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| Monday, July 18, 2011 |
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No incentive to keep law school tuition low, paper says
Law schools seem to be impervious to the laws of supply and demand, raising tuition and adding students to their incoming classes even during the worst recession in the legal profession's history, the New York Times reports. From 1989 to 2009, when college tuition rose by 71 percent, law school tuition shot up 317 percent.
"There are many reasons for this ever-climbing sticker price, but the most bizarre comes courtesy of the highly influential US News rankings," the Times says, explaining that the rankings are determined partially by how much the school spends per student.
Read The New York Times' story
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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 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
00 - TN Court of Appeals
04 - TN Court of Criminal Appeals
03 - TN Attorney General Opinions
00 - Judicial Ethics Opinions
00 - Formal Ethics Opinions - BPR
00 - TN Supreme Court - Disciplinary Orders
You can obtain full-text versions of the opinions two ways. We recommend that you download the Opinions to your computer and then
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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.
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SUPREME COURT DISCRETIONARY APPEALS Grants & Denials List
Court: TSC
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/certlist_071811.pdf
IN RE: ALLYN HOOD D/B/A/ A-HOOD BONDING COMPANY
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Gene Scott, Jonesborough, Tennessee, for the appellant, In re: Allyn Hood d/b/a/ A-Hood Bonding Company.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; John H. Bledsoe, Senior Counsel; H. Greeley Wells, Jr., District Attorney General; and Barry P. Staubus, Deputy District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WILLIAMS
The appellant, Allyn Hood, is the owner of A-Hood Bonding Company and appeals the trial court's denial of a motion to add his son, Daniel Hood, as a bail bond agent in the Second
Judicial District. After our de novo review, we conclude that Daniel Hood meets all the statutory requirements to act as a bail bond agent. Therefore, the trial court's decision to deny Daniel Hood's application as a bail bond agent is reversed, and this case is remanded to the trial court with instructions to add Daniel Hood as a bail bond agent in the Second
Judicial District.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/hooda_071811.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. RODNEY PORTER
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
J. Liddell Kirk (on appeal); and Kelly S. Johnson and James L. Flanary (at trial), Knoxville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Rodney Porter.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Lindsey Paduch Stempel, Assistant Attorney General; Randall E. Nichols, District Attorney General; and Steve Sword and
Charme Knight, Assistant District Attorneys General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WITT
A Knox County Criminal Court jury convicted the defendant, Rodney Porter, of felony murder in the perpetration of aggravated child abuse, see T.C.A. section 39-13-202(a)(2) (2006), and aggravated child abuse, see id. section 39-15-402(a)(1). The trial court imposed an effective
sentence of life plus 25 years' incarceration. In this appeal, the defendant challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence and the sentence imposed for his aggravated child
abuse conviction. Discerning no error, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/porterr_071811.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. JAMES ALFRED REED, JR.
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
James O. Martin, III, Nashville, Tennessee (on appeal); Richard Hughes, District Public Defender (on appeal and at trial); and Jeanne L. Wiggins, Assistant District Public Defender (at trial), for the appellant, James Alfred Reed, Jr.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Cameron L. Hyder and John H. Bledsoe, Assistant Attorneys General; Steven Bebb, District Attorney General; and James
Stutts, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: TIPTON
The Defendant, James Alfred Reed, Jr., was convicted by a Monroe County Criminal Court jury of the sale of one-half gram or more of cocaine within 1000 feet of a school, a Class A felony, and the sale of less than one-half gram of cocaine within 1000 feet of a school, a Class B felony. See T.C.A. sections 39-17-417(a)-(b), -(i), 39-17-432(b) (2010). He was
sentenced as a Range II, multiple offender to forty years' confinement for the Class A felony and to a concurrent term of twenty years' confinement for the Class B felony. On appeal, the Defendant contends that the trial court erred by (1) denying his motion for acquittal based on insufficiency of the evidence, (2) failing to instruct the jury on the lesser included offense of facilitation, (3) failing to instruct the jury on the missing witness rule, and (4) imposing the maximum length for each sentence. We affirm the judgments of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/reedj_071811.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. DAVID A. TAYLOR
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Steve McEwen, Knoxville, Tennessee (on appeal); and Michaela Burnham, Assistant District Public Defender (at trial), for the appellant, David A. Taylor.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; David H. Findley, Assistant Attorney General; James B. Dunn, District Attorney General; and George Ioannides, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WITT
A Sevier County Circuit Court jury convicted the defendant, David A. Taylor, of aggravated rape of a child, see T.C.A. section 39-13-531(a) (2006), and the trial court imposed a sentence of 60 years' incarceration to be served at 100 percent by operation of law, see id. section 40-35-501(i)(2)(L). In this appeal, the defendant challenges the trial court's denial of the motion to suppress his pretrial statement to police, the admission of hearsay statements of the victim,
the sufficiency of the convicting evidence, and the sentence imposed by the trial court. Discerning no error, we affirm.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/taylord_071811.pdf
Invalidity of Contracts that Contravene Obligation to Collect and Pay Sales Tax
TN Attorney General Opinions
Date: 2011-07-18
Opinion Number: 11-55
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/AG/2011/ag_11_55.pdf
Allocation of Sales and Use Taxes for Debts Incurred by County for Development at State Park
TN Attorney General Opinions
Date: 2011-07-18
Opinion Number: 11-56
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/AG/2011/ag_11_56.pdf
County Archives and Record Management Fee
TN Attorney General Opinions
Date: 2011-07-18
Opinion Number: 11-57
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/AG/2011/ag_11_57.pdf
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| TODAY'S NEWS |
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Legal News
General Assembly News
Passages
TBA Member Services
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| Legal News |
| Kevin Sharp is new Middle District judge |
| Kevin Sharp was sworn in as U.S. District Judge for the Middle District of Tennessee during ceremonies Friday in Nashville. Remarks were made by James Dresher, the Hon. William Morris, and Senators Bob Corker and Lamar Alexander before the oath was administered by Chief Judge Todd Campbell. Following the oath, presentations were made by Tennessee Bar Association President-Elect Jackie Dixon and Nashville Bar President Robert Mendes. |
See more photos from the event on TBAConnect.
