 |
| Monday, June 29, 2009 |
|
| |
| |
Managing Litigation Costs in an Era of Fiscal Stress
Having a strategy or blueprint in place to both manage a law suit and achieve early case resolution can assist clients in controlling the runaway costs inherent in many cases. Join Knox County Chief Deputy Law Director Joseph Jarret for a webcast this Wednesday at noon and learn how to create a properly prepared, well-thought-through litigation plan that will translate into cost savings both for the attorney and client.
Learn more about this webcast or register now
|
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 or to obtain a text version of each opinion, 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 the TBA's Membership Central.
01 - TN Supreme Court
00 - TN Worker's Comp Appeals
00 - TN Supreme Court - Rules
02 - TN Court of Appeals
04 - TN Court of Criminal Appeals
00 - TN Attorney General Opinions
00 - Judicial Ethics Opinions
00 - Formal Ethics Opinions - BPR
You can obtain full-text versions of the opinions two ways. We recommend that you download the Opinions to your computer and then
open them from there. 1) 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. 2) 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.
|
|
|
|
|
|
SUPREME COURT DISCRETIONARY APPEALS Grants & Denials List
Court: TSC
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2009/certlist_062909.pdf
CAREY FAULKNER v. CITY OF BARTLETT
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Clyde W. Keenan, Memphis, TN, for Appellant
Edward J. McKenney, Jr., Memphis, TN, for Appellee
Judge: HIGHERS
The appellant, a former police officer, filed a petition for writ of certiorari in the chancery court alleging that her due process rights were violated when the City of Bartlett terminated her employment. We affirm the trial court's finding that the appellant was an employee-at-will, and
therefore, she had no protected property interest in her job.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2009/faulknerc_062909.pdf
KATHY MARIE POST v. RICHARD ALEXANDER POST
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Lance Brandon Mayes, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Richard Alexander Post.
Gloria Jean Evins, Lebanon, Tennessee, for the appellee, Kathy Marie Post.
Judge: BENNETT
In this post-divorce dispute, husband challenges the trial court's action on wife's petition for contempt on a number of grounds. We find no merit in any of these challenges and affirm the decision of the trial court. We further find that wife is entitled to her attorney fees on appeal and remand for a determination of the amount of fees owed.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2009/postk_062906.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. CHANCELLER CHATMAN
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Robert Brooks (on appeal) and Edwin C. Lenow (at trial), Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellant, Chanceller Chatman.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Renee W. Turner, Assistant Attorney General; William L. Gibbons, District Attorney General; and Paul Goodman and Tracye Jones, Assistant District Attorneys General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: GLENN
The defendant, Chanceller Chatman, was convicted by a Shelby County Criminal Court jury of one count of felony murder, one count of especially aggravated robbery, and four counts of aggravated robbery. He was sentenced to life imprisonment for the felony murder conviction, fifteen years for the especially aggravated robbery conviction, eight years each for two of the aggravated robbery convictions, and twelve years each for the remaining aggravated robbery convictions. The trial court ordered that the life sentence for felony murder and the fifteen-year especially aggravated robbery sentence be served concurrently to each other. The court further ordered that the aggravated robbery sentences be served consecutively to each other and consecutively to the life plus fifteen-year sentence, for an effective sentence of life plus forty years. On appeal, the defendant challenges the sufficiency of the evidence in support of his felony murder conviction and the trial court's
imposition of consecutive sentences. Following our review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2009/chatmanc_062909.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. DEANGELO DAVIS
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Lance R. Chism (at trial and on appeal), Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellant, Deangelo Davis.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Rachel E. Willis, Assistant Attorney General; William L. Gibbons, District Attorney General; and Chris J. Lareau, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: MCLIN
The defendant, Deangelo Davis, was convicted by a Shelby County jury of criminal attempt to commit first degree murder, a Class A felony. For his conviction, the defendant received a sentence of twenty-five years in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, the defendant raises the following issues: (1) whether the trial court erred in denying the defendant's motion for a mistrial; (2) whether evidence of a fight between the defendant's cousin and the victim's uncle was properly admitted; and (3) whether the trial court erred in refusing to allow the defendant to impeach the victim's testimony with evidence of a prior conviction. Upon review of the record and the parties'
briefs, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2009/davisd_062909.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. CHARLTON GARNER
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
James E. Thomas, Memphis, Tennessee (on appeal), and Samuel Perkins and David Kreher, Memphis, Tennessee (at trial), for the appellant, Charlton Garner.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Elizabeth B. Marney, Senior Counsel; William L. Gibbons, District Attorney General; and Patience Branham and Marianne Bell, Assistant District Attorneys General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WILLIAMS
The defendant, Charlton Garner, was convicted by a Shelby County jury of second degree murder, a Class A felony; attempted second degree murder, a Class B felony; and reckless endangerment, a Class E felony. He was subsequently sentenced by the trial court to an effective sentence of twenty-eight years in the Department of Correction. On appeal, he raises the single issue of
sufficiency of the evidence with regard to each of the convictions. Specifically, he argues that the evidence presented at trial supports his theory of self-defense. Following review of the record, we affirm the judgments of conviction.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2009/garnerc_062909.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. ARTERIO HOLMAN
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Robert Wilson Jones, District Public Defender; Phyllis Aluko (on appeal) and Glenda Adams (at trial), Assistant Public Defenders, for the appellant, Arterio Holman.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Sophia S. Lee, Assistant Attorney General; William L. Gibbons, District Attorney General; and Christopher West, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: GLENN
The defendant, Arterio Holman, was convicted by a Shelby County Criminal Court jury of simple possession of cocaine and possession with intent to deliver 26 grams or more of cocaine. The trial court merged the simple possession conviction with the possession with intent to deliver conviction and sentenced the defendant as a Range I offender to eleven years in the Department of Correction.
