Abbott vs. Gateway M1999-00653-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge William B. Cain
Trial Court Judge: Carol L. Soloman
The General Sessions Court of Davidson County awarded a judgment against the defendant below, Nationwide Insurance Company, in a case involving a car accident. Nationwide filed an appeal to the Davidson County Circuit court but failed