Stay current with legal news in Tennessee. This page features the latest news for and about the Tennessee legal community, either produced by the Tennessee Bar Association or collected from news sources.
The Memphis Daily News reports that Shelby County District Attorney General Amy Weirich and U.S. Attorney Ed Stanton have joined forces to handle cases that cross state-federal boundaries. Weirich and Stanton talked about the partnership, which includes an anti-gang initiative and focus on gun crimes, during a program called “Behind The Headlines” on WKNO TV.
U.S. Magistrate Clifford Shirley has responded to some of the motions filed in the trial against former Knox County Criminal Court Judge Richard Baumgartner, who was indicted in May on seven charges of misprision of a felony. Shirley suggested in a written filing late last week that certain evidence against Baumgartner should be allowed in court. WBIR has more
New Circuit Court Judge Nathan Blake Pride was sworn into office on Tuesday as the first black judge to serve the 26th Judicial District. The oath was administered by Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Roger Page, who previously held the seat. Local attorney Terica Smith with West Tennessee Legal Services was on hand and called Tuesday “an historic day.” Read more and see photos of the event in the Jackson Sun.
Writing in the Knoxville News Sentinel today, columnist Greg Johnson looks at Sevier County native Gary Wade’s rise from city government to his newest position as chief justice of the Tennessee Supreme Court. He also recounts Wade’s longstanding commitment to the improvement of East Tennessee communities. A separate piece in the Mountian Times praises Wade's service and suggests that the state is in good hands while he in on the bench.
DORIS HINKLE, ET AL. v. KINDRED HOSPITAL, ET AL. With a concurring in part and dissenting in part opinion
Court: TN Court of Appeals
Attorneys:
Bede O. M. Anyanwu, Jackson, Tennessee, for the appellant, Doris Hinkle, Executrix of the estate of Muriel Jesse Hinkle deceased, and Doris Hinkle.
Heidi Anne Barcus, Hillary Browning Jones, Daniel T. Swanson, Knoxville, Tennessee, for the appellee, Dr. Tuan Quoc Nguyen; Harry Peoples Ogden, Kenny L. Saffles, Carrie C. McCutcheon, Knoxville, Tennessee, for the appellee, Kindred Hospital.
Judge: COTTRELL
The widow of a man who suffered a devastating injury while undergoing a medical procedure in the defendant hospital filed suit against the hospital and the doctor who ordered the procedure, claiming medical malpractice, failure to obtain informed consent, and battery. The defendant hospital filed a motion for summary judgment, and the defendant doctor filed a motion to dismiss, both arguing that the plaintiff’s malpractice claims had to be dismissed because she failed to strictly comply with requirements of the Medical Malpractice Act, specifically Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-26-121 (a)(1) (60-day notice) and §29-26-122(a) (certificate of good faith). The trial court granted both motions in part and denied them in part. We reverse the trial court’s dismissal of the medical malpractice claims against both defendants as well as the related claims. We also reverse the trial court’s dismissal of the claim against the defendant doctor for failure to obtain the patient’s informed consent, but we affirm its dismissal of the medical battery claim against the defendant doctor.
JEFFERY SMITH and BRENDA K. SMITH v. METHODIST HOSPITALS OF MEMPHIS, ET AL.
Court: TN Court of Appeals
Attorneys:
Lenal Anderson, Jr., Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellants, Jeffery Smith and Brenda K. Smith
Jill Steinberg, John R. Branson, Mason W. Wilson, Ormonde B. DeAllaume, Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellee, Methodist Healthcare - Memphis Hospitals
Judge: HIGHERS
This lawsuit originated as a medical malpractice action that was filed against the Hospital and other defendants in 2000. The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of the Hospital on the medical malpractice claim in 2003 because Plaintiffs had failed to come forward with competent testimony from a medical doctor regarding causation. Thereafter, Plaintiffs filed a supplemental complaint to allege that the Hospital had tortiously interfered with the Plaintiffs’ contract with a nurse expert witness. The trial court granted summary judgment in favor of the Hospital on this claim in 2010. Plaintiffs appealed. We affirm the trial court’s order granting summary judgment on the issue of tortious interference with contract, but we reverse the trial court’s order granting summary judgment on the medical malpractice claim and remand for further proceedings
ANNA PARKER, ADMINISTRATOR OF ESTATE OF WANDA FAYE DOBBS, DECEASED ET AL. v. PORTLAND NURSING & NURSING REHAB ET AL.
