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| Friday, September 09, 2011 |
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Legal system traumatized, transformed by 9/11
Ten years after the Sept. 11 attacks, the American legal system, traumatized and transformed, is still struggling to strike a balance between liberty and security, with both interests scoring victories and losses along the way.
Critics on both sides of the issue say that our legal system has been resilient throughout. The National Law Journal explores the repercussions.
Signed into law just six weeks after the attacks, the U.S.A. Patriot Act spanned more than 340 pages, amended at least 15 federal laws and sparked a national conversation. Critics contended that the law violated numerous constitutional provisions -- including the Fourth Amendment prohibition against unreasonable searches and seizures and First Amendment freedoms of speech and association. Proponents countered that the law simply calibrated the proper balance between security and liberty in a dangerous world of international terrorism. The First Amendment Center examines the issue.
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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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MISTY NANETTE BROOKS v. STEPHEN EARL BROOKS
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Debra House, Aisha Rahman, and Kristine Schmidt, Knoxville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Misty Nanette Brooks.
Robert A. Cole, Knoxville, Tennessee, for the appellee, Stephen Earl Brooks.
Judge: MCCLARTY
This case involves the filing of three separate orders of protection that were requested by Misty Nanette Brooks ("Wife") seeking protection from Stephen Earl Brooks ("Husband"). Based upon Wife's initial petition, the trial court issued the first order of protection, which
included a provision regarding the division of the mortgage payment for the marital home. Wife subsequently filed a motion to show cause as to why Husband should not be held in contempt for violating the protective order, and the trial court entered a second order of protection that also included the mortgage provision. Wife subsequently filed two motions
to show cause as to why Husband should not be held in contempt for violating the second protective order. The first motion related to Husband's unwanted contact with Wife, while the second motion related to the mortgage payment. Following a hearing on the first motion,
the trial court entered a third order of protection that did not include the mortgage provision. Following a hearing on the second motion, an order was entered by the trial court evidencing an agreement between the parties that Husband was to pay his portion of the mortgage payment. Wife then filed another motion to show cause as to why Husband should not be held in contempt for his failure to pay his portion of the mortgage, and a hearing was held on that motion. The trial court dismissed the motion, finding that the court lacked jurisdiction to enter the order directing Husband to pay his portion of the mortgage. Wife appeals. We affirm the decision of the trial court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2011/brooksm_090911.pdf
JEANETTE RAE JACKSON v. BRADLEY KENT SMITH
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Andrea D. Sipes, Jackson, Tennessee and Carma D. McGee, Savannah, Tennessee, for the appellant, Jeanette Rae Jackson.
Curtis F. Hopper, Savannah, Tennessee, for the appellee, Bradley Kent Smith.
Judge: STAFFORD
This is a grandparent visitation case. Following the death of her daughter (the minor child's mother), the Appellant grandmother petitioned the trial court for visitation rights with her granddaughter pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated Section 36-6-306. The trial court denied visitation based upon its finding that Appellant had not carried her burden to demonstrate a danger of substantial harm to the child. No appeal was taken from this order. Subsequently, the Legislature amended Tennessee Code Annotated Section 36-6-306 to
create a rebuttable presumption of substantial harm based upon the cessation of the relationship between the child and grandparent. After the law was changed, Appellant filed a second petition for visitation with her granddaughter, citing the amended statute as grounds
for re-visiting the issue of visitation. The trial court granted Appellee father's Tennessee Rule of Civil Procedure 12.02 motion to dismiss the second petition on the ground of res judicata. We conclude that the doctrine of res judicata may apply even though there has been an intervening change in the substantive law. However, because the prior order, upon which the trial court based its res judicata finding, is not in the appellate record, this Court cannot review the question of whether the motion to dismiss was properly granted.
Affirmed.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2011/jacksonj_090911.pdf
IN RE: LONDON V. P.
Court: TCA
Attorneys:
Brandon Derek Sizemore, Johnson City, Tennessee, for the appellant, Andre T.
