March 7 , 2001 Volume 7 -- Number 042 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. 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 09 New Opinion(s) from the Tennessee Court of Appeals 00 New Opinion(s) from the Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals 00 New Opinion(s) from the Tennessee Attorney General (PDF format) 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. Browse the Opinion List area of TBALink. This option will allow you to download the original version of the opinion. Click the URL at end of each Opinion paragraph below. This option will allow you to download the original document. Lucian T. Pera Editor-in-Chief, TBALink ANGELA COLLINS v. TIMOTHY PHARRIS Court:TCA Attorneys: Connie Reguli, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Angela Collins. Jack L. Garton, Dickson, Tennessee, for the appellee, Timothy Pharris. Judge: COTTRELL First Paragraph: The petitioner appeals the general sessions court's denial of an order of protection and questions the proper avenue to appeal a general sessions court's ruling on an order of protection. We hold that, because the general sessions court has concurrent jurisdiction with the circuit and chancery courts to hear petitions for orders of protection, this court is the proper one to hear an appeal of the grant or denial of such an order. Because we find that the evidence does not preponderate against the trial court's denial of the order in this case, we affirm the trial court. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/collinsa.wpd WADE CUMMINS, et al. v. OPRYLAND PRODUCTIONS Court:TCA Attorneys: Bryan E. Pieper, Nashville, Tennessee for the appellants, Wade Cummins, Gordon Stoker, Ray Walker, Neil Matthews, Duane West, Sandy Posey, Mary Fielder, Mike Schrimpf, Roger Bradley and Keith Ellis. L. Webb Campbell, William L. Harbison, and J. Scott Hickman, Nashville, Tennessee, for appellee, Opryland Productions. Judge: COTTRELL First Paragraph: This case involves the alleged breach of an oral contract and a claim of negligent misrepresentation. Defendant's agent contacted the plaintiffs, an Elvis impersonator, the members of his band, and members of the Jordanaires to book them for a performance nine months hence. Plaintiffs reserved the time, but no written agreement was ever executed. Weeks before the performance, Defendant informed Plaintiffs that their services would not be required. Plaintiffs sued alleging breach of an oral contract and negligent misrepresentation and now appeal the trial court's decision to grant summary judgment to Defendant on both issues. We affirm in part and reverse in part. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/cumminsw.wpd KELLY RAE GRAY v. DAVID WAYNE GRAY Court:TCA Attorneys: M. Keith Siskin, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, for the appellant, David Wayne Gray. William W. Burton, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, for the appellee, Kelly Rae Gray. Judge: CANTRELL First Paragraph: This is an appeal from a trial court order regarding child support. The trial court ordered the Father, with whom the children spend the night, to make child support payments to the Mother, who picks the children up from school, feeds them supper, and supervises them until 6:00 p.m. The Father appealed on the grounds that he as the custodial parent cannot be ordered to pay child support payments to the non-custodial parent. We affirm the trial court's order. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/graykr.wpd IN RE: K.D.D. (DOB 9/20/96) and B.T.D. (DOB 1/13/98) Court:TCA Attorneys: Dean Robinson and S. Nixon Pressley, Mt. Juliet, Tennessee, for the appellant, A.D. Jo Ann Aulds, Lebanon, Tennessee, for the appellees, J.D. and J.L.D. Judge: CANTRELL First Paragraph: The Juvenile Court terminated the parental rights of a mother to her young children. The mother appealed, arguing that she was not given an adequate opportunity to defend those rights. We find that she voluntarily failed to avail herself of the opportunities that were offered to her, and we affirm the trial court. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/kddbtd.wpd PAMELA LYNN LEWIS v. ANDREW ROBERT FRANCES Court:TCA Attorneys: Fred C. Dance, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Andrew Robert Frances. Sawnie R. Aldredge, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellee, Pamela Lynn Lewis. Judge: COTTRELL First Paragraph: In this divorce case, Husband appeals from the trial court's decisions classifying, valuing, and dividing the parties' property incident to their divorce and asserts that he is entitled to an award much greater than the $250,000 granted to him by the trial court. Wife also appeals the trial court's classification and distribution of property, asserting that Husband was not entitled to any portion of her separate property and that there was no marital property. An additional issue was raised by a post-judgment ruling by a successor trial judge setting aside the order of the prior judge declaring the parties divorced. We affirm the divorce and reverse the award to Husband. