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TennBarU online offers almost 30 interactive text courses and close to 100 interactive video programs.    TODAY'S OPINIONS: Friday, December 30, 2005 Following this index are summaries of each case, including its name, first paragraph, author's name, and the names of attorneys for the parties of each opinion. 00 - TN Supreme Court 00 - TN Worker's Comp Appeals 00 - TN Supreme Court - Rules 04 - TN Court of Appeals 00 - TN Court of Criminal Appeals 00 - TN Attorney General Opinions 00 - Judicial Ethics Opinions 00 - Formal Ethics Opinions - BPR TBA members can get the full-text versions of these opinions three ways detailed below. All methods require a TBA username and password. If you have forgotten your password or need to obtain a password, you can look it up on-line at http://www.tba.org/getpassword.mgi Here's how you can obtain full-text version. We recommend you download the Opinions to your computer and then open them from there. Click the URL at end of each Opinion paragraph below. This should give you the option to download the original document. If not, you may need to right-click on the URL to get the option to save the file to your computer. 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. Howard H. Vogel Knoxville, Tennessee Editor-in-Chief, TBALink SHARON BAILEY v. AMERICAN GENERAL LIFE AND ACCIDENT INSURANCE COMPANY, ET AL. Court: TCA Attorneys: Peter T. Skeie, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Sharon Bailey. Vanessa Griffith, Houston, Texas; Eric Stevens, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellee, American General Life and Accident Insurance Company. Judge: COTTRELL An unsuccessful party to an arbitration proceeding appeals the trial court’s confirmation of the arbitration decision. The challenge is based on alleged ambiguities in the agreement to arbitrate and alleged failure by the arbitrator to disclose potential conflicts. We affirm the trial court’s confirmation. http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2005/baileys_123005.pdf WAYNE DAVIDSON v. CHARLES TRAUGHBER, ET AL. Court: TCA Attorneys: Wayne Davidson, Nashville, Tennessee, Pro Se. Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; and Arthur Crownover II, Senior Counsel, forthe appellee, State of Tennessee. Judge: CAIN Plaintiff inmate filed a petition with the Tennessee Department of Corrections for a declaratoryruling that he was entitled to a parole hearing. Upon denial of his petition, Plaintiff inmate filed an action against two Tennessee Board of Probation and Parole employees, seeking judicialreview of the denial of his petition. The trial court granted Defendants’ motion for summary judgment based upon the expiration of the statute of limitations. Plaintiff inmate appeals and weaffirm the decision of the trial court. http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2005/davidsonw_123005.pdf NASHVILLE FORD TRACTOR, INC. v. GREAT AMERICANINSURANCE COMPANY Court: TCA Attorneys: Arthur E. McClellan and Jade A. Rogers, Gallatin, Tennessee, for the appellant, Great AmericanInsurance Co John R. Reynolds, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellee, Nashville Ford Tractor, Inc. Judge: KOCH This appeal involves a dispute over the payment for leased construction equipment used on twosewer projects for the City of Gallatin. The general contractor was required to take over and complete the work after a subcontractor and sub-subcontractor defaulted. Thereafter, thecompany that had leased three pieces of construction equipment to the subcontractor and subsubcontractor submitted claims for payment to the general contractor and the contractor’sbonding company. The general contractor declined to pay for the equipment and filed suit for breach of contract against the subcontractor in the Circuit Court for Sumner County. Thecontractor also sought a declaratory judgment regarding its rights, as well as those of its bonding company, the subcontractor, and the City, under the construction contract, the subcontracts, andthe payment bond. Following a two-day bench trial, the trial court awarded the equipment leasing company a $38,399 judgment against the bonding company and the sub-subcontractorand a $29,232 judgment against the subcontractor. The court also denied the equipment leasing company’s request for pre-judgment interest because it had intentionally falsified documentsduring the collection process. The bonding company appealed. We have determined that the trial court erred by failing to dismiss all of the equipment leasing company’s claims against thepayment bond after expressly finding that the leasing company had committed fraud during the claims process. Accordingly, we reverse the judgment against the contractor’s surety. http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2005/nashvilleford_123005.pdf IN RE: SENTINEL TRUST COMPANY Court: TCA Attorneys: Carroll D. Kilgore of Nashville, Tennessee for Appellants, Sentinel Trust Company, Danny N.Bates, Clifton T. Bates, Howard H. Cochran, and Gary L. O'Brien Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Michael E. Moore, Solicitor General, JanetM. Kleinfelter, Senior Counsel for Appellee, Commissioner Kevin P. Lavender, Tennessee Department of Financial Institutions J. Graham Matherne of Nashville, Tennessee for Appellees, Commissioner Kevin P. Lavenderand Receivership Management, Inc., Receiver for Sentinel Trust Company Judge: CRAWFORD This appeal involves three cases consolidated for oral argument. Because of the duplication ofthe major issues in the cases, we consolidate the cases into one opinion. The Commissioner of the Tennessee Department of Financial Institutions, acting on statutory authority, tookemergency possession of a Tennessee trust company, filing due notice of such action in the Chancery Court of Lewis County. Subsequently, the Commissioner gave notice, as required bystatute, of the liquidation of the company, which was commenced in the Chancery Court of Lewis County. The company filed a petition for writ of certiorari and supersedeas in theChancery Court of Davidson County. The court denied the petition for supersedeas and dismissed the writ of certiorari. Appellants appeal. We affirm. In the Lewis County ChanceryCourt proceeding, the court approved the transfer by the Commissioner of the various fiduciary accounts administered by the company and other assets of the company, and the appellantsappeal. We affirm. Included in the disposition of the property was real estate located in Bellevue, and the Commissioner filed a motion in the Lewis County Chancery Court forapproval of the sale of this real estate. Objections were filed to the Bellevue sale motion. The court, after hearing proof, approved the sale. Appellants filed separate appeals. We affirm. http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2005/sentinel_123005.pdf   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! See the instructions at the beginning of this edition of Opinion Flash. JOIN THE TENNESSEE BAR ASSOCIATION! 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