Linda Smith, et al vs. Lane Family VIII, LLC, et al
These consolidates lawsuits involve claims by Linda Smith, Melinda Mischlich, Jennifer Hayles, and Fernando Hayles ("Plaintiffs") surrounding two homes purchased by plaintiffs located in a subdivision developed by Harry Lane or an affiliated limited liability company. The trial court granted rescission of the contracts and awarded plaintiffs their attorney fees. The trial court stated that the amount of attorney fees would be determined at a future hearing. Prior to the hearing on the amount of attorney fees to be awarded, several defendants filed a notice of appeal. We dismiss this appeal for lack of a final judgment. |
Knox | Court of Appeals | |
Vickie P. Jacobs, Surviving Spouse of Harris N. Jacobs, Deceased; and for the benefit of herself and the minor children of Harris N. Jacobs, Deceased v. Nashville Ear, Nose & Throat Clinic et al.
This is a medical malpractice case. Vicki P. Jacobs ("the Plaintiff") alleges that the failure of Stephen A. Mitchell, M.D., an otolaryngologist, and K. James Schumacher, M.D., a neuroradiologist, to diagnose cancer in the left sinus of her late husband, Harris N. Jacobs ("the Decedent"), in May 2000 caused his death in November 2001. The trial court granted all defendants summary judgment. The court held that the plaintiff, in the face of the defendants' motions for summary judgment, failed to demonstrate a genuine issue of material fact as to the element of causation. The court's ruling was premised, in part, on the court's holding that the affidavit of one of the experts was not timely filed and also because, according to the court, the plaintiff's experts gave deposition testimony that superseded and canceled out their assertions in affidavits. Plaintiff appeals, challenging the court's grant of summary judgment and an earlier order allowing the defendants to conduct ex parte interviews of treating physicians of the decedent. We vacate both orders and remand for further proceedings. |
Davidson | Court of Appeals | |
Angela Brandenburg et al vs. James Steven Hayes et al
Plaintiff filed a complaint against Defendant Husband and Wife seeking injunctive relief. Wife filed a counterclaim and cross-claim against Plaintiff and Husband alleging fraudulent conveyance, conversion, and misappropriation of assets. After a bench trial, the trial court found that Plaintiff and Husband devised a scheme to cloud the ownership of the business jointly owned by Husband and Wife and to hide assets from Wife during an impending divorce. The trial court awarded damages totaling $175,000 to Wife. Plaintiff appeals. We affirm. |
Sevier | Court of Appeals | |
In Re: Caleb J.B.W.
This appeal involves the termination of a mother's parental rights to her son. Following a bench trial, the trial court determined that the mother knowingly failed to protect her child by not immediately seeking medical care and by not immediately reporting her child's injuries to medical providers or the authorities. Therefore, the trial court terminated the mother's parental rights. We affirm. |
Bradley | Court of Appeals | |
Glenda Hampton v. Northwest Tennessee Human Resource Agency
This is a personal injury case. The Appellant/Defendant's employee backed a van into a vehicle which the Appellee/Plaintiff was driving. Until the accident, the Plaintiff had not had any problems with her right shoulder. The morning after the accident the Plaintiff had pain and soreness in her shoulder. She was treated by three different orthopedic surgeons and ultimately had arthroscopic right shoulder surgery. The parties stipulated to liability. However, the Defendant disputed causation. A bench trial was held and the trial court found that the accident caused the Plaintiff's shoulder injury which necessitated the shoulder surgery. Defendant appealed from the trial court's judgment. We affirm. |
Carroll | Court of Appeals | |
Glenda Hampton v. Northwest Tennessee Human Resource Agency
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Carroll | Court of Appeals | |
Michael Cary Murphy v. Tennessee Department of Revenue
The chancery court upheld the administrative decision based on Tenn. Code Ann. _ 55-4-226(f) (2004); however, the statute was amended in a material way in 2009, during the pendency of this case, which was not brought to the attention of the court. The Department has acknowledged in this appeal that the current statute provides that a former "appointed" municipal court judge, such as Appellant, may obtain a judicial license plate. We have determined the 2009 amendment to Tenn. Code Ann. _ 55-4-226(f) provides the relief Appellant is seeking; therefore, the issues on appeal are moot. Accordingly, this appeal is dismissed for mootness. |
Davidson | Court of Appeals | |
Gladys Davis v. Nissan North America, Inc.