Janie Lindamood, Johnson City, Tennessee, for the appellees, Mitchell B. and Jewel B.
Donna Michael Hall Bolton, Johnson City, Tennessee, Guardian Ad Litem.
Judge: SWINEY
The Juvenile Court terminated the parental rights of Andre T. ("Father") to the minor child London V. P. ("the Child") pursuant to Tenn. Code Ann. section 36-1-113 (g)(1) and section 36-1-113 (g)(6) (2010). Father appeals the termination of his parental rights to this Court. We find and hold that clear and convincing evidence existed to terminate Father's parental rights pursuant to Tenn. Code Ann. section 36-1-113 (g)(1) and section 36-1-113 (g)(6), and that clear and convincing evidence existed that the termination was in the Child's best interest. We,
therefore, affirm the Juvenile Court's January 3, 2011 order terminating Father's parental rights to the Child.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2011/londonvp_090911.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. MATTHEW PERRY
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Mark Mesler, Memphis, Tennessee, for the Appellant, Matthew Perry.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Sophia S. Lee, Assistant Attorney General; William L. Gibbons, District Attorney General; Jennifer Nichols, Assistant District Attorney General, for the Appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: WEDEMEYER
A Shelby County jury convicted the Defendant, Matthew Perry, of first degree felony murder and attempted aggravated robbery, and the trial court sentenced the Defendant to serve an effective sentence of life in the Tennessee Department of Correction. On appeal, the
Defendant contends that the trial court erred when it: (1) denied a pretrial motion to suppress his admissions to police; (2) improperly allowed certain photographs of the victim into evidence at trial; and (3) allowed irrelevant testimony. Finally, the Defendant asserts that the evidence is insufficient to support his convictions. After a thorough review of the record and the applicable law, we affirm the trial court's judgments.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/perrym_090911.pdf
STEPHANIE DENISE PHILLIPS v. STATE OF TENNESSEE
Court: TCCA
Attorneys:
Charlotte Ann Leibrock, Newport, Tennessee, for the appellant, Stephanie Denise Phillips.
Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Cameron L. Hyder, Assistant Attorney General; James B. Dunn, District Attorney General; and W. Brownlow Marsh, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.
Judge: THOMAS
The Petitioner, Stephanie Denise Phillips, appeals as of right from the Cocke County Circuit Court's denial of her petition for post-conviction relief. The Petitioner argues that errors in her trial denied her due process of law. Following our review, we affirm the judgment of the
post-conviction court.
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/phillipss_090911.pdf
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| TODAY'S NEWS |
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Legal News
Congressional News
TBA in the News
Upcoming
Disciplinary Actions
TBA Member Services
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| Legal News |
| ABA president: Tennessee's court funding not adequate |
American Bar Association President Bill Robinson visited Chattanooga on Thursday and met with the Times Free Press editorial board.
He said that in Tennessee
0.3 percent of the overall operating budget is allocated to the courts, a 15 percent cut last year and a 6 percent cut this year.
"Courts are treated like a park, a road, another capital project in the state. Not as a co-equal branch of government," he told the paper.
Robinson, a Kentucky lawyer, is also a member of the Tennessee Bar Association.
Read the interview |
The paper's editors write on the issue as well
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| Editorial: Congrats to Judge Donald on confirmation |
| In an editorial today, the Commercial Appeal praises
the promotion of Judge Bernice Donald to the 6th Circuit Court of Appeals, saying it
"was yet another confirmation of the legal acumen and judicial temperament that have helped Donald climb the judicial ladder since first being elected to a General Sessions Criminal Court judgeship in 1982." |
Read the editorial
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| KBA collects for lawyer who lost house in fire |
| Knoxville lawyer John Sholly lost his home to fire on Labor
Day and the Knoxville Bar Association is collecting gift cards or cash donations for the
family to help with immediate needs. Donations for
groceries, gas, restaurants, clothing stores and other stores will be collected through Sept. 23. For more information, contact KBA Executive Director Marsha Wilson at mwilson@knoxbar.org.
