIRK ANDREWS
    Assistant District Attorney General
    363 Court Street
    Maryville, TN  37804-5906
    
Judge:RILEY

First Paragraph:

The defendant, David Lyn Gribble, appeals as of right the trial court's
judgment upon revocation of probation.  Defendant admitted his probation
violation, and the trial court sentenced him to serve six months in the
county jail with work release eligibility.  In addition to
incarceration, the trial court ordered defendant to serve an additional
six months on intensive probation with the condition that he complete an
outpatient alcohol treatment program.  We find no abuse of discretion by
the trial court and AFFIRM its judgment in all respects.

http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/Gribbled_opn.WP6

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