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| Tuesday, August 23, 2011 |
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Courts, firms close early in D.C. after quake
Washington D.C.'s federal and local courts were evacuated shortly after a
5.9-magnitude earthquake hit this afternoon, but are expected to open as usual on Wednesday.
On Capitol Hill, activity was already at a minimum because of the August recess, so the earthquake didn't disrupt any hearings. The Senate, though, had been scheduled for a pro forma session at 2:30 p.m., which was postponed.
Tremors could be felt along the East Coast, as far north as Maine and as far south as North Carolina.
The Blog of Legal Times reports
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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.
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IN RE BARON H.S.M.
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Jefferson B. Fairchild, Rogersville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Sandra M.
Daniel G. Boyd, Rogersville, Tennessee, for the appellees, Peggy V. and Ronald V.
Judge: SUSANO
This is a termination of parental rights case regarding Baron H.S.M. ("the Child"), the son of Sandra M. ("Mother"). Mother maintained a long-term relationship with Ray C., before
and since the Child's birth. She contends that Ray is the Child's biological father. Mother was incarcerated when the Child was born. She arranged to transfer the Child to the care of Ray's sister, Peggy V. and her husband, Ronald V. (collectively, :the Guardians"). Over two years after they took custody, the Guardians filed a petition to terminate Mother's parental rights and adopt the Child. After a bench trial, the court terminated Mother's rights upon finding, by clear and convincing evidence, (1) that Mother had abandoned the Child by willfully failing to visit or support him and (2) that termination is in the Child's best interest. Mother appeals. We affirm.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2011/baronhsm_082311.pdf
CATHY VICE, ET AL. v. ELMCROFT OF HENDERSONVILLE, ET AL.
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Steven H. Trent, Chad E. Wallace, Christie M. Hayes, Johnson City, Tennessee, for the appellants, Elmcroft of Hendersonville; Senior Care, Inc.; AL Hendersonville Operations, LLC; and Lisa Harrison.
James B. McHugh, Michael J. Fuller, Amy J. Quezon, D. Bryant Chaffin, Hattiesburg, Mississippi, for the appellee, Cathy Vice, as daughter and Administratrix of the Estate of Julia C. Bynum a/k/a Juliet J. Bynum.
Judge: COTTRELL
The daughter of an eighty-seven year old woman was looking for an assisted living facility for her mother, who was suffering from dementia. Elmcroft of Hendersonville
assured the daughter that it could care for her mother and admitted her after the daughter informed it of her concern about her mother's risk for falls. Three weeks following her
admission the mother fell, and then fell three more times before the daughter moved her out of Elmcroft. The final fall resulted in a broken clavicle, which caused the mother pain
and decreased mobili ty for the rest of her life. The daughter, as her mother's representative, sued Elmcroft and its administrator for negligence and negligent admission and retention of her mother. A jury awarded a judgment against the defendants for $250,000. There was evidence the Elmcroft staff did not follow Elmcroft's fall prevention policies and procedures. Elmcroft argued that all claims filed against it involved matters of medical science or art requiring specialized skills not ordinarily possessed by lay persons, and, therefore, this was a medical malpractice which should
have been dismissed since the statutory requirements for such a claim had not been met. We conclude, based on the evidence herein, that the claims were ordinary negligence
claims. Elmcroft also argued (1) the trial court erred in refusing to instruct the jury on the negligence of the daughter and a physician from another state who indicated the mother may be cared for by an assisted living facility and (2) that the jury award was excessive, contained a punitive component, and was the result of passion, prejudice and caprice. We conclude the court did not err in refusing to charge the jury on the physician's comparative fault or the daughter's comparative negligence. We also conclude there was material evidence to support the jury's award of damages. Consequently, we affirm.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2011/vicec_082311.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. JOSEPH A. PATTERSON
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Dana C. McLendon, III (on appeal) and Ernest Williams (at trial), Franklin, Tennessee, for the appellant, Joseph A. Patterson.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Rachel West Harmon, Assistant Attorney General; Kim R. Helper, District Attorney General; and Kelly Lawrence, Assistant
District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: TIPTON
The Defendant, Joseph A. Patterson, was found guilty at a bench trial before the Williamson County Criminal Court of driving under the influence, second offense, a Class A
misdemeanor. See T.C.A. section 55-10-401 (2008) (amended 2010). He was sentenced to eleven months and twenty-nine days, with fifty-five days of the sentence to be served. On appeal, he contends that the trial court erred by denying his motion to suppress. We affirm the judgment of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/pattersonj_082311.pdf
IN RE: SHERMAN AMES III, BPR 007163
Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order
Judge: CLARK
Amendment to order approved
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/amess_082311.pdf
ALEA DANIELLE ASHBY, BPR 024069
Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order
Judge: PER CURIAM
Motion to set aside disbarment and suspension referred to hearing panel
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/ashbya_082311.pdf
IN RE: DAVID J. JOHNSON, BPR 000595
Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order
Judge: CLARK
Suspension
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/johnsond_082311.pdf
IN RE: BRENNER LACKEY McDONALD, 013302
Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order
Judge: CLARK
Reinstatement
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/mcdonaldb_082311.pdf
IN RE: MARK CHRISTOPHER SEVIER, BPR 026577
Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order
Judge: PER CURIAM
Petition for disability inactive status denied
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/sevierm_082311.pdf
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| TODAY'S NEWS |
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Legal News
Court of the Judiciary
TBA in the News
Disciplinary Actions
TBA Member Services
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| Legal News |
| Bryant will lead TJC in 2013 |
| Chancellor Jerri Bryant of Athens has been elected moving vice president of the 183-member Tennessee Judicial Conference (TJC), which includes all state appellate and trial court judges. As moving vice president, Bryant will become President of the organization in 2013. |
The AOC has more
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| Haslam stands by tort law |
| Gov. Bill Haslam said he doesn't intend to make changes in the state's new tort legislation, even though House Speaker Pro Tempore Judd Matheny, R-Tullahoma, said the cap should be lowered to between $250,000 and $300,000 to bring the damages in line with limits for state government. |
The Nashville Business Journal reported
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| Preston is new Sumner assistant DA |
| Sidney Preston, 30, was sworn in on Aug. 1 as Sumner County's newest assistant district attorney. He is one of nine assistant DAs working with Sumner County District Attorney Ray Whitley.
