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TBA SearchLink now more powerful than ever
Our new Google search engine allows TBA members to search our database of Tennessee appellate court decisions from 1995, attorney general opinions from 2001, Tennessee Bar Journal articles from 1996 and more. In addition, you can open a text version of all opinions, whether they were created in Word Perfect or PDF format.
http://www.tba.org/tba_searchlink.html
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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
00 - TN Worker's Comp Appeals
00 - TN Supreme Court - Rules
03 - TN Court of Appeals
04 - 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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LINDA L. EVANS v. AUDREY H. EVANS
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Scarlett Beaty Latham, Albany, Kentucky, for appellant.
Johnny V. Dunaway, LaFollette, Tennessee, for appellee.
Judge: FRANKS
In this divorce action, the parties announced a property settlement in open court which settlement
was made a part of the Divorce Decree. Defendant filed a Tenn. R. Civ. P. 60 Motion to Set Aside
Divorce and to reopen the issue of the property settlement which the Trial Court refused. On appeal,
we affirm.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2006/evansl071806.pdf
STEPHANIE J. PATE v. SAMUEL D. PATE
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Michelle L. Betserai, Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellant, Samuel D. Pate.
Bradley W. Eskins, Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellee, Stephanie J. Pate.
Judge: KIRBY
This is a divorce involving the classification of property as "marital" or "separate." The parties were
married in 1986. In 1998, the wife received a substantial inheritance. She used a portion of the
inheritance to pay off the mortgage on the marital home, to purchase undeveloped property adjacent
to the marital home, and to purchase a vehicle. Later, the parties separated and the marital home was
sold. From the proceeds of the sale, the wife received her separate contribution to the property, as
well as half of the profit earned on the property. She used her proceeds to purchase another home.
The husband's name was on the title of the new home, but he was not an obligor on the mortgage.
The parties made an unsuccessful attempt to reconcile, and subsequently filed cross petitions for
divorce. They resolved all issues, except for the classification and division of certain property that
was titled in both parties' names but purchased with the wife's inheritance. After a hearing, the trial
court found that the wife did not intend to transmute any of her inheritance into marital property.
Based on this finding, the trial court determined that the parties had already equitably divided their
interest in the marital property, and that there was no property left to divide. From this order, the
husband now appeals. We affirm in part, reverse in part, and remand for further proceedings.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2006/pates071806.pdf
FRANK TRUNDLE, JR., and KATHY TRUNDLE v. EDWARD PARK
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
George A. Dean, Nashville, Tennessee, for appellant.
Marvin Berke and Megan C. England, Chattanooga, Tennessee, for appellees.
Judge: FRANKS
The Chancellor ordered demolition of defendant's dwelling on the ground that it was in violation
of restrictive covenants, and awarded discretionary costs to plaintiffs. We affirm in part and vacate
in part.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2006/trundlef071806.pdf
CHARLES ARNOLD BALLINGER v. STATE OF TENNESSEE
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
A. Wayne Carter, Cleveland, Tennessee, for the appellant, Charles Arnold Ballinger.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Renee W. Turner, Assistant Attorney General;
and Stephen Crump, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: OGLE
The petitioner, Charles Arnold Ballinger, appeals the Bradley County Criminal Court's denial of his
petition for post-conviction relief from his guilty plea to sexual battery by an authority figure and
resulting six-year sentence as a Range II, multiple offender. He contends that he received the
ineffective assistance of counsel and that his guilty plea was involuntary. Upon review of the record
and the parties' briefs, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2006/ballingerc071806.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. MICHAEL E. BUNTING
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
William A. Kennedy, Assistant Public Defender, Blountville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Michael
E. Bunting.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Leslie Price, Assistant Attorney General; H.
Greeley Wells, District Attorney General; and J. Lewis Combs, Assistant District Attorney General,
for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WELLES
The Defendant, Michael E. Bunting, was convicted by a Sullivan County jury of possession of less
than .5 grams of cocaine for resale, and he subsequently pled guilty to felony failure to appear.
Following a joint sentencing hearing for these two convictions, the trial court imposed an effective
twenty-one-year sentence as a Range III, persistent offender to be served in the Department of
Correction. In this appeal as of right, the Defendant argues that: (1) the evidence is insufficient to support his cocaine possession conviction, and (2) a sentence of community corrections was
appropriate, and his sentences were improperly enhanced in violation of Blakely v. Washington, 542
U.S. 296 (2004). After a review of the record, the judgments of conviction and resulting sentences
are affirmed.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2006/buntingm071806.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. KENNETH C. DAILEY, III
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
J. Carlton Drumwright, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Kenneth C. Dailey, III.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Preston Shipp, Assistant Attorney General; Victor
S. (Torry) Johnson, III, District Attorney General; Pamela Sue Anderson, Assistant District Attorney
General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
The defendant, Kenneth C. Dailey, III, pled guilty in the Criminal Court of Davidson County,
Tennessee, to the charge of second degree murder (Class A felony), reserving a certified question
of law pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 37(b)(2)(I) and agreed to a thirty-year
sentence as a Range II, violent offender, to serve 100% of his sentence. The certified question relates
to the defendant's confession and whether it is inadmissible against the defendant because he was
in custody and was not properly Mirandized. We conclude the record before us does not demonstrate
that the certified question is dispositive of the case, and we dismiss the appeal.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2006/daileyk071806.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. HENRY A. EDMONDSON, JR.