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| Staubus's advice to victims: speak out |
| Sullivan County's district attorney general, Barry Staubus, says the recent case against a Catholic priest was emotionally draining for him. The victim, a young boy, now a man, remained silent for years under the oppressive fear that he would not be believed. The paper commends Staubus especially for
encouraging victims to speak out for themselves.
"Don't hold it in," Staubus said after the verdict. "Go to an advocacy center or group that can help you." |
Read the comments in TriCities.com
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| Knoxville lawyer finds niche in tow trucks |
| "Wrecker drivers are like insurance claims adjusters and lawyers. Nobody deals with them until something bad happens," according to Knoxville lawyer Michael P. McGovern, a former wrecker operator.
He has developed a national reputation for doing legal work in the towing field, handling towing cases all over the country and has appeared before the U.S. Supreme Court twice in cases involving towing issues. |
The News Sentinel has this profile
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| Seeking legal immigration easier said than done |
| Chattanooga immigration lawyer Terry Olsen talks about the complicated nature of immigration law, why people are so confused, and how,
for most illegal aliens in the United States, it is nearly impossible to become legal. |
The Dalton Daily Citizen has the story
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| Editorial: In favor of 'Caylee's Law' for Tennessee |
| In an editorial, the Jackson Sun weighs in on the need for a law in honor of Caylee Anthony: The paper says "it can't hurt." |
Read the editorial
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| Some bath salts and plant food made with illegal drug |
| Attorney General Bob Cooper writes an opinion piece to notify the public of a new law (Tennessee Public Acts, Chapter 169) to combat dangerous new synthetic drugs marketed under harmless-sounding names such as "bath salts" and "plant food."
The products, containing certain synthetic derivatives of methcathinone, are labeled "not for human consumption" but have been widely promoted on the Internet and in chat rooms as alternatives to ecstasy, cocaine, or other controlled substances, Cooper says.
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The Daily News Journal carried his column
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| States, feds disagree on need for interpreters |
| The U.S. Justice Department is warning officials in all states that they are violating the Civil Rights Act of 1964 if they are not providing interpreters, free of charge, in all court-related proceedings and programs. But top state court officials are disputing the department's interpretation of civil rights laws, saying it goes too far and would require a large expansion of interpreter services that cash-strapped states can't afford.
Assistant U.S. Attorney General Thomas Perez, head of the Justice Department's Civil Rights Division, said the agency is "simply clarifying obligations that have existed for over 45 years." |
The Times Free Press carried this AP story
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| Rhea looks at wheel tax to fund new jail |
| The Rhea County Commission will consider at its Tuesday meeting whether to impose a wheel tax as an option to help pay for new jail and school construction projects. |
The Times Free Press reports
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| Bradley Children's Center to get more space |
| The Bradley County office of the 10th Judicial District Children's Advocacy Center plans to move into new facilities by mid-October.
The new 2,000-square-foot facility will give the center needed space, including another forensic interview room, more counseling rooms and more family rooms. |
The Cleveland Daily Banner reports
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| Cordray nominated to head consumer financial bureau |
| President Obama has nominated former Ohio attorney general Richard Cordray to lead the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, sidestepping Harvard professor Elizabeth Warren, who envisioned the agency and spent the past year setting it up. The bureau, which will police financial products such as credit cards and mortgages, will officially open its doors Thursday. The nominee must still be confirmed by the Senate |
CNN reports
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| General Assembly News |
| Quarter of bills passed in session's last 2 days |
| The General Assembly passed 154 bills in the final three days of the session, 30 percent of the year's entire package of enacted legislation.
According to an Associated Press analysis of public records, lawmakers moved out 133 of them in the final two days. That number was roughly a fourth of the 510 bills the Secretary of State's office lists as passing both chambers during the session that stretched from Jan. 11 to May 21. |
The Commercial Appeal carried this AP story
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| Southern Legislative Conference in Memphis this week |
| This week, Sen. Mark Norris, R-Collierville, is hosting the Southern Legislative Conference in Memphis.
The mission of the 64-year-old SLC is to foster intergovernmental cooperation among 15 state legislatures and state governments. "I'm kind of the chief cook and bottle washer," Norris told the Commercial Appeal a few days before the convening of the SLC. |
Read the story
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| Passages |
| Louisiana federal judge dies |
| Baton Rouge federal judge Ralph Tyson died July 16. He was the first African American judge to serve on the federal bench in the state's Middle District. |
WAFB reported the news
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| TBA Member Services |
| Your customers expect you to deliver -- the new FedEx Tracking makes it easy |
| Lets face it. Information about your in-transit shipments is critical to your business. Now when you track a package on fedex.com, you have even greater visibility into the status of your shipments. You can customize your tracking results page, organize your shipments by status, easily send and receive proactive e-mail notifications on shipments, and save time with the updated and streamlined Signature Proof of Delivery request process. |
Take advantage of your member discounts on select FedEx shipping services and FedEx Office business services
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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 2011 Tennessee Bar Association
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