Court: TN Court of Appeals
Attorneys:
Deborah Truby Riordan, Little Rock, Arkansas; Cameron C. Jehl and Carey L. Acerra, Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellant, Anna Parker, Administrator of the Estate of Wanda Faye Dobbs, deceased, and on behalf of the wrongful death beneficiaries of Wanda Faye Dobbs.
Heidi A. Barcus, Jennifer Pearson Taylor, and Ian P. Hennessey, Knoxville, Tennessee, for the appellees, Portland Nursing and Rehab Center, Inc. D/b/a Highland Manor Nursing & Rehab Center, Sunbelt Health Care Centers, Inc. A/k/a Adventist Care Centers, Adventist Health System Sunbelt Healthcare Corporation, and Adventist Health System/Sunbelt, Inc.
Judge: CLEMENT
In this action, the plaintiff has attempted to assert claims for ordinary negligence and medical malpractice against nursing home defendants by filing two separate actions and then seeking to consolidate the cases or to amend the complaint to assert both types of claims in one case. The first complaint filed only asserted claims for ordinary negligence against the nursing home defendants. Sixty days after having given the statutory notice to the healthcare providers of her intent to file medical malpractice claims, the plaintiff commenced a separate action against the same nursing home defendants and an additional defendant, a physician who treated the nursing home patient, by filing a complaint for medical malpractice. Upon motions of the nursing home defendants, the trial court refused to consolidate the cases, dismissed the medical malpractice claims against the nursing home defendants upon the ground of a prior suit pending, and denied the plaintiff’s motion to amend the complaint in the first case to add claims for medical malpractice against the nursing home defendants. Having determined that the plaintiff complied with Tennessee Code Annotated § 29-26- 121(a) by giving the requisite 60 days notice to the medical providers and that the statute of limitations had not run, we have concluded that the trial court erred in denying the plaintiff’s Tennessee Rule of Civil Procedure 15.01 motion to amend the complaint. Accordingly, we reverse and remand with instructions to grant the plaintiff’s motion to amend the complaint for ordinary negligence against the nursing home defendants thus allowing the plaintiff to assert medical malpractice claims against the nursing home defendants and for further proceedings consistent with this opinion
The Tennessee Supreme Court today named Lisa Perlen as the new administrator of the Board of Law Examiners. Perlen has been with the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Middle District of Tennessee for 18 years. She served as Chief Deputy Clerk and has been on national court committees to determine best practices for the federal court system. Read more
The Tennessee Supreme Court has been asked to appoint a special judge to oversee a $9.9 million lawsuit filed against Sullivan County by county sheriff Wayne Anderson. All local chancery and circuit judges recused themselves. Anderson is seeking additional resources to fund the county jail and sheriff’s office as, according to him, he is charged to do by state law. On the defense side, the county attorney also has stepped aside, saying it is a conflict of interest to represent one agency of the county against another. The Times News has more
Nashville artists and members of the legal community are uniting for an evening of music, dinner, drinks and a silent auction on Sept. 13, beginning at 5:30 p.m. at 3rd and Lindsley. All proceeds will benefit the Robert L. Sullivan Scholarship at Vanderbilt Law School, which honors the late attorney’s commitment to legal aid. Learn more about the event or get tickets
Memphis lawyer Shelley Rothman-Branning was suspended on Aug. 31 for 11 months and 29 days. Of that time, 60 days are to be spent on active suspension with the remainder spent on probation. The Tennessee Supreme Court found that Rothman-Branning violated the Rules of Professional Conduct by agreeing to use previously disbursed and unclaimed funds in her firm’s trust account to pay law firm operating expenses. She voluntarily reported her actions and submitted a conditional guilty plea. She also replaced the funds and disbursed them properly, resulting in no financial loss to third persons. In addition to the suspension, the court ordered her to perform 40 hours of pro bono work. Download the BPR release
Chief Disciplinary Counsel Nancy Jones is leaving the Board of Professional Responsibility to become General Counsel at the Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance. Jones, who has led the BPR since 2007, will leave the organization on Sept. 30. Under Jones' leadership, the BPR investigated over 11,866 complaints against attorneys alleging professional misconduct. Almost 2,000 of those cases resulted in some form of public or private discipline of attorneys by the board, including 66 disbarments, 205 public reprimands and 173 suspensions. Read the press release from the courts.
