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Monday, February 21, 2011

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Legal market starting to improve, report suggests

The U.S. legal market may be turning the corner toward better times. The latest Peer Monitor Index (PMI) report from Hildebrandt Baker Robbins shows that demand for legal services rose for the first time in more than two years. The PMI rose three points in the fourth quarter of 2010 to a reading of 55. It has now resumed the gradual upward trend that began in early 2009.

Read more from Thomson Reuters LegalCurrent blog

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.

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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.

CAROLYN BERRY v. ARMSTRONG WOOD PRODUCTS

Court: TWCA

Attorneys:

William F. Kendall, III, Jackson, Tennessee, for the appellant, Armstrong Wood Products.

James R. Renis, Jackson, Tennessee, for the appellee, Carolyn Berry.

Judge: CHILDRESS

Employee filed a complaint for workers' compensation benefits against her former employer alleging that her work for her former employer advanced pre-existing arthritis in both knees and required her to have joint replacement surgery on her right knee. The employer denied her claim, contending that her condition was unrelated to her employment. The trial court found that she had sustained a compensable aggravation of her arthritis and that she had not had a meaningful return to work. It awarded 78% permanent partial disability ("PPD") to the body as a whole. The employer appealed, contending that the trial court erred by finding the award was not subject to the one and one-half times impairment cap found in Tennessee Code Annotated section 50-6-241(d)(1)(A). We agree with employer that employee is entitled to an award of one and one-half times her impairment rating and decrease the award to 39% PPD to the body as a whole. We affirm the judgment as modified.

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC_WCP/2011/berryc_021811.pdf

EDMOND CATO ET AL. v. D. L. BATTS ET AL.

Court: TCA

Attorneys:

Shawn P. Sirgo and Curtis R. Harrington, II, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellants, Edmond and Duanna Cato.

Edward J. Gross, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellees, D. L. Batts and Helen Batts.

Judge: CLEMENT

Purchasers of home filed this action against the sellers for negligent misrepresentation and fraudulent misrepresentation for the failure to disclose defects in the home. The trial court found for the purchasers on their claim of negligent misrepresentation but denied their claim of fraudulent misrepresentation and their request for rescission. Purchasers appealed contending the trial court erred by not finding fraudulent misrepresentation and partially denying their motion to alter or amend the judgment in which they sought to introduce new evidence. We affirm the ruling of the trial court in all respects.

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2011/catoe_021811.pdf

IN RE FAITH F.

Court: TCA

Attorneys:

Thomas A. Miller, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Blaine F.

Debra L. Dishmon, Lebanon, Tennessee, for the appellee, Amy P.

Elizabeth Lee Luongo Youmans, Lebanon, Tennessee, Guardian Ad Litem.

Judge: BENNETT

Father filed a petition to relocate with minor child, and mother filed a petition for change of custody. After a hearing, the trial court denied father's petition to relocate and mother's petition to change custody but increased mother's parenting time. A week after the court's order was entered, mother filed a petition to reopen the proof, and the court granted her motion. After another hearing, the trial court granted mother's petition for a change of custody. On appeal, father argues that the trial court erred in denying his petition to relocate, in reopening the proof, and in granting mother's petition to change custody. We affirm the decision of the trial court.

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2011/faithf_021811.pdf

STATE OF TENNESSEE v. ADRIAN ANN CRAIN

Court: TCCA

Attorneys:

Wendell L. Hoskins, II, Dyersburg, Tennessee, for the appellant, Adrian Ann Crain.

Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Cameron L. Hyder, Assistant Attorney General; James G. Woodall, District Attorney General; and Shaun A. Brown, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge: MCLIN

The defendant, Adrian Ann Crain, appeals the revocation of her probation sentence, claiming that the state denied her right to a speedy trial and that the trial court did not have jurisdiction when it revoked her sentence and ordered that she serve the remainder of her sentence in the Tennessee Department of Correction. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/craina_021811.pdf

STATE OF TENNESSEE v. DANNY LYNN DAVIS

Court: TCCA

Attorneys:

Clifton Corker and Gene Scott (at trial), Johnson City, Tennessee, for the appellant, Danny Lynn Davis; and Danny Lynn Davis (on appeal), pro se.

Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Renee W. Turner, Senior Counsel; Randall E. Nichols, District Attorney General; and Philip H. Morton, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge: TIPTON

The Defendant, Danny Lynn Davis, was convicted at a bench trial in the Washington County Criminal Court of theft of property valued at $60,000 or more, a Class B felony; official misconduct, a Class E felony; and twenty-five counts of forgery, Class E felonies. See T.C.A. sections 39-14-103 (theft); 39-16-402 (official misconduct); 39-14-114 (forgery). He was sentenced to ten years for the theft conviction and to one year for each of the Class E felony convictions, all to be served concurrently with one year of split confinement and the remaining nine years on probation. In this appeal, the Defendant contends that (1) the victim, the city of Johnson City, had no standing to allege the crimes, (2) the prosecution of the forgery and official misconduct offenses was barred by the statute of limitations; (3) the evidence was insufficient to support his convictions; (4) the trial judge should have recused himself because the judge's wife was an employee of the city of Johnson City; and (5) he was deprived of the opportunity to prepare a proper defense because the trial court failed to release his income tax records during discovery. We note that two of the convictions were rendered on counts dismissed by the State during trial. We vacate the convictions for forgery in Counts 23 and 27, but we affirm the remaining judgments of the trial court.

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/davisd_021811.pdf

JAMES PATTERSON v. STATE OF TENNESSEE

Court: TCCA

Attorneys:

Neil Umsted (on appeal), Memphis, Tennessee, and Janis H. Benson (at hearing), Memphis, Tennessee, for the Petitioner-Appellant, James Patterson.

Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Brent C. Cherry, Assistant Attorney General; William L. Gibbons, District Attorney General; and Tom Hoover, Assistant District Attorney General, for the Appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge: MCMULLEN

The petitioner, James Patterson, appeals from the denial of post-conviction relief by the Criminal Court of Shelby County. He was convicted of especially aggravated robbery, a Class A felony, criminal attempt to commit second degree murder, a Class B felony, and two counts of especially aggravated kidnapping, Class A felonies. The petitioner received an effective sentence of thirty-two years. The convictions and sentence were upheld on direct appeal. See State v. James Patterson, No. W2005-01416-CCA-R3CD, 2007 WL 162175, at *1 (Tenn. Crim. App., at Jackson, Jan. 23, 2007). The petitioner subsequently filed a petition for post- conviction relief, which alleged that trial counsel was ineffective. The post-conviction court denied the petitioner relief. On appeal, the petitioner claims he is entitled to a new post-conviction hearing because post-conviction counsel failed to diligently investigate and present reasonable claims for relief. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the post- conviction court.

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/pattersonj_021811.pdf

TODAY'S NEWS

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Legal News

Debate over law suit caps and 'abuse' continues

Gov. Bill Haslam's proposal to cap non-economic damages damages in medical and personal injury cases at $750,000 is already drawing debate. A story in The Tennessean carries information from trial lawyers, who say that Tennessee juries don't have a reputation of awarding excessive damages and that caps are not needed. "It's a solution in search of a problem," said Nashville lawyer David Briley. "There is no evidence of excessive jury verdicts in Tennessee." A group supporting caps -- called the Tennessee Center for Policy Research -- today countered those claims with its own study, saying that "with lawsuit abuse reform, Tennessee can create an average of 30,000 jobs each year." Its president, Justin Owen, said that "our current civil justice system is rigged to allow trial lawyers to prey off both plaintiffs and defendants." Read more in the Chattanoogan.

Firm named in Ponzi-related complaint

Adams and Reese has been named as a defendant in one of several civil suits filed in recent days by an official investors committee working with the receiver for Stanford Financial Group, the Houston-based financial services company that law enforcement officials claim was actually a $7 billion Ponzi scheme. According to the complaint filed in U.S. district court in Dallas, the plaintiffs allege that Adams and Reese gave legal opinions to Stanford and SFG that blessed their business practices.

The AmLaw Daily reports

First Amendment moot court held in Nashville

Last week, 34 teams from law schools across the nation participated in the 21st Annual National First Amendment Moot Court Competition, hosted by Vanderbilt Law School and the First Amendment Center at Vanderbilt University. The team from the College of William and Mary Law School in Virginia won, with Boston University School of Law runner-up. The First Amendment Center details the "tricky student-speech issues" in the case used in the competition. Judges who participated included Tennessee Supreme Court Chief Justice Cornelia A. Clark; U.S. Bankruptcy Court Judge Marian F. Harrison; District Court Judges Bernice Donald, William J. Haynes Jr. and Aleta Trauger; and 6th Circuit Court of Appeals Judges Martha Craig Daughtrey, Gilbert S. Merritt and Jane Stranch.