June 08, 1999 Volume 5 -- Number 079 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 04 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   There are three ways for TBALink members to get the full-text versions of these opinions from the Web: Do a key word search in the Search Link area of TBALink.This option will allow you to view and save a plain text version of the opinion. *NEW* Browse the Opinion List area of TBALink. This option will allow you to download the original WordPerfect 6.0 version of the opinion. Click the URL at end of each Opinion paragraph below. This option will allow you to download the original WordPerfect 6.0 document. Lucian T. Pera Editor-in-Chief, TBALink MARY JEAN BREWER VS. EDWARD LELON BREWER, JR. Court:TCA Attorneys: JERRY SCOTT JOHN KEA SCOTT & KEA 110 City Center Building 100 East Vine Street Murfreesboro, Tennessee 37133-1216 Attorney for Plaintiff/Appellant JIM WISEMAN WISEMAN & SCHNEIDER 131 North Church Street Murfreesboro, Tennessee 37130 Attorney for Defendant/Appellee Judge:CANTRELL First Paragraph: This case tests the power of the trial court to order an adult, slightly handicapped child to visit his father. The Chancery Court of Rutherford County held that it was the duty of the court to require the visitation. We hold that under the circumstances of this case the court exceeded its jurisdiction. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/Brewermj_opn.WP6 SARAH BETH CLINGAN OVERSTREET VS. SHONEY'S, INC. Court:TCA Attorneys: For the Plaintiff/Appellee: For the Defendant/Appellant: John K. Maddin, Jr. Lawrence E. Levine Malcolm L. McCune Levine Mattson Orr & Geracioti Maddin Miller & McCune Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, Tennessee Jim H. Camp William A. Cameron Sparta, Tennessee Cameron & Chaffin Cookeville, Tennessee Judge:KOCH First Paragraph: This appeal involves a freakish accident in which a shard from a broken dinner plate caused a restaurant patron to lose the sight in her left eye. The patron and her husband filed suit against the waitress who dropped the plate and the restaurant in the Circuit Court for Putnam County seeking damages for her injuries and for his loss of consortium. Following a three-day trial, the jury awarded the patron $2,013,000. On this appeal, the restaurant takes issue with several of the trial court's evidentiary rulings, the trial court's verdict form, and the trial court's refusal to grant a remittitur. We affirm the judgment. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/Overstre_opn.WP6 THE REALTY SHOP, INC. VS. RR WESTMINSTER HOLDING, INC. and JOHN S. CLARK CO., INC.; SENASH, INC.; and CLARENDON NATIONAL INS. CO. Court:TCA Attorneys: For the Plaintiff/Appellee: For the Defendant/Appellant: John K. Maddin, Jr. Lawrence E. Levine Malcolm L. McCune Levine Mattson Orr & Geracioti Maddin Miller & McCune Nashville, Tennessee Nashville, Tennessee Jim H. Camp William A. Cameron Sparta, Tennessee Cameron & Chaffin Cookeville, Tennessee Judge:KOCH First Paragraph: The Realty Shop, Inc. has filed a Tenn. R. App. P. 39 petition requesting this court to reconsider its May 11, 1999 opinion. We requested RR Westminster Holding, Inc. to respond to the petition and have now received its response. Based on our consideration of the petition, the response, and the record filed in this court, we find that the petition is without merit and should be denied. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/Realty_reh.WP6 DONALD SWEENEY and VICKIE SWEENEY MOULTON VS. ERIC ERWIN Court:TCA Attorneys: ROBERT L. PERRY, JR. 102 Frey Street Ashland City, Tennessee 37015 Attorney for Plaintiffs/Appellees LAURA TEK 1994 N. Gallatin Road, Suite 315 Madison, Tennessee 37115 Attorney for Defendant/Appellant Judge:CANTRELL First Paragraph: This is an appeal from a chancery decree awarding specific performance to the purchasers of a tract of real estate and denying a counterclaim for rent. The lower court rendered the decree after a full evidentiary hearing on the merits. The appellant has not furnished this court with a transcript of the evidence heard at the trial. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/Sweeneyd_opn.WP6 JAMES E. MARTIN VS. HOWARD CARLTON, WARDEN, and STATE OF TENNESSEE Court:TCCA Attorneys: FOR THE APPELLANT: FOR THE APPELLEE: JAMES E. MARTIN, pro se JOHN KNOX WALKUP Northeast Correction Attorney General & Reporter Complex #121405 P.O. Box 5000 Mountain City, TN 37683 TODD R. KELLEY Assistant Attorney General 2nd Floor, Cordell Hull Building 425 Fifth Avenue North Nashville, TN 37243 JOE C. CRUMLEY, JR. District Attorney General MICHAEL J. FAHEY, II Assistant District Attorney General 114 Alf Taylor Road Johnson City, TN 37601 Judge:WOODALL First Paragraph: The Petitioner, James E. Martin, appeals as of right the trial court's dismissal of his petition for writ of habeas corpus relief. After a careful review of the record, we affirm the judgment of the trial court. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/Martinje_opn.WP6 JOHNNY CARL WEAVER VS. STATE OF TENNESSEE Court:TCCA Attorneys: FOR THE APPELLANT: FOR THE APPELLEE: LESLIE M. JEFFRESS JOHN KNOX WALKUP P. O. Box 2664 Attorney General and Reporter Knoxville, TN 37902-2664 TODD R. KELLEY Assistant Attorney General 425 Fifth Avenue, North Nashville, TN 37243 RANDALL E. NICHOLS District Attorney General ANDREW JACKSON, VI Assistant Attorney General 400 Main Avenue Knoxville, TN 37902 Judge:SMITH First Paragraph: On August 21, 1987, a Knox County jury convicted Appellant Johnny Carl Weaver of third degree burglary, grand larceny, and being a habitual criminal. On November 10, 1987, the trial court sentenced Appellant to life imprisonment in the Tennessee Department of Correction. This Court subsequently affirmed Appellant's convictions and sentence on December 8, 1988. Appellant filed a petition for post-conviction relief on October 25, 1991, and an amended petition on March 25, 1994. The post-conviction court held an evidentiary hearing on the petition on September 15, 1994, and dismissed the petition on January 12, 1998. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCCA/weavjohn_opn.WP6 PLEASE FORWARD THIS EMAIL! Feel free to forward this Opinion Flash on to anyone you know of with an e-mail address. GET A FULL-TEXT COPY OF AN OPINION! See the intrsuctions at the beginning of this edition of Opinion Flash. JOIN TBALink! While Opinion Flash is a free service of the Tennessee Bar Association, you must be a subscriber to TBALink, the premier Web site for Tennessee attorneys, in order to access the full-text of the opinions or enjoy many other features of TBALink. TBA members may join TBALink for just $50 per year. To join, go to: http://www.tba.org/join.html/ SUBSCRIBE TO OPINION FLASH! Would you like to receive the TBALink Opinion-Flash free each day by e-mail? Anyone -- whether a TBA member or not is welcome to subscribe ... it's free! 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