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Today's Opinions

• TN Court of Appeals (3)
• TN Court of Criminal Appeals (2)
• TN Attorney General Opinions (1)
• 6th Circuit Court (Published Opinions) (1)

G.T. ISSA CONSTRUCTION, LLC v. BONNIE BLALOCK

Court: TN Court of Appeals

Attorneys:

Buddy Bryant Presley and Terrance L. Jones, Chattanooga, Tennessee, for the appellant, G.T. Issa Construction, LLC.

Timothy M. Gibbons, Nathan Lee Kinard, and Harold Lebron North, Jr., Chattanooga, Tennessee, for the appellee, Bonnie Blalock.

Judge(s): CLEMENT

This is a controversy between a homebuyer, the plaintiff, and a residential developer/contractor concerning the construction and sale of a newly constructed custombuilt home and lot within a subdivision with restrictive covenants. The parties executed a fill-in-the-blank “Purchase and Sale Agreement” (“the Agreement”) pursuant to which the defendant agreed to construct a custom home and sell the home and lot to the plaintiff. The principal matter in dispute is whether the defendant was contractually obligated to provide a brick veneer on the retaining wall installed by the defendant. The Agreement did not expressly include the construction of a retaining wall; however, the parties agree that a retaining wall was to be constructed and included in the sale. Although the brick veneer had not been installed and the hotly disputed issue remained unresolved, the sale closed. Shortly thereafter, the buyer commenced this action in which she asserted, inter alia, claims for breach of contract and violation of the Tennessee Consumer Protection Act. The plaintiff alleged that the defendant failed to finish the retaining wall with brick veneer as required by the subdivision’s restrictive covenants and implicitly required by the Agreement. In its answer, the defendant denied liability and asserted that it had no obligation to provide a veneer finish on the retaining wall. The case proceeded to a jury trial, after which the jury awarded the plaintiff $6,800 on her breach of contract claim. Thereafter, the trial court awarded the plaintiff $201,255.50 in attorney fees and expenses. This appeal followed. The defendant seeks to set aside the jury verdict, arguing that the Agreement was fully integrated and did not include an obligation to build a retaining wall. The defendant also appeals the amount of the award of attorneys’ fees, arguing that the plaintiff was not entitled to an award for time spent on her unsuccessful claims. We affirm the trial court’s decision in all regards.

gtissa_112321.pdf

BUTTERCUP RIDGE FARMS, LLC, ET AL. v. McFALL SOD & SEEDING, LLC, ET AL.

Court: TN Court of Appeals

Attorneys:

L. Bruce Peden, Columbia, Tennessee, for the appellants, McFall Sod & Seeding, LLC and Jackie McFall.

T. Jake Wolaver, Columbia, Tennessee, for the appellees, Buttercup Ridge Farms, LLC and Stephen Brown.

Judge(s): MCCLARTY

This is an action to quiet title to a strip of land used as an ingress/egress for property perpendicular to the land at issue. The trial court found in favor of the plaintiff. We affirm.

buttercupridge_112321.pdf

STACY RENEE LOFTON v. JAMES WARREN LOFTON

Court: TN Court of Appeals

Attorneys:

Ryan L. Hall and Heather C. Grewe, Milan, Tennessee, for the appellant, James Warren Lofton.

David L. Hamblen, Union City, Tennessee, for the appellee, Stacy Renee Lofton.

Judge(s): GOLDIN

This is a divorce case. On appeal, the husband raises issues about the trial court’s property division and spousal support award. We generally affirm the trial court’s judgment. For the reasons discussed herein, however, we vacate the trial court’s partition of Husband’s railroad retirement pension benefits, not because of any error with the intended disposition, but for the entry of an order that is fully compliant with 20 C.F.R. § 295.3.

loftons_112321.pdf

LEVIE ROBERTS v. STATE OF TENNESSEE

Court: TN Court of Criminal Appeals

Attorneys:

Shae Atkinson, Memphis, Tennessee, for the appellant, Levie Roberts.

Herbert H. Slatery III, Attorney General and Reporter; Samantha L. Simpson, Assistant Attorney General; Amy P. Weirich, District Attorney General; and Leslie Byrd, Assistant District Attorney General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge(s): OGLE

The Petitioner, Levie Roberts, appeals the Shelby County Criminal Court’s denial of his post-conviction petition, seeking relief from his conviction of second degree murder and resulting twenty-year sentence. On appeal, the Petitioner contends that he received the ineffective assistance of counsel because trial counsel did not notice before trial that the State’s “key” witness gave inconsistent statements to the police and because trial counsel failed to recall the witness to the stand in order to question her about the inconsistencies. Based upon the record and the parties’ briefs, we affirm the judgment of the post-conviction court.

robertsl_112321.pdf

STATE OF TENNESSEE v. BERNARD WOODARD

Court: TN Court of Criminal Appeals

Attorneys:

Craig P. Fickling (on appeal), District Public Defender, and Gordon Allen Byars (at trial), Cookeville, Tennessee, for the appellant, Bernard Woodard.

Herbert H. Slatery III, Attorney General and Reporter; David H. Findley, Senior Assistant Attorney General; Bryant C. Dunaway, District Attorney General; and Brett Gunn and Mark Gore, Assistant District Attorneys General, for the appellee, State of Tennessee.

Judge(s): WILLIAMS

A jury convicted the Defendant, Bernard Woodard, of burglary of a building other than a habitation, theft of property valued $2,500 or more, and Class E felony evading arrest in a motor vehicle, and he received an effective sentence of eighteen years in prison as a career offender. On appeal, the Defendant asserts that his right to an impartial jury was violated by the racial composition of the jury venire, that the State did not establish the value of the stolen property, that the prosecutor committed misconduct in closing argument, and that the trial court erred in imposing partially consecutive sentences. After a thorough review, we discern no error and affirm the judgments.

woodardb_112321.pdf

One Chancellor to Serve Both the Fourth and Fifth Judicial Districts Pursuant to Tenn. Code Ann. § 16-2-506(4)(A)

Court: TN Attorney General Opinions

Hearing Date: 11/19/2021

Opinion Number: 17

Question: Whether Tenn. Code Ann. § 16-2-506(4)(A) is intended to provide for one chancellor shared by Judicial Districts 4 and 5, or whether it is intended to apply only to the incumbent and ceases with the retirement of the incumbent chancellor.

Opinion: The plain language of Tenn. Code Ann. § 16-2-506(4)(A) reflects the legislative intent that one chancellor is to continue to serve both the Fourth and Fifth Judicial Districts and that one chancellor is to be elected by the qualified voters of both districts and may reside in either district.

ag_21_17.pdf

UNITED STATES OF AMERICA v. BRYAN PRESLEY

Head Comment: MOORE delivered a separate opinion concurring only in the judgment

Court: 6th Circuit Court (Published Opinions)

Attorneys:

ON BRIEF: Clare E. Freeman, SCOTT GRAHAM, PLLC, Portage, Michigan, for Appellant.

ON BRIEF: Kevin G. Ritz, UNITED STATES ATTORNEY’S OFFICE, Memphis, Tennessee, for Appellee.

Judge(s): BOGGS, MOORE, and LARSEN, Circuit Judges

Court Appealed: United States District Court for the Western District of Tennessee at Memphis

LARSEN, Circuit Judge. Bryan Presley pleaded guilty to participating in a conspiracy to burglarize pharmacies and to a related assault of a police officer. Though Presley’s plea agreement contained an appellate waiver, he now challenges his sentence. The government moved to dismiss. For the reasons stated below, we GRANT the government’s motion and DISMISS this appeal.

presleyb_112321.pdf