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/lewisp.wpd HERMAN MAJORS, JR. v. DETECTIVE JAMES SMITH Court:TCA Attorneys: Herman Majors, Jr., Only, Tennessee, Pro Se. David Haines, Clarksville, Tennessee, for the appellee, Detective James Smith. Judge: CANTRELL First Paragraph: A man indicted for robbing a convenience store was ultimately acquitted of the crime. He subsequently filed a malicious prosecution suit against the detective who arrested him. The trial court granted summary judgment to the defendant detective. We affirm. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/majorsh.wpd SANDRA MITCHELL v. MARC J. KAYEM, M.D., et al. Court:TCA Attorneys: Thomas W. Lawrence, JR. and R. Blake Menzel, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Marc J. Kayem, M.D. Tracy W. Moore, Columbia, Tennessee, for the appellee, Sandra Mitchell. Judge: FARMER First Paragraph: Patient with a history of papillary carcinoma underwent a fine needle aspiration which confirmed a diagnosis of cancer in her neck region. Patient underwent surgery to remove the cancerous tissue which resulted in hypoparathyroidism and injury to her recurrent laryngeal nerve, risks commonly associated with the procedure. Patient brought informed consent action against doctor, claiming that, had the inherent risks of the procedure been disclosed to her, she would have sought a second opinion and had the procedure performed at a different facility by a different surgeon. The doctor moved for summary judgment, which the trial court denied. Finding there are no material, disputed facts remaining, we reverse and remand. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/mitchellsandra.wpd SECOND CHANCE FARMS, INC. v. PERRY COUNTY, TENNESSEE Court:TCA Attorneys: James D. Kay, Jr. and John B. Enkema, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Second Chance Farms, Inc. Tommy E. Doyle, Linden, Tennessee, for the appellee, Perry County, Tennessee. Judge: CAIN First Paragraph: This case is before this Court on appeal from the Chancery Court for Perry County wherein cross-motions for summary judgment were filed. The Defendant's motion for summary judgment was granted. The trial court concluded that there were no genuine issues of material fact such that Defendant was entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law on its counter-claim against Plaintiff finding that Daniel's Landing Road is a public road. The standard of review is clear, we review the decision of the trial court de novo with no presumption of correctness on appeal. The issue on appeal is whether Daniel's Landing Road is a public road and, if so, whether it remains a public road absent abandonment or closing pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated Sections 54-10-201, et seq. We conclude that Daniel's Landing Road is a public road and affirm the trial court. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/secondchancef.wpd ANTHONY GALE WIX v. CATHY MARIE WIX Court:TCA Attorneys: Christopher L. Dunn, Columbia, Tennessee, for the appellant, Anthony Gale Wix. Michael E. Spitzer, Hohenwald, Tennessee, for the appellee, Cathy Marie Wix. Judge: KOCH First Paragraph: This appeal involves the dissolution of an eighteen-year marriage by the Chancery Court for Lewis County. The trial court awarded the wife the divorce after concluding that the husband's continuing extramarital affair amounted to inappropriate marital conduct. To protect the "moral integrity of the marital relationship," the trial court granted the wife sole custody of the parties' two minor children and declined to grant the husband any visitation rights. In addition, the trial court ordered the husband to pay more than the minimum child support required by the child support guidelines because he was willfully underemployed and because he would not be exercising standard visitation with the children. The husband asserts on this appeal that the trial court's decisions with regard to custody and visitation, child support, and the division of the marital estate lack evidentiary support. We have determined that the trial court's disapproval of the husband's extramarital affair inappropriately colored its decisions regarding visitation and child support. Accordingly, we affirm the manner in which the trial court divided the parties' marital estate and reverse the trial court's visitation and child support awards. http://www.tba.org/tba_files/TCA/wixag.wpd PLEASE FORWARD THIS E-MAIL! 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! 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