Gladys Davis ("Plaintiff") filed this retaliatory discharge case against her former employer, Nissan North America, Inc. ("Defendant"). Plaintiff claims Defendant retaliated against her for filing several workers' compensation claims. Prior to Plaintiff's discharge, she underwent a comprehensive medical examination and, based on this examination, two physicians who are board certified in occupational and preventive medicine opined that there was a high risk of re-injury should Plaintiff be returned to work. Relying on the medical opinions of these two physicians, Defendant filed a motion for summary judgment. The Trial Court concluded, among other things, that Defendant had negated an essential element of Plaintiff's claim and Defendant, therefore, was entitled to summary judgment as a matter of law. Plaintiff appeals, and we affirm. |
Rutherford | Court of Appeals | |
In Re Drake L.
Mother appeals the trial court's change of custody of the parties' minor child to Father. Father appeals the trial court's determination of Mother's child support obligation and its failure to award him a judgment for child support retroactive to the date he was awarded temporary custody. Both parties contest the trial court's findings of contempt. We affirm the trial court's change of custody to Father. We reverse its finding of contempt as to Mother and the denial of retroactive child support for Father. We remand the matter to the court for a determination of Mother's child support obligation. |
Dickson | Court of Appeals | |
Dickson Housing Authority v. Ida Pearl Grimes, et al.
The circuit court entered judgment in favor of Plaintiff Dickson Housing Authority in this eviction action. Finding the trial court admitted no evidence which would support the Housing Authority's allegations of amounts earned by Defendant tenant, we reverse. |
Dickson | Court of Appeals | |
Jennifer Bivins, et al. v. City of Murfreesboro
Brandon Bivins died in an automobile accident on South Rutherford Boulevard in Murfreesboro. His mother sued the city, claiming that the road was unsafe or dangerous and that the city had notice of the condition of the road. The trial court held that the city did not have notice of an unsafe or dangerous condition at the spot of the accident. Because the city had notice of prior accidents along that segment of the road and had a consultant's report stating that the road did not meet design guidelines, we reverse the trial court and remand for a determination of whether the road was unsafe or dangerous. |
Rutherford | Court of Appeals | |
Cheryl Lingenfelter King v. Monte Joe King
In this post-divorce custody dispute, father asserts that the trial court erred in denying his petition to change custody and in granting mother's petition to relocate. We have concluded that the evidence does not preponderate against the findings of the trial court, and we affirm the decision of the trial court. |
Williamson | Court of Appeals | |
Shirley Ann Atkinson, Administrator of the Estate of Robert Lee Pattee, Jr., Deceased v. State of Tennessee
Tennessee Claims Commission - This is an appeal from the Tennessee Claims Commission. The claimant/appellant alleged that state employees or their agents negligently caused the death of her fianc_, who committed suicide while incarcerated at the Lois M. DeBerry Special Needs Facility in Nashville, Tennessee. The Commission determined the claimant was not entitled to recover because she failed to produce expert testimony to establish the standards of care by which to judge the conduct of the prison officials and mental health professionals allegedly responsible for the care, custody, and control of the deceased. Because the Commission correctly determined that the claimant is unable to prove a breach of duty without expert evidence to establish the applicable standards of care, we affirm. |
Davidson | Court of Appeals | |
TECO Barge Line, Inc., n/k/a U.S. United Barge Line, LLC v. Justin P. Wilson, Tennessee Comptroller of the Treasury, et al.
