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Amendments to Rules of Criminal Procedure adopted
The Tennessee Supreme Court has adopted amendments to the Tennessee Rules of Criminal Procedure that include a complete reformatting and revision of many comments. The rules, if ratified by resolution of the Tennessee General Assembly, will be effective July 1.
The TBA had joined the Tennessee Public Defenders' Conference in recommending two changes in the proposal. The first, correcting an inaccurate reference, was adopted. By separate action the court referred the second proposal -- to rewrite Rule 4 dealing with summons and warrants, to conform better to the statutory scheme -- to the Advisory Commission.
Read a complete set of the proposed rules here or download a PDF version.
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TODAY'S OPINIONS
Click on the category of your choice to view summaries of today’s opinions from that court, or other body. A link at the end of each case summary will let you download the full opinion in PDF format. To search all opinions in the TBALink database, go to our OpinionSearch page. If you have forgotten your password or need to obtain a password, you can look it up on TBALink at http://www.tba.org/getpassword.mgi.
00 - TN Supreme Court
01 - TN Worker's Comp Appeals
00 - TN Supreme Court - Rules
03 - TN Court of Appeals
02 - 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
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CHARLES H. SHELL, ET AL. v. CATERPILLAR PRECISION
Court: TWCA
Attorneys:
Jeff Mueller, Jackson, Tennessee, for the appellant, Charles H. Shell.
R. Dale Thomas, and Geoffrey A. Lindley, Jackson, Tennessee, for the appellees Caterpillar Precision Machined Castings.
Judge: RON E. HARMON
This workers' compensation appeal has been referred to the Special Workers' Compensaton Appeals Panel of the Supreme Court in accordance with Tenn. Code Ann. §50-6-225(e)(3) for hearing and reporting to the Supreme Court of findings of fact and conclusions of law. In this appeal, the employee asserts the trial court erred in finding that the employee's back surgery and resulting disability were not causally related to the February 28, 2002, work injury. We conclude that the evidence presented supports the findings of the trial judge and, in accordance with Tennessee Code Annotated §50-6-225(e)(2), affirm the judgment of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC_WCP/2006/shellc011906.pdf
THE CADCO, LLC, ET AL. v. OLIVER A. BARRY, ET AL.
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
G. Kline Preston, IV, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellants, The Cadco, LLC and Edgar Vivian Lythgoe.
David B. Scott, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellees, Oliver A. Barry and Crye-Leike, Inc.
Judge: PATRICIA J. COTTRELL
Purchaser of real property claimed that the estimated square footage figure provided by seller’s real property agent was an actionable misrepresentation and was deceptive under the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act, Tenn. Code Ann. § 47-18-104. The trial court granted defendant’s motion for directed verdict at conclusion of plaintiff’s proof, and we affirm.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2006/cadco011906.pdf
DONITA DALE DOWDEN v. RONALD J. FEIBUS
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Ronald J. Berke, Chattanooga, Tennessee for the Appellant, Ronald J. Feibus.
Bruce C. Bailey, Chattanooga, Tennessee for the Appellee, Donita Dale Dowden.
Judge: D. MICHAEL SWINEY
After fourteen years of marriage, Donita Dale Dowden (“Wife”) sued Ronald J. Feibus (“Husband”) for a divorce. After trial, the Trial Court entered its Final Decree, inter alia, awarding Wife a divorce, dividing the parties’ marital property, and ordering Husband to pay Wife alimony in futuro of $1,000 per month. Husband appeals claiming that the Trial Court erred in awarding Wife alimony in futuro instead of rehabilitative alimony, in awarding Wife 50% of Husband’s federal pension when a portion of that pension was earned prior to the marriage, and in dividing an award that Husband received from a personal injury lawsuit. We affirm.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2006/dowdendd011906.pdf
ALFRED JOE HILL v. TENNESSEE DEPARTMENT OF CORRECTION, ET AL.
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Alfred Joe Hill, Pro Se.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter, Michael E. Moore, Solicitor General and Mark A. Hudson, Senior Counsel, for the Tennessee Department of Correction.
Judge: DAVID R. FARMER
Inmate filed a petition for certiorari contesting his housing placement while incarcerated at WTSP. The trial court dismissed the petition under the doctrine of mootness in view of the fact that inmate, during the course of the proceedings below was incarcerated at another penal institute. The trial court further determined that the placement in housing was an administrative decision by the prison authorities and Petitioner’s rights were not violated by their decision. We affirm the dismissal under the doctrine of mootness.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2006/hilla011906.pdf
JOSEPH BROWN v. STATE OF TENNESSEE
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Travis B. Butler (on appeal) and Michael E. New (at trial), Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellant, Joseph Brown.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; David E. Coenen, Assistant Attorney General; William L. Gibbons, District Attorney General; and Reginald Henderson, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: NORMA MCGEE OGLE
The petitioner, Joseph Brown, pled guilty in the Shelby County Criminal Court to facilitation of first degree murder and two counts of especially aggravated kidnapping. The trial court sentenced him to fifteen years for each conviction and ordered that the sentences be served concurrently. Subsequently, the petitioner filed a petition for post-conviction relief, claiming that he did not knowing, intelligently, and voluntarily enter his guilty pleas. The post-conviction court denied relief. Upon review of the record and the parties’ briefs, we must dismiss the petitioner’s appeal for lack of jurisdiction.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2006/brownj011906.pdf
RANDALL CARVER v. TONY PARKER, WARDEN
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Randall Carver, Fredonia, Kentucky, Pro se.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Seth P. Kestner, Assistant Attorney General; and C. Phillip Bivens, District Attorney General; for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: NORMA MCGEE OGLE
The petitioner, Randall Carver, pled guilty in the Sumner County Criminal Court to one count of attempted especially aggravated kidnapping and aggravated assault. He received a total effective sentence of eight years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. Subsequently, the petitioner filed a petition for a writ of habeas corpus in the Lake County Circuit Court. The habeas corpus court denied the petition, and the petitioner now appeals. Upon our review of the record and the parties’ briefs, we remand the case to the habeas corpus court for further proceedings consistent with this opinion.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2006/carverr011906.pdf
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| TODAY'S NEWS |
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Legal News
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TBA Member Services
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| Legal News |
| Newspaper votes for Jackson |
| The Knoxville News Sentinel endorsed Andy Jackson today to fill the Sessions Court seat of Brenda Waggoner, who stepped down this month. The paper makes the recommendation based on Jackson's high marks in a Knoxville Bar Association poll. |
0,1406,KNS_362_4397700,00.html
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| Black Caucus broke no laws, attorney general finds |
| A state attorney general's opinion dealing with two black legislator organizations found no indication of laws being broken, while providing no answer to some of the questions posed, says the Knoxville News Sentinel. |
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| Historical Society has new site |
| The Tennessee Supreme Court Historical Society now has a web site. Check it out at |
http://www.tschs.net
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| BPR Actions |
| Nashville lawyer publicly censured |
| Nashville lawyer Charles William Cherry was publicly censured by the Tennessee Supreme Court yesterday for failing to keep adequate time records to support billing claims he filed with the Administrative Office of the Courts. |
cherry_01_19_06.pdf
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| Legislative News |
| Track legislation of interest to Tennessee attorneys |
| The TBA Action List tracks bills in the General Assembly that the TBA has a direct interest in. This means it has either initiated the legislation, taken a position on the bill or has a policy on the issue. The TBA Watch List is a broader list of bills of interest to the Tennessee legal community.
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| Discounts from Office Depot |
| Are you saving yet? Sign up for the TBA-Office Depot Program and begin saving. TBA Members receive significant discounts on office supplies from Office Depot. |
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