Don't miss the September Tennessee Bar Journal, featuring two articles on arbitration. One, by Adam Eckstein, explores when Rule 31 and the Tennessee Uniform Arbitration Act meet; the second, by Shelby R. Grubbs and Glenn P. Hendrix, unveils a new international concept for arbitration services. Columnists Marlene Eskind Moses and Beth A. Townsend give you ideas for finding hidden assest in divorces, and John A. Day discusses distribution of net proceeds in wrongful death cases. Humor columnist Bill Haltom pays tribute to a queen and a princess -- Pat Summitt and the influence she has had on his daughter and many other girls. President Jackie Dixon speaks out about merit selection. You probably already have it in hand, but you can also read it online here
Memphis lawyer Michael E. Latimore was disbarred by the Tennessee Supreme Court Aug. 31. He failed to account for settlement proceeds and to make timely distribution to a third party; used the settlement funds for his personal benefit; failed to communicate with his clients; and then abandoned his practice. Download the BPR release
State Sen. Stacey Campfield, R-Knoxville, is in the middle of a four-year term but Knox County Commissioner Richard Briggs has expressed new interest in seeking his 7th Senate District seat in 2014, the News Sentinel reports. Briggs, a Repubilcan, is a cardiothoracic surgeon and retired Army colonel who has served in active and reserve units. He says he will wait until after the Nov. 6 elections before making a decision.
The Shelby County Commission's chair-elect says the county may not be willing to pay for the federally mandated overhaul of Shelby County Juvenile Court since they were not consulted sooner. "If, in fact, you expect us to help with a bunch of money, why would you not have included us in the process?" Mike Ritz said. The proposed changes, which could run into the millions of dollars, would create new positions, including full-time juvenile public defenders and a court-based disproportionate minority contact coordinator who would work to reduce the number of black youths brought to court, held in jail and transferred to adult court. DOJ staff attorneys are expected to return to Memphis this fall to work on a "comprehensive blueprint" with Juvenile Court staff, the Commercial Appeal reports.
A series of court battles in several states may determine, over the next several weeks, everything from how people cast their votes, when polling locations will be open and what ballots will look like. Many cases have a partisan bent, with rulings potentially tipping the scales slightly in favor of Democrats or Republicans. WMCT has this AP story
In this interview with the Memphis Flyer, Ed Stanton III talks about the politics of what he calls his "apolitical role" as United States attorney for the Western District. In addition, he discusses the Fayette County and Shelby County schools cases, and domestic and international terrorism.
Carl E. Colloms retired last week from a legal career he began as a young lawyer in 1966. Since then his courtroom career has ranged from Bradley County attorney to Charleston city judge, six years as a trial lawyer and, finally, many years as the child support master for family courts in Bradley, Polk, Monroe and McMinn counties. "Things have changed a whole lot since 1974," Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Sharon Lee told the crowded room of how Collums was the only Republican elected in Bradley County then. "I didn't always win my cases before Judge Colloms," Lee said. "Sometimes I went back to my office and my client went to jail. But I never left feeling disappointed or that justice was not served." The Times Free Press was there
The University of Memphis is restoring full funding to its student newspaper after an internal review found the newspaper's content may have been a factor in its funding being cut, WDEF reports. University President Shirley Raines ordered the review after staff members at the Daily Helmsman criticized the budget committee's recommendation to cut funding as a violation of the First Amendment. Raines said in a statement Friday that interviews with members of the Student Fee Allocation Fund Committee found that newspaper content was discussed, which led to the appearance that it may have been a factor in the recommendation.
