Joe W. Brown, et al. v. AmSouth Bank, et al.

The dispositive issue in this appeal is whether the trial court erred by dismissing the complaint with prejudice based upon collateral estoppel and res judicata. The record before us reveals that as many as ten other actions have been commenced by the same parties in state and federal courts in which Plaintiffs have repeatedly challenged the validity of Defendants’ efforts to foreclose on property in Eads, Tennessee. To commence this action, Plaintiffs filed a Complaint to Set Aside Foreclosure and Declare Foreclosure a Nullity, for Damages, and for Legal and Equitable Relief. Defendants challenged the complaint by filing a Motion to Dismiss Complaint, contending that Plaintiffs waived their right to contest the foreclosure pursuant to a settlement agreement they entered into following mediation in one of the federal court proceedings. Defendants also contend that the same issues that are raised in this action were litigated in the federal courts, and that the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit held the settlement agreement was valid and enforceable. The chancellor granted Defendants’ motion and dismissed this action based on collateral estoppel and res judicata. We affirm.