On appeal, he argues that (1) the trial court erred in allowing an officer to testify as an expert on drug trade, (2) the evidence was insufficient to sustain his conviction for possession with intent to deliver more than 26 grams of cocaine, (3) the trial court imposed an excessive sentence, and (4) cumulative error compromised his rights to a fair trial and due process. After review, we affirm the
judgment of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2009/holmana_062909.pdf
|
|
 |
|
| TODAY'S NEWS |
|
Legal News
Politics
Supreme Court Report
Disciplinary Actions
Upcoming
TBA Member Services
|
| Legal News |
| Don't lie to the judge: Anderson held in contempt |
|
Nathan Anderson was to be sentenced today on a perjury charge stemming from an accusation that he had practiced law without a license. When he showed up at the Sevier County Courthouse without representation asking for a delay because the lawyer he had retained could not be there, Circuit Court Judge Richard Vance took a recess. He soon discovered that the lawyer was actually in the courthouse but had not been retained by Anderson. Vance had Anderson taken into custody on a contempt of court charge and sentenced him to 10 days in jail. |
The News Sentinel reports
|
| Politics |
| Mae Beavers to leave Senate, run for mayor |
| Tennessee Republican Senate Judiciary Chairwoman Mae Beavers announced last week she will
run for Wilson County mayor next year instead of seeking re-election to the
General Assembly. She was elected to the Senate in 2002. |
The Tennessean ran the story
|
| Supreme Court Report |
| Court wraps up today, says goodbye to Souter |
| The court intends to finish its work for the summer today, Chief Justice John Roberts said. The court also will say goodbye to Justice David Souter, who has announced he will retire "when the court rises for the summer recess." |
The News Sentinel reported this AP story
|
|
|
NPR's Nina Totenberg reports on the session's end
|
| White firefighters get nod from high court in reverse discrimination case |
| The U.S. Supreme Court has ruled on behalf of white firefighters challenging a decision to throw out a promotional exam because no blacks got top scores.
"Fear of litigation alone cannot justify an employer's reliance on race to the detriment of individuals who passed the examinations and qualified for promotions," Justice Anthony M. Kennedy wrote. The 5-4 ruling means that the federal appeals court opinion on the New Haven firefighters that was endorsed by Supreme Court nominee Sonia Sotomayor will not stand. |
ABAJournal.com connects you to the story
|
| Disciplinary Actions |
| Nashville lawyer suspended |
| On June 22 Nashville attorney Helen L. Cornell was suspended for six months by order of the Tennessee Supreme Court, effective July 2. She violated the Rules of Professional Conduct by misrepresenting herself to a party whom she later added as a defendant in a lawsuit. She also misrepresented her identity to this third party and sought information without revealing the purpose of her communication. |
Read the BPR release
|
| Upcoming |
| U of M Law School grand opening set for January 2010 |
| The grand opening of new facilities for the Cecil C. Humphreys School of Law is set for
Jan. 16, 2010, and will feature performers from the Rudi E. Scheidt School of Music, as well as nationally recognized jazz soloist, Joyce Cobb. Gourmet food and beverage stations will offer "Best of Memphis" small plates from well-known restaurants and law school students will host building tours. The black-tie-optional event is expected to draw more than 1,500 attendees from across the city, state and country. There will be a VIP reception from 6 to 7 p.m., the grand opening from 7 to 10 p.m., followed by an after-party.
Tickets are $250, with all proceeds benefiting the law school. For more information, contact Law Alumni Coordinator Chelsea Dubey, or call her at (901) 678-1562.
|
|
| TBA Member Services |
| Unlimited free online legal research for TBA members |
| Online legal research is now available free to all Tennessee Bar Association members through an agreement with Fastcase, a leading online legal research firm. The TBA member benefit is national in scope and offers TBA members unlimited usage, unlimited customer service and unlimited printing -- all at no cost. |
Access Fastcase now
|
| |
|
| |
Discontinue your TBA Today subscription? ... Surely not!
But if you must, visit the TBALink web site at:
http://www.tba2.org/tbatoday/unsub_tbatoday.php
Questions, comments: Email us at TBAToday@tnbar.org
About this publication: Today's News is a compilation of digests of news reports of interest to Tennessee lawyers compiled by TBA staff, links to digested press releases, and occasional stories about the TBA and other activities written by the TBA staff or members. Statements or opinions herein are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect those of the Tennessee Bar Association, its officers, board or staff.
© Copyright 2009 Tennessee Bar Association
|
|
|
