A woman sued a dog owner for injuries caused by the owner’s dog biting her while she was on the owner’s property. The trial court granted summary judgment to the dog owner based on the owner’s testimony that the dog had never bitten anyone and had never exhibited a dangerous propensity to bite. We have concluded that the woman presented evidence creating a genuine issue of material fact as to the dog owner’s credibility regarding his knowledge of the dog’s dangerous propensities. Therefore, we reverse the trial court’s decision.

In this interlocutory appeal, the employer argues the trial court erred in ordering it to provide the employee a panel of otolaryngologists and in ordering it to authorize a second opinion examination. The employee originally reported a work-related accident in which she apparently stumbled while at a patient’s home and grabbed a doorframe or railing to steady herself, which caused her to twist her left arm/shoulder. She later reported that she hit the right side of her face and head on a wall during the incident. The authorized orthopedic physician concluded the employee was not a good candidate for shoulder surgery, and the employee requested a second opinion. In addition, the employee sought treatment on her own for “swelling” and “oozing” in her right ear, then requested a panel of otolaryngologists for treatment of her apparent temporomandibular joint disorder she believes was caused by the accident. Following an expedited hearing, the trial court ordered the employer to provide both a second opinion examination related to her left shoulder condition and a panel of otolaryngologists to evaluate her temporomandibular joint condition. The employer has appealed. Having carefully reviewed the record, we affirm the trial court’s order in part, reverse it in part, and remand the case.

In this appeal, the employer asserts the trial court’s decision to grant the employee’s motion for a continuance and hold its motion for summary judgment in abeyance was an abuse of discretion. The employer also contends the trial court erred by referring it for penalties as a result of noncompliance with a previous order. In granting the employee’s motion to continue, the court noted that although it set a deadline for the employee to serve written discovery, it did not issue a full scheduling order or set any additional discovery or proof deadlines. The court determined that the employer’s motion for summary judgment was premature and ruled that it would hold the motion in abeyance “pending issuance of a full scheduling order.” The court also determined the employer failed to comply with its prior order compelling it to allow the employee to return to his authorized provider. As a result, the court concluded the employer’s actions had “deprived” the employee of the ability to get information necessary to respond to the employer’s dispositive motion. The employer has appealed. Upon careful review of the record and consideration of the pertinent statutes and regulations, we affirm the trial court’s order and remand the case.

A new report from from nonprofit Prison Policy Initiative recommends that Shelby County address management of the current jail before spending $1 billion to build a new facility. According to The Daily Memphian, the report argues that issues with processing and staffing are at the heart of problems inside the jail, and that while the jail might need replacing, a lack of capacity is not the issue. According to the findings, many of the jail’s issues — including long booking delays, preventable in-custody deaths and high staff vacancy rates — stem from poor management and staff culture rather than overcrowding or deteriorating infrastructure. The report recommends the county focus on improving hiring practices, oversight and diversion strategies to reduce the jail population before considering construction of a new facility.

Skyler Philippi, 24, of Columbia, pleaded guilty today to attempting to use a weapon of mass destruction and attempting to destroy an energy facility, according to a press release from the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Middle District of Tennessee. “For months, Philippi planned what he had hoped would be a devastating attack on Nashville’s energy infrastructure. He acquired what he believed to be explosives, surveilled his target and equipped a drone to attack an electrical substation. Motivated by a violent ideology, Philippi wanted ‘to do something big.’ Instead, the FBI disrupted his plans, and Philippi now awaits sentencing,” said Assistant Attorney General for National Security John A. Eisenberg. Philippi is scheduled to be sentenced on Jan. 8, 2026. The Tennessean also reports on the developments.

David Stein has been appointed assistant professor of law at Vanderbilt University Law School, where he will teach courses related to law and technology. He comes to Vanderbilt from Northeastern University, where he was an assistant professor of law and assistant professor of computer sciences. Stein studies the interplay between legal institutions and technical infrastructures. His research spans multiple disciplines. In addition to his law review articles, he has published peer-reviewed work in robotics, rocket science and computational linguistics and is the named inventor on seven patented digital identity and database management technologies. Read more in a press release from the law school.

The U.S. Supreme Court in a 6-3 decision on Monday lifted a lower court order that had restricted federal immigration agents from conducting broad roving patrols in Los Angeles. According to the Associated Press, the ruling allows Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) to continue operations that have been criticized as racial profiling. The decision has drawn strong dissent from the court's liberal justices and from many California officials. While a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of the raids will continue in federal court, the decision allows the administration to proceed with planned enforcement efforts, which already have resulted in more than 5,000 arrests since June.

Not long after taking the bench in Gibson County, General Sessions Court Judge Bradley Owens observed that many of the defendants before him did not understand the legal consequences of their choices. “I see all of these adults, even with violation of probation, even after they would get arrested and get an opportunity, they would violate their probation over and over,” he said. He created a class called Choices & Consequences open to students in grades 8 through 12 with the goal of educating them about the legal consequence of making poor choices. During the class, students observe a live General Sessions Court session. Once court concludes, Owens meets with the students to discuss the cases. He explores the choices made by the defendants and the real-world consequences. Read more in this profile from the Administrative Office of the Courts.

Residents of Scott County, Tennessee, and McCreary County, Kentucky, are mounting a grassroots fight against a proposed 700-acre landfill and rail transfer station, citing environmental risks, government inaction and lack of transparency. Two citizen groups — Cumberland Clear and the Transparent Bridge Initiative — have organized petitions, livestreamed government meetings, retained legal counsel and lobbied state officials, but have mostly been advised to talk to local government officials. State Sen. Ken Yager, R-Kingston, in August sent a letter to the Tennessee Department of Environment and Conservation (TDEC) voicing his "strong opposition to this pending permit and expanding the landfill operation on that adjacent property." Recently, TDEC acknowledged that Scott County may have been opted into the Jackson Law, a Tennessee legal provision that allows counties to restrict landfill development. WUOT has the story.

The Tennessee Supreme Court has formed a three-member committee to review procedures for handling complaints against district attorneys (DAs) and public defenders (PDs), after repeated misconduct allegations against Shelby County DA Steve Mulroy by state Sen. Brent Taylor, R-Eads. According to the Daily Memphian, the court in July appointed William Koch, dean of the Nashville School of Law; Victor “Torry” Johnson, Belmont College of Law professor; and Lang Wiseman, former chief counsel to Gov. Bill Lee, to the new review committee. In addition, Justice Mary Wagner will chair a committee that will make recommendations on a disciplinary board for court clerks. Mulroy disputes Taylor’s claim that the panel is investigating him personally, noting that five of Taylor’s prior complaints have already been dismissed, including one about sharing juvenile records that was legal under a new law Taylor sponsored. Action News 5 reports on the dismissal of that complaint.