Tennessee Board of Equalization - Taxpayer, an interstate water transportation carrier company operating boats and barges over various waterways including the Mississippi and Tennessee Rivers, was assessed an ad valorem tax on personal property for the tax year 2005. Taxpayer appealed the assessment to the State Board of Equalization. Following the filing of Taxpayer's appeal, Taxpayer was retroactively assessed for the two tax years immediately preceding the original assessment, 2003 and 2004. Taxpayer appealed these assessments as well as assessments in subsequent tax years 2006, 2007 and 2008. A hearing was held before an Administrative Law Judge, who upheld both the regular as well as the retroactive assessments. Taxpayer appealed to the State Board of Equalization Assessment Appeals Commission and, following a hearing, the Commission affirmed the ALJ's decision. Taxpayer appeals; we affirm in part and reverse in part. |
Wilson | Court of Appeals | |
Betts Nixon v. City of Murfreesboro
City employee brought suit to challenge her dismissal for violation of the city's drug and alcohol policy. The trial court affirmed the decision of the city's disciplinary review board. The employee argues that the decision of the disciplinary review board should be reviewed de novo, that the city is estopped by its actions from relying on the blood alcohol test results and from terminating her employment, that she was denied due process by the actions of the city manager and the disciplinary review board, that the city abused its discretion, and that the city's decision is not supported by substantial and material evidence. We have concluded, as did the trial court, that the decision of the disciplinary review board is properly reviewable under the standards set forth in the Uniform Administrative Procedures Act. Under those standards, we affirm the trial court's decision. |
Rutherford | Court of Appeals | |
April Michelle Brady v. Colin Ashley Brady
Father appeals trial court finding of substantial and material change in circumstances and resulting modification of parenting plan. Finding no error, we affirm the judgment. |
Maury | Court of Appeals | |
John Doe v. Robert E. Cooper, Jr., as Attorney General for State of Tennessee
This is a declaratory judgment action in which Petitioner challenges as unconstitutional the retroactive application of the Tennessee Sexual Offender Registration, Verification, and Tracking Act of 2004. Petitioner was convicted of five counts of indecent exposure in 2001when the Sexual Offender Registration and Monitoring Act of 1994 was in effect. The 1994 Act did not classify indecent exposure as a "sexual offense." Three years after his convictions, the Tennessee Sexual Offender Registration, Verification, and Tracking Act of 2004 became law. Unlike the prior Act, the Act of 2004 classified persons convicted of "at least 3 indecent exposure offenses" as "sexual offenders," it required all persons classified as "sexual offenders" to register with the sex offender registry, and it prohibited sexual offenders whose victims were minors from working or residing within 1,000 feet of a school, child care facility, or public park. The trial court made the determination the 2004 Act was part of a non-punitive regulatory framework that did not constitute punishment and the retroactive application of the 2004 Act to Petitioner was not unconstitutional. Petitioner established standing to challenge the classification, registration and employment restraint provisions of the Act of 2004 as applied to him, and we have determined that the 2004 Act, as applied to Petitioner, is not unconstitutional. Accordingly, we affirm the trial court. |
Davidson | Court of Appeals | |
Lisa P. Gray v. Odell Watkins, Jr.
The State of Tennessee filed a petition for child support on behalf of the child's mother. The respondent acknowledged his obligation to pay such support, and the juvenile court referee established his current and retroactive child support obligation. The respondent filed a request for rehearing before the juvenile court judge, which was dismissed for failure to prosecute. He appealed to this Court but failed to provide a transcript or statement of the evidence. Finding no error in the limited record before us, we affirm. |
Shelby | Court of Appeals | |
Rufus R. Clifford, III and wife Carrie C. Clifford v. Layda Tacogue, M.D., St. Thomas Hospital, and St. Jude Medical, S.C., Inc.