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Ross E. Alderman, District Public Defender; Jeffrey A. Devasher (on appeal) and Jennifer Lichstein
(at hearing), Assistant Public Defenders, for the appellant, Henry A. Edmondson, Jr.
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; C. Daniel Lins, Assistant Attorney General;
Victor S. (Torry) Johnson, III, District Attorney General; and Kathy Morante, Assistant DistrictAttorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: TIPTON
A Davidson County Criminal Court jury convicted the defendant, Henry A. Edmondson, Jr., of
carjacking, a Class B felony. The trial court sentenced the defendant as a Range II, multiple offender
to twenty years to be served in the Department of Correction. The defendant appeals, claiming (1)
that the evidence was insufficient to support the verdict, (2) that the trial court erred in not granting
his motion to suppress, (3) that the trial court erred in its instruction to the jury on possession, and
(4) that the trial court erred in sentencing him. We conclude that although the trial court erred in
charging the jury on the definition of possession, the error was harmless. We affirm the judgment
of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2006/edmondsonh071806.pdf
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| TODAY'S NEWS |
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Legal News
Election 2006
Passages
TBA Member Services
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| Legal News |
| Justice asks for shippers' records |
| The U.S. Justice Department has subpoenaed business records from FedEx Corp. and UPS Inc. as part of a broad investigation into possible antitrust violations in the air cargo industry. The investigation is believed to focus on allegations of industry collusion in the U.S. and Europe to fix prices on surcharges for fuel. Airline passenger fees also are being investigated. Memphis-based FedEx said it would cooperate with investigators.
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The Memphis Commercial Appeal has the story
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| Gun docket centralizes cases |
| Anyone caught carrying a gun illegally in Shelby County will get special attention from the criminal justice system starting next month. Criminal Court Judge Louis Montesi Jr. will hear all illegal gun cases in general sessions court on a special "gun docket" beginning Aug. 1. The move is the centerpiece of an initiative to get tougher and more consistent on illegal gun possession.
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Read more in the Commercial Appeal.
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| Metro pledges to fix courthouse |
| Metro officials have vowed that complaints about the new $50 million Justice A.A. Birch building will be resolved, but how serious the problems are -- and how easily they can be corrected -- depends on who you talk to.
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Follow the latest in this continuing story in the Tennessean
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| Kingsport bar elects new officers |
| The Kingsport Bar Association has elected new officers for the coming bar year. They are: President David Blankenship; President-Elect J. (Mike) Billingsley with the City of Kingsport; Vice President Don Mason of Shine & Mason; Secretary Jimmie Miller of Hunter, Smith & Davis LLP; and Treasurer Steve Huret with Wilson, Worley, Moore, Gamble & Stout PC.
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| Q&A with TTLA head |
| In an interview with the Chattanooga Times Free Press, Steve Greer -- the new president of the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association -- talks about his decision to become a lawyer and what he wants to accomplish during his tenure.
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Read the interview
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| School board creates in-house counsel office |
| The Memphis City School board voted Monday night to create an office of general counsel, giving the school district its own in-house legal experts. The office will include the general counsel, who will be paid $150,000, and two staff attorneys whose salaries are to be determined. The board's current contract with Michael Marshall of Evans & Petree PC will end Dec. 31.
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Read more about the board's decision in the Commercial Appeal
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| Justice Department visits Clarksville |
| A representative from the U.S. Justice Department will be in Clarksville on July 26 to discuss the functions and duties of the department and its Community Relations Service, which helps local governments address racial and ethnic tensions. The meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. at the Clarksville-Montgomery County Public Library and is open to the public, reports the Leaf Chronicle. Meeting organizers include the Hispanic Organization for Progress and Education, the Clarksville Branch of the NAACP and the Clarksville Korean-American Association.
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| Memphis lawyer is also British lord |
| Memphis lawyer D. Jack Smith, 68, has worked a lifetime as a supporter of local history from Civil War sites in Memphis to the Scopes Monkey Trial in Dayton. But it's little known that he also supports the history of a small town across an ocean; so much so that he holds the title of Lord of Great Horwood, a village about 70 miles northwest of London.
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The Knoxville News Sentinel has the story
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| Election 2006 |
| Drug problem key issue in court race |
| Curbing Sumner County's drug problem has emerged as a central issue in the race for criminal court judge. The three hopefuls, Thomas Boyers V, Mike Carter and Dee David Gay, all have pledged their support for rehabilitation-based drug and DUI court programs.
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Read more about issues in the race in the Tennessean
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| State AG moves to dismiss Ford's lawsuits |
| The state attorney general filed a motion yesterday asking that Ophelia Ford's federal lawsuit be thrown out. Ford's lawyer is still arguing two lawsuits he filed against the Tennessee State Senate and local officials, even though her term is nearly over and she's running to win the District 29 senate seat again in the August primary.
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Read about developments in the case on the WMC-TV's website
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| Passages |
| Sumner County lawyer dies |
| Alfred MacFarland, 89, of Castalian Springs passed away on June 7. He earned his law degree from the Cumberland School of Law and began practicing in 1942. A long-time member of the TBA, he achieved senior counselor status in 1992. |
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| TBA Member Services |
| Let JobLink help you with your next career move |
| A career service for Tennessee attorneys and law students, TBA JobLink is a job seeking and recruitment tool available at no charge. Whether you have a position to fill or are seeking employment, this site will guide you through a simple process to post your information. |
Visit the site
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