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Seats on Court of the Judiciary to be filled
The Tennessee Bar Association is accepting applications from members interested in being nominated to the Court of the Judiciary. The TBA Board of Governors will choose three nominees (one from each grand division) at its April 28 meeting. The position from East Tennessee is currently held by John Gill of Knoxville and the position from Middle Tennessee is held by Mary Schaffner of Nashville, both of whom are eligible for reappointment. The other current member, Robert Redding of Jackson, is ineligible for reappointment.
The Court of the Judiciary takes cognizance of the violations of the code of judicial conduct, willful misconduct, persistent failure to perform duties and any other conduct calculated to bring the judiciary into public disrepute. Those interested in being considered for the positions should contact TBA Executive Director Allan F. Ramsaur by mail at 221 Fourth Ave. North, Suite 400, Nashville, TN 37219. Include a letter of interest and a resume. Applications must be received by April 13. Complete details about the procedure the board will employ may be found on the TBA web site at:
http://www.tba.org/BOG/elexhandbook.html#Anchor-Judge-21683
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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
02 - 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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TRACY J. JONES, ET AL. v. TENNESSEE RIDERS INSTRUCTION PROGRAM, INC., ET AL.
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
H. Tom Kittrell, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellants, Tracy J. Jones and Shawn J. Jones
Joel P. Surber and Frank M. Gallina, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellees, Tennessee Riders Instruction Program, Inc., Motorcycle Safety Foundation, Inc., and Nashville State Community College
Judge: CLEMENT
Plaintiff, a wholly inexperienced motorcycle rider, sued Tennessee Riders Instruction Program, Inc., for injuries sustained when she wrecked during the last day of a three-day motorcycle safety course. The plaintiff's claim for gross negligence was dismissed by the trial court upon a finding there was nothing in the record which would allow a reasonable juror to conclude the defendant exercised a
conscious neglect of duty or a callous indifference to consequences or such entire want of care as would raise a presumption of a conscious indifference to the consequences. The plaintiff appealed. We affirm.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2007/jonest_020607.pdf
MELODY WESTON, PERSONAL REPRESENTATIVE, ET AL. v. COMMUNITY BAPTIST CHURCH OF WILSON COUNTY
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Randle S. Davis, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Community Baptist Church of Wilson County
James H. Kinnard, Lebanon, Tennessee, for the appellee, Melody Weston, Personal Representative et al.
Judge: COTTRELL
This case arises from a dispute between a church and the estate of one of its former members over money given by the former member and her spouse to enable the newly-formed church to pay off a loan on its property. The estate contended that the money was a gift subject to a condition subsequent, with return of the gift required in the event the church ceased existence. The church
admitted that it had accepted the gift, but argued that it never accepted any conditions. The court took note of a church resolution that ratified the alleged condition and ruled in favor of the estate. We affirm.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2007/westonm_020607.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. LINDON BOTTOMS
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Phillip A. Condra, District Public Defender and Robert Morgan, Assistant Public Defender, Jasper, Tennessee, for the appellant, Lindon Bottoms
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Cameron L. Hyder, Assistant Attorney General; J. Michael Taylor, District Attorney General; and Steve Strain, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee
Judge: MCLIN
The defendant, Lindon Bottoms, appeals from the trial court's order revoking his probation and reinstating his original sentence of three years. On appeal, the defendant presents two issues for review: (1) whether the trial court erred in allowing testimony of the defendant's failure to report to a probation officer because this violation was not included in the probation violation warrant; (2) and whether the trial court erred in allowing hearsay testimony regarding the defendant's criminal record. Following our review of the parties' briefs and applicable law, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2007/bottomsl_020607.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. EMANUEL LAWRENCE HARRIS
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Lindsay C. Barrett (on appeal) and Mitchell B. Dugan (at trial), Dickson, Tennessee, for the appellant, Emanuel Lawrence Harris
Paul G. Summers, Attorney General and Reporter; Renee W. Turner, Assistant Attorney General; Dan M. Alsobrooks, District Attorney General; and Suzanne Lockert, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee
Judge: MCLIN
The defendant, Emanuel Lawrence Harris, pled guilty to nine felony drug offenses and was sentenced to an effective term of twenty-three years in the Department of Correction. On appeal, he argues that the trial court erred in ordering that some of his sentences be served consecutively. Upon our review of the record and the parties' briefs, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2007/harrise_020607.pdf
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| TODAY'S NEWS |
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Legal News
Politics
Knox Term Limits
BPR Actions
TBA Member Services
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| Legal News |
| County adds second juvenile division, approves study |
| The Shelby County Commission voted 8-5 yesterday to establish a second division of Juvenile Court, setting up a likely showdown between commissioners and Juvenile Judge Curtis Person. The vote mirrored action taken several months ago, which was rescinded because it violated the state's open meetings law. The commission also voted 12-1 to take bids for a study of the court's operations in light of allegations of racism. Person is expected to file a motion to block further commission action.
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Read more in the Commercial Appeal
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| Immigrants often duped by notarios publicos |
| In much of Latin America, notary publics are also lawyers. In the U.S., however, a notary public is not a lawyer and cannot give legal advice; he can only administer oaths and witness signatures. This difference allows scam artists to prey on immigrants with limited English skills and little understanding of the American legal system. A Nashville lawyer is suing one such notary.
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The Knoxville News-Sentinel reports on this growing problem
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| Over $300M in Katrina aid improperly paid |
| The Federal Emergency Management Administration has determined that nearly 70,000 Louisiana households improperly received $309 million in grants, and officials acknowledge those numbers are likely to grow. An Associated Press analysis of government data found that funds were regularly given to more homes than actually existed in some 100 neighborhoods damaged by the hurricanes.
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Read the AP report in the Murfreesboro Daily News Journal
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| Child advocacy center revived |
| Anderson County officials took the first steps toward reviving a Children's Advocacy Center where kids can be protected while child abuse and neglect investigations are performed. The 7th Judicial District is one of only four of the state's 31 judicial districts that do not have such a facility. The county juvenile judge has called the need "crucial."
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The News Sentinel has more
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| Attorneys say English-first bill still problematic |
| A controversial proposal to limit Metro Nashville government's use of languages other than English remains vulnerable to legal challenges on constitutional grounds despite being watered down, the city's law department says. The measure is up for a final vote by the council tonight.
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Read about it in the Tennessean
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| Politics |
| Governor focuses on education |
| In his State-of-the-State address last night, Gov. Phil Bredesen announced a number of new education initiatives to be funded with an increase in the state's cigarette tax.
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Read the governor's speech
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| Disclosure compliance working |
| An estimated 6,000 local elected officials have submitted disclosure of interest forms to the Tennessee Ethics Commission, meeting the end-of-year deadline for filing these new forms. The commission's executive director also reported that 3,000 of the forms have been processed already. |
The News Sentinel has more
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| Knox Term Limits |
| Mayor wants fall election |
| Saying the "public's trust was shaken" by last week's replacement of 12 term-limited officials, Knox County Mayor Mike Ragsdale yesterday called for the offices to be placed on a special election ballot this fall.
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The News Sentinel has this report
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| BPR Actions |
| Knoxville lawyer reinstated |
| Knoxville attorney Robert E. Nichols was reinstated to the practice of law on Jan. 29. He had been suspended on Nov. 21, 2006, for failing to respond to complaints of misconduct.
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Read the BPR's release
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| TBA Member Services |
| Program offers savings on auto insurance |
| See how being a member of the TBA could help you save 8 percent on car insurance. GEICO offers 24-hour sales, service and claims. Call GEICO at 1-800-368-2734
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or get an online rate quote
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