Preston replaces Wayne Hyatt, who retired in late July after 32 years as Sumner's longest-serving prosecutor. |
The Tennessean has this story
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| Election commissions prepare for new voter ID law |
| Local election commissions are preparing for a new Tennessee law that requires registered voters to present photo identification at the polls. The law takes effect Jan. 1, 2012.
"People don't realize this is a law; people are angry," said Hamilton County Election Administrator Charlotte Mullis-Morgan. She and other election commissioners say they are worried that people don't understand the new requirements, so the commission is undertaking education campaigns. |
The Times Free Press reports
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| Knox lawyer's image morphs over into social media world |
| About six years ago, Knoxville lawyer Stephen A. Burroughs decided to get more aggressive in his marketing and began to dabble with traditional media. Now, not only is his face on buses and billboards, a
Facebook memes page dedicated to him has gone viral. |
The News Sentinel catches the virus
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| Commissioner tours Bradley County Juvenile Court |
| Tennessee Department of Children Services Commissioner Kate O'Day praised
the Bradley County Juvenile Court whn she toured the facility today. |
The Cleveland Daily Banner reports
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| Fresh face at Chattanooga firm ready to work |
| This week, 25-year-old Ryan Barry begins his new job as a member of the estate planning team at Chambliss, Bahner & Stophel in Chattanooga. In this profile, the new attorney credits his parents and hard work for his early successes. |
The Times Free Press talked to him
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| Judge: Cell phone records protected by 4th amendment |
| Fourth Amendment protections against unreasonable searches apply to the so-called cell-site-location records as surely as judges of a previous generation found that they applied to people using pay phones, Eastern District Judge Nicholas G. Garaufis determined yesterday. |
Law.com has the details
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| 2 groups lend support to suit against screening |
| The Southern Poverty Law Center
and the National Immigration Project of the National Lawyers Guild have filed a brief in support of attorney Elliott Ozment's suit to end the Davidson County 287(g) program, which screens jail inmates to determine their legal status.
Inmates flagged by the system can then be processed for deportation. |
Read more in the Tennessean
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| Court of the Judiciary |
| Ramsey: Court of Judiciary legislation will be first |
| Legislation regarding the state's Court of the Judiciary,
SB1088, will be first up when the General Assembly convenes, Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey says.
The Ad-Hoc Joint Committee on the Court of the Judiciary was established to examine what some legislators describe as "a clearly broken" system. |
Gavel to Gavel has more
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| TBA in the News |
| OnlineTNJustice open for business |
| The word is getting out on OnlineTNJustice.org, a website offering free legal advice to Tennessee residents who can't afford to hire a lawyer.
The site, which launched in April, is a project of the Tennessee Alliance for Legal Services and the Tennessee Bar Association with support from Dell; Microsoft; the law firm of Baker, Donelson, Bearman, Caldwell & Berkowitz; and the Tennessee Supreme Court's Access to Justice Commission. |
The Tennessean tells about it
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| Disciplinary Actions |
| Memphis lawyer suspended |
| Shelby County lawyer David J. Johnson was temporarily suspended from the practice of law by the Tennessee Supreme Court on Aug. 19,
as provided in Section 4.3 of Supreme Court Rule 9. |
Download the court's order
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| Lawyer reinstated |
| Brenner Lackey McDonald was reinstated to the practice of law Aug. 15. He voluntarily assumed inactive
status in 1997. |
Download the court's order
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| Disability inactive status denied for Nashville lawyer |
| Nashville lawyer Mark Christopher Sevier asked to be placed on disability inactive status but was denied by the Supreme Court on Aug. 18. The court says he presented no evidence to support the request, has since terminated his counsel and has not responded to the court. |
Download the court's order
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| TBA Member Services |
| Ship directly from Microsoft Office Outlook with FedEx QuickShip |
| Now you can ship your FedEx packages directly from the Microsoft Office Outlook application -- and save money doing it. It's a fast and convenient way to easily access some of the most popular features on fedex.com using Microsoft technology. That's why you should Think FedEx First.
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Take advantage of your member discounts on select FedEx shipping services and FedEx OfficeSM 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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