Thursday, December 29, 2011
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AG promises backing for increased LSC funding

In a speech at the National Legal Aid & Defender Association's annual meeting, U.S. Attorney General Eric Holder pledged strong support for increasing funding for the Legal Services Corporation (LSC), despite a move in Congress to cut the agency's budget. "Let me assure you," he said, "The Justice Department will keep working to preserve and increase LSC funding. And we will continue to seek out the most effective and efficient ways to provide critical assistance to the millions of Americans living near or below the poverty line who need our help. This work is, and will remain, a top priority -- not just for me, or my colleagues at the Justice Department -- but for every lawyer and leader who has the privilege of serving this Administration -- including the one who works in the Oval Office."

Read the full speech here
TODAY'S OPINIONS
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JENNIFER BIVINS, as next of kin and natural parent of BRANDON BIVINS, deceased v. CITY OF MURFREESBORO

Court: TCA

Attorneys:

Richard W. Rucker, Murfreesboro, Tennessee, for the appellant, City of Murfreesboro.

William Gary Blackburn, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellee, Jennifer Bivins.

Judge: FARMER

Plaintiff filed an action against the City of Murfreesboro pursuant to the Governmental Tort Liability Act, claiming a dangerous and unsafe roadway caused an automobile accident in which her son was killed. The trial court determined the City had no notice of an unsafe or dangerous condition, and entered judgment in favor of the City. Upon appeal, we reversed on the issue of notice, holding that previous accidents on adjacent areas of the roadway provided sufficient notice to the City of a potentially dangerous condition. Upon remand, the trial court entered judgment in favor of Plaintiff, and assessed 60% fault to the City. We vacate and remand for further findings consistent with Rule 52 of the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure.

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2011/bivinsj_122911.pdf
MICHELLE BROWN v. BROOKDALE SENIOR LIVING, INC., ET AL.

Court: TCA

Attorneys:

Lorraine Wade, Nashville, Tennessee, for the Appellant, Michelle Brown.

Luther Wright, Jr. and Wendy V. Miller, Nashville, Tennessee, for the Appellee, Brookdale Senior Living, Inc. d/b/a The Cumberland at Green Hills, Katherine Diehl, and Becky Hendricks.

Judge: DINKINS

Plaintiff appeals the trial court's grant of summary judgment to defendants on her claims for statutory procurement of breach of contract, common law inducement of breach of contract, and tortious interference with business relationship. Finding that plaintiff failed to establish one or more essential element of each claim, we affirm the trial court's ruling.

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2011/brownm_122911.pdf
JAMES WATRY v. ALLSTATE PROPERTY AND CAUSALITY INSURANCE COMPANY, AN ILLINOIS CORPORATION

Court: TCA

Attorneys:

Robert L. Whitaker, Brentwood, Tennessee, for the appellant, James Watry.

Allen Sowell, Nashville, Tennessee, for the appellee, Allstate Property and Casualty Company, an Illinois Corporation.

Judge: COTTRELL

Insured was injured by an automobile driven by an uninsured motorist. Insured filed a claim with Insurer seeking uninsured motorist coverage benefits and settled for an amount that was less than his actual damages. Insured then sued Insurer seeking damages for fraudulent misrepresentation, breach of contract, and violation of the Tennessee Consumer Act. Insurer filed a motion for judgment on the pleadings which the trial court granted. We affirm the trial court's judgment because Insured failed to allege sufficient facts to support any of his causes of action.

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA/2011/watry_122911.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. ALBERT W. BENTLEY
With Concurring Opinion

Court: TCCA

Attorneys:

Dawn Deaner, District Public Defender; Jeffery A. DeVasher, Assistant Public Defender, (on appeal); Jonathan F. Wing and Kristin Stangl, Assistant Public Defenders (at trial), Nashville, Tennessee, for the Defendant-Appellant, Albert W. Bentley.

Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Matthew Bryant Haskell, Assistant Attorney General; Victor S. (Torry) Johnson, III, District Attorney General; Amy Eisenbeck and Allen Grant, Assistant District Attorneys General, for the Appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge: MCMULLEN

A Davidson County jury convicted Defendant-Appellant, Albert W. Bentley, of aggravated robbery, a Class B felony. He was sentenced as a Range I, standard offender to a ten-year term of imprisonment in the Department of Correction. In this appeal, Bentley presents the following issues for our review: (1) whether the trial court erred in denying his motion to suppress the photographic lineup in which the victim identified Bentley as impermissibly suggestive; (2) whether the evidence, primarily the victim's in court identification of Bentley, was sufficient to support his conviction. Upon review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/bentleya_122911.pdf

TIPTON concurring
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/bentleya_CON_122911.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. DONTAYVIS BROWN

Court: TCCA

Attorneys:

Joseph A. McClusky (on appeal) and Blake Ballin (at trial), Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellant, Dontayvis Brown.

Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; David H. Findley, Senior Counsel; Amy P. Weirich, District Attorney General; and Nicole Germain, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge: GLENN

The defendant, Dontayvis Brown, was convicted by a Shelby County jury of one count of aggravated robbery and two counts of aggravated assault and was sentenced by the trial court to concurrent terms of ten years for each conviction. He raises the following three issues on appeal: (1) whether the evidence was sufficient to sustain his convictions; (2) whether the trial court erred in ruling that the State could impeach his testimony with his prior conviction for facilitation of aggravated robbery; and (3) whether the trial court erred in refusing to charge certain lesser-included offenses. Following our review, we affirm the judgments of the trial court.

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/brownd_122911.pdf
STATE OF TENNESSEE v. WALTER THOMAS GODSEY, JR.

Court: TCCA

Attorneys:

George Morton Googe, District Public Defender; and Kandi Kelley Collins, Assistant Public Defender, for the appellant, Walter Thomas Godsey, Jr.

Robert E. Cooper, Jr., Attorney General and Reporter; Leslie E. Price, Assistant Attorney General; James G. (Jerry) Woodall, District Attorney General; and Shaun A. Brown, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge: GLENN

The defendant, Walter Thomas Godsey, Jr., was convicted by a Chester County Circuit Court jury of driving on a cancelled, suspended, or revoked license, a Class B misdemeanor, and sentenced to six months in the county jail. On appeal, he challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence and the sentence imposed by the trial court. After review, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCCA/2011/godseyw_122911.pdf
IN RE: JEWEL GUY BOOZER, BPR 021848

Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order

Judge: KOCH

Disbarment

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/boozerj_122911.pdf
IN RE: BENNETT FARRIS BRATCHER, BPR 013526

Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order

Judge: KOCH

Suspension

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/bratcherb_122911.pdf
IN RE: JEFFREY B. COX, BPR 023574

Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order

Judge: KOCH

Disability Inactive Status Granted

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/coxj_122911.pdf
IN RE: ETANDRA FENAE DOUGLAS, BPR 017335

Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order

Judge: KOCH

Suspension

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/douglase_122911.pdf
IN RE: DAVID GREGORY HAYS, BPR 22496

Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order

Judge: KOCH

Reinstatement

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/haysd_122911.pdf
IN RE SHANNON A. JONES, BPR 018739

Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order

Judge: KOCH

Suspension

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/joness_122911.pdf
IN RE: MICHAEL D. KELLUM, BPR 014920

Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order

Judge: KOCH

Disability Inactive Status Dissolved

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/kellumm_122911.pdf
IN RE VANN F. LEONARD, BPR 027023

Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order

Judge: KOCH

Disbarment

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/leonardv_122911.pdf
IN RE DAVID GARRETT MULLINS, BPR 024158

Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order

Judge: KOCH

Suspension

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/mullinsd_122911.pdf
IN RE JEFFREY POWELL, BPR 015629

Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order

Judge: KOCH

Censure

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/powellj_122911.pdf
IN RE PAUL A. RAY, BPR 018199

Court: TSC-Disciplinary_Order

Judge: KOCH

Reinstatement

http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TSC/2011/rayp_122911.pdf
TODAY'S NEWS
Legal News
General Assembly News
Upcoming
Disciplinary Actions
TBA Member Services
Legal News
Max sentence upheld for threatening judge
Last week, the 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals upheld a five-year sentence for a man who sent threatening letters to a federal judge in Nashville. Chattanooga attorney Lee Davis writes about the decision for Chattanoogan.com. Davis notes that while federal sentencing guidelines only called for a sentence of 30 to 37 months, the trial court judge sentenced Herbert Wilfred Nixon to 60 months -- the statutory maximum. The district court also ordered Nixon to have no contact with any member of the postal service during three years of supervised release, and the appeals court upheld that restriction as well. Nixon sent the letters to Senior Judge Thomas Wiseman in 2002 after Wiseman sentenced him to three years in prison for credit card fraud.
Read Davis' article
Download the appellate opinion
Injunction sought against immigration inquiries
A lawsuit filed in Nashville claims a policy instructing Tennessee jailers to investigate the immigration status of detainees is illegal because it was crafted in secret. The suit, filed by Nashville lawyer Elliott Ozment, seeks an immediate stop to enforcement of the policy, arguing it was crafted through email communications and in meetings where public notice was not properly given. Ozment says he wants an injunction in place while he prepares a federal court challenge. In response to the filing, the state Attorney General's Office said the plaintiff has not proven why an injunction is immediately necessary. A hearing is scheduled for next Wednesday in Davidson County Chancery Court.
The Memphis Daily News reports
Survey: More firms expect to hire in first quarter
About one in three law firms and corporate counsel nationwide plan to add legal staff in the first quarter of 2012, according to the Robert Half Legal Hiring Index released this week. The quarterly survey found that 31 percent of lawyers interviewed plan to add staff in the next quarter, while four percent plan to cut personnel. The net 27 percent increase is up three points from the previous quarter's forecast. The survey also predicts that the practice areas expected to see the most growth in the next quarter are bankruptcy and foreclosure, litigation, and labor and employment law.
Read more in the Nashville Business Journal
MGLAW sued by former client
Nashville businessman Elwin S. Roe has filed a $600,000 lawsuit against MGLAW and two of its attorneys, accusing them of negligence and breach of duty. Roe claims the firm -- which was defending him against allegations of intentional misrepresentation in the sale of his business -- failed to alert the court that the statute of limitations for bringing such a suit had expired. Instead, the court considered the case and awarded damages and fees to the plaintiff. Roe says the error cost him thousands of dollars. He is being represented in the suit against MGLAW by McCune Zenner Happell PLLC.
The Nashville Post has the story
General Assembly News
Voter ID law could face court challenge
A Tennessee law requiring voters to show government-issued photo identification at polling places could soon face a court challenge. "A suit is being contemplated, and we've been attempting to get it resolved through other, political means, which appear to have been fruitless -- at this point," said Nashville attorney Gerard Stranch. He expressed hope, however, that the legislature would take up the issue and change the law. Stranch, an attorney in private practice, also serves as general counsel for the Tennessee Democratic Party.
The Times Free Press has more
Fight looms over prescription database
How many people have access to the state's prescription drug user database is likely to be a contentious issue during the next legislative session. Prosecutors contend that expanding its use is the best way to end prescription-drug abuse, while doctors and privacy advocates say such a move is overkill. Those advocating expanded use say medical examiners, coroners, drug-abuse counselors, drug court judges, prison health care workers and probation and parole officers should have access.
The Knoxville News Sentinel reports
Ethics seat remains unfilled after two years
Tennessee lawmakers have failed for two years to fill a seat on the Tennessee Ethics Commission, which is responsible for regulating lobbying activities, financial disclosure requirements and ethical conduct within state and local government. The term of Memphis lawyer R. Larry Brown expired in 2009, though he continues to serve until replaced. His replacement must be named by Lt. Gov. Ron Ramsey based on recommendations from the Senate Democratic Caucus. Ramsey claims the caucus has refused to recommend anyone. Some fear these delays hurt the commission's effectiveness. Former Jackson Mayor Charles Farmer resigned from the commission last year, saying he was "increasingly doubtful" the body could make a meaningful difference.
The Tennessean has more
Upcoming
Napier Looby to hold annual banquet Feb. 16
The Napier Looby Bar Foundation will hold its 8th Annual Banquet and Awards program on Feb. 16 at the Sheraton Hotel in downtown Nashville. The event will feature a keynote address by former Michigan Supreme Court Justice Dennis Archer and a special presentation by the Tennessee State University Forensics Team.
Download a "save the date" announcement
Disciplinary Actions
Inactive status lifted for Washington County lawyer
The Tennessee Supreme Court on Dec. 19 issued an order removing the disability inactive status of Michael D. Kellum. However, Kellum remains temporarily suspended until pending disciplinary proceedings are resolved.
Download the BPR notice
Memphis lawyer reinstated
Memphis lawyer David Gregory Hays was reinstated to the practice of law on Dec. 22. He had been suspended in November for failing to respond to a complaint of misconduct.
Read the BPR release
Mississippi lawyer disbarred
Mississippi lawyer Vann F. Leonard was disbarred from the practice of law in Tennessee on Dec. 28 following disbarment in Mississippi. The Supreme Court of Mississippi entered an order forever barring Leonard from seeking reinstatement to the practice of law in that state. He may apply for reinstatement in Tennessee after five years and after paying the costs of his disciplinary proceeding.
Read the BPR release
TBA Member Services
CompuPay offers deals for TBA members
CompuPay is proud to serve as the official payroll services provider for the Tennessee Bar Association. To serve Tennessee attorneys the company is offering two months of free payroll processing for all TBA members and waiving set up fees for members with up to 99 employees.
Learn more about CompuPay's benefits

 
 
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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.
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