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| Congressional News |
| Major patent overhaul passes |
| The U.S. Senate passed the Leahy-Smith America Invents Act on Thursday, the first significant change in patent law since 1952. The legislation is designed to spur innovation and provide a boost to the job market.
The law would change the nation's U.S. patent system from a first-to-invent system to a first-to-file system and would help provide adequate funding to the overwhelmed patent office by allowing it to set and keep its own fees.
The final bill is controversial because it does not prohibit fee diversion -- the practice of using excess U.S. Patent and Trademark Office revenue for other government programs. |
CNNMoney.com has the details
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| Congress questions Tennessee's voter ID law |
| U.S. Senator Dick Durbin, D-Ill., wrote to Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam on Thursday, asking him to explain the steps his administration is taking to "ensure that Tennesseans without the forms of photo identification now required by the law can obtain it -- efficiently and free of charge -- before the next election." Durbin, chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee's Subcommitee on the Constitution, Civil Rights and Human Rights, is interested in Tennessee's new law that requires voters to show photo identification at the polls. |
The Tennessean has the story
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| TBA in the News |
| And another thing ... Van Horn talks about tort law |
| When Tennessee Bar Association President Danny Van Horn was profiled by the Memphis Daily News
earlier this week, writer Sarah Baker had so much good information she couldn't fit it all in. In her blog, Baker reports
Van Horn's take on the new tort law, passed this year. |
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| Upcoming |
| State Democratic leaders plan jobs tour |
| Tennessee's House and Senate Democratic members recently announced a six-day tour across the state Sept. 19-24 to talk to business owners, local officials and the public about how to best grow jobs in Tennessee. Members will begin the tour Sept. 19 in Memphis with stops throughout rural and urban areas across the state. The tour will end Sept. 24 in Putnam and Smith counties.
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See the schedule on Chattanoogan.com
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| Kiwanis and Rotary to raise money for CASA |
| The Cleveland Kiwanis Club is challenging two nearby Rotary clubs to partner with them in support of the community's Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA).
The Kiwanian's major fundraiser, the Light of Hope Moonlight Walk, is 7 p.m., Oct. 13, along the Cleveland/Bradley County Greenway at Raider Drive.
CASA is honoring the memory of 4-year-old Melisha Morganna Gibson, who died in 1976 as a result of child abuse. Sarah Anderson, who works with Bradley County's CASA told the Kiwanis Club that
CASA volunteers handle mild to severe cases of abuse and neglect, a service that was not available in 1976 when Melisha was killed. |
The Cleveland Daily Banner reports
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| Concert to benefit IJM set |
| A concert to benefit the International Justice Mission (IJM) and other organizations will be in
Chattanooga on Oct. 21. It will be led by songwriter and singer Sara Groves and joined by Audrey Assad and the husband and wife duo Jenny & Tyler. |
Learn more in the Chattanoogan
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| Disciplinary Actions |
| Lawyers suspended for 2010 CLE violations |
| On Aug. 31, the Tennessee Supreme Court suspended 149 lawyers for failing to comply with mandatory continuing legal education requirements in 2010. Attorneys who since have complied with the rule are noted as reinstated. |
See the list of all attorneys suspended and reinstated
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| Memphis lawyer reinstated |
| Memphis lawyer Lashundra Latrice Davis-Culpepper was reinstated to the practice of law on Sept. 9 after paying her 2011 BPR registration fee, filing her 2011 IOLTA compliance form and paying any required fines. |
View all attorneys suspended and reinstated for 2011 registration violations
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| TBA Member Services |
| Avis benefits 'try harder' |
| TBA members are offered a rental car discount through Avis. Enroll in the Avis Preferred Service at www.avisawards.com to bypass the rental counter and go directly to your car for a faster, easier rental experience. Enter code AWD# A570100.
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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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