The trial court granted summary judgment to the defendants on all claims, holding that plaintiffs failed to establish that the use of the medical device to close the site where the catheter was inserted was the cause of husband's injury. Finding that the defendants negated the element of causation essential to each cause of action, the trial court's judgment is affirmed. |
Davidson | Court of Appeals | |
William J. Bradley v. Christy L. Bradley
We affirm the trial court's finding that Mother is underemployed and remand the matter to the trial court for a calculation of imputed income. We also vacate the trial court's calculation and division of medical bills and remand the matter for reexamination, recalculation and redivison. The trial court's decision regarding Child's health insurance coverage is affirmed. |
Robertson | Court of Appeals | |
Wilson County Board of Education v. Wilson County Education Association and Bill Repsher
A teacher and the teachers' representative organization appeal the trial court's declaration that the local school board was not required to submit to arbitration as the last step in a grievance procedure set out in a locally negotiated agreement. We affirm the trial court based upon our conclusion that no enforceable agreement to arbitrate exists. |
Wilson | Court of Appeals | |
George Brady v. Tennessee Department of Corrections
In 1977, the appellant was found guilty of armed robbery and the murder of four individuals. He was sentenced in state court to four consecutive ninety-nine year terms for the murders, and was subsequently sentenced in federal court to ninety-nine years for the bank robbery. He served thirty years in federal prison and was turned over to state authorities in 2007 to begin serving his state sentences. He sought a declaratory judgment that the state sentences were to run concurrently with the federal sentence and that, as a consequence of serving his federal sentence, he was immediately eligible for parole consideration on the state court sentences. The trial court found that the state court sentences ran consecutively to the federal sentence and granted the appellee's motion for summary judgment. Finding no error, the trial court's judgment is affirmed. |
Davidson | Court of Appeals | |
Franklin County Board of Education v. Lisa Crabtree and Franklin County Education Association
This appeal arises from a declaratory judgment action. The trial court determined that Defendant teacher's grievance against the Franklin County Board of Education was not subject to arbitration under the collective bargaining agreement between the Board and the Franklin County Education Association. The trial court also dismissed Defendant teacher's counterclaim under Tennessee Code Annotated _ 49-5-510. We affirm. |
Franklin | Court of Appeals | |
Reginald Denard Usher, son of Reginald Smith, deceased vs. Charles Blalock & Sons, Inc. et al.
Reginald Smith ("the Decedent") died when the exposed metal edge of a device known as a "Guardrail Energy-Absorbing Terminal" ("the crash cushion") penetrated the window of the cab of his moving overturned tractor-trailer and cut him nearly in half. His son, Reginald Denard Usher ("the plaintiff"), filed this action in the trial court against Charles Blaylock & Sons, Inc. The plaintiff also filed a claim against the State with the Tennessee Claims Commission. The essence of the claims is that the crash cushion was negligently placed at the end of a series of concrete barriers that served to separate traffic entering on and exiting from the roadway connecting to the temporary end of Interstate 140 in Blount County. The alleged negligence was the failure to install a "transition panel" between the last concrete barrier and the crash cushion. Such a panel is designed to cover the otherwise exposed edge of the crash cushion thereby preventing vehicles from "snagging" the exposed metal edge. Eventually, the claim against the State was joined with the claim against Blaylock. The case was tried to a jury with the circuit judge sitting as the Claims Commissioner; the jury was utilized by the trial judge in an advisory capacity with regard to the claim against the State. The jury returned a verdict in favor of the plaintiff. The jury found that the plaintiff's total damages were $2,000,000. It apportioned fault 25% to the Decedent, 37.5% to the State, and 37.5% to Blaylock. Acting as the Claims Commissioner, the trial court went against the advice of the jury and dismissed the claim against the State. The court found (1) that the plaintiff failed to carry the burden of proof with respect to the applicable standard of care for installing crash cushions; (2) that the plaintiff failed to prove a breach of duty; and (3) that, in any event, the Decedent was at least 50% at fault for speeding through a construction zone in foggy conditions. Later, the trial court granted Blalock's motion for judgment notwithstanding the verdict and entered judgment in its favor. The court held (1) that Blalock was not responsible, as a matter of law, for leaving off the transition panel because the State's inspector on the scene "directed" Blalock to leave it off; (2) that the plaintiff failed to carry the burden of proving, by expert testimony, what a reasonably prudent contractor would have done under the circumstances; and (3) again, that the Decedent was at least 50% at fault. The court, acting as 13th juror, conditionally granted Blalock a new trial in the event the judgment in its favor was vacated or reversed. The plaintiff appeals. We affirm the judgment in favor of the State. We vacate the judgment in favor of Blalock and remand for a new trial as to that defendant. |
Knox | Court of Appeals | |
Ty Amanns, et al vs. Jeff Grissom, et al.
This suit was filed in Circuit Court after first being filed and then voluntarily non-suited in Chancery Court. After multiple discovery abuses, the trial court entered an order pursuant to Tenn. R. Civ. P. 37 dismissing the plaintiffs' suit. Plaintiffs appeal to this Court. We affirm. |
Knox | Court of Appeals |
