News
March 8, 2016
The Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts is accepting applications for two grants. The deadline for both grants is April 8, 2016. More information is available here:Application for Grant Funding by State…
March 10, 2015
The Tennessee Supreme Court has reversed a trial court ruling ordering the State to disclose the names of those involved in the execution process in a lawsuit challenging Tennessee’s lethal injection protocol as unconstitutional cruel and unusual punishment.The case – a lawsuit filed by death row…
March 9, 2015
The Tennessee Supreme Court ruled today that, in actions under Tennessee’s civil forfeiture statutes, the State must present evidence that it complied with both the procedural and the substantive requirements in the law.Under Tennessee’s civil forfeiture statutes, the State may obtain forfeiture of…
February 27, 2015
The Tennessee Supreme Court will hear two health care liability disputes among four cases scheduled for oral arguments March 4 in Jackson.The first case concerns the procedures required when filing a health care liability lawsuit. At the time the suit was filed, state law required a plaintiff to…
February 27, 2015
Seven attorneys have applied for the Hamilton County Criminal Court judge position that will become vacant June 1 upon the retirement of The Honorable Rebecca Stern.The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments will meet in Chattanooga on April 9 to consider these applicants:…
February 26, 2015
The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments will consider nine applicants when it meets April 10 in Columbia to select nominees for the impending circuit court vacancy in the 22nd Judicial District, which serves Giles, Lawrence, Maury, and Wayne counties.The vacancy has been created by the…
February 19, 2015
A Supreme Court order filed February 19 adds to comments for Tenn. Sup. Ct. R. 8, RPC 3.5(c) to clarify that attorneys are permitted to communicate with jurors or prospective jurors after the jury has been discharged "unless the communication isprohibited by law or a court order entered in the case…
February 23, 2015
The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments is now accepting applications for an upcoming Criminal Court Judge vacancy in Hamilton County as well as a Circuit Court Judge vacancy in the 22nd Judicial District – Giles, Lawrence, Maury, and Wayne counties. Judge Rebecca J. Stern of the 11th…
February 13, 2015
The Tennessee Supreme Court today has agreed to decide whether a death row inmate can properly challenge the constitutionality of the possibility of electrocution as a method of execution.The lawsuit by 34 death row inmates challenges several aspects of Tennessee’s death penalty protocol. In an…
February 13, 2015
The Tennessee Supreme Court has affirmed the conviction of an East Tennessee woman for child neglect based upon her failure to obtain medical treatment for her daughter.In 2002, Jacqueline Crank’s adolescent daughter developed a tumor on her shoulder and began to experience extreme pain. Crank took…
February 11, 2015
The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments met on February 11, 2015 in Greeneville to hold a public hearing and conduct interviews of candidates for the circuit court vacancy in the 3rd Judicial District, which serves Greene, Hamblen, Hancock, and Hawkins counties.After interviewing the…
February 3, 2015
The Tennessee Supreme Court will hear eight cases – four civil and four criminal – in oral arguments held February 4 and 5 in Nashville.The civil cases:The Chattanooga-Hamilton Co. Hospital Authority d/b/a Erlanger Health Systems v. United Healthcare Plan of the River Valley, Inc. d/b/a Americhoice…
January 30, 2015
Michelle Consiglio-Young has been named legislative liaison and assistant general counsel for the Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts. In this role, she will be drafting and tracking legislation for the judiciary, following other proposed legislation, assisting members of the General…
January 30, 2015
The Governor’s Council for Judicial Appointments will consider seven applicants when it meets February 11 in Greeneville to select nominees for the circuit court vacancy in the 3rd Judicial District, which serves Greene, Hamblen, Hancock, and Hawkinscounties.The vacancy has been created by the…
January 29, 2015
The Tennessee Supreme Court has ruled that an employee is entitled to the full amount of workers’ compensation benefits awarded to him by a trial court.In 2009, Orville Lambdin retired from Goodyear Tire & Rubber Company where he had worked as a tire builder for over 35 years. He later sought…
January 27, 2015
Today, the Tennessee Supreme Court has dismissed a health care liability lawsuit against six Knoxville medical providers because they were not provided with at least 60 days’ pre-suit notice of the action, as required under Tennessee law.In 2011, Samuel and Mary Foster filed a health care liability…
January 26, 2015
The Association for Women Attorneys (AWA) of Memphis will honor Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Holly Kirby with the Marion Griffin-Frances Loring Award this week at their annual banquet. The award goes to one who has exhibited outstanding achievement in the legal profession.Justice Kirby was…
January 23, 2015
The Supreme Court ruled today that a criminal offense that provides for a mandatory minimum period of confinement does not necessarily prevent a defendant charged with that crime from being eligible for judicial diversion.The defendant, Shanice L. Dycus, pled guilty in 2012 to multiple drug…
January 23, 2015
The Tennessee Supreme Court ruled today that a trial court must consider both the legal basis and the injuries for which damages are sought when determining the applicable statute of limitations for each claim in a lawsuit.Statutes of limitations exist in both criminal and civil law and limit the…
January 22, 2015
The Tennessee Supreme Court held today that the Tennessee statute governing termination of parental rights does not require the Tennessee Department of Children’s Services to prove as an essential element of its case that it made reasonable efforts to reunite the child with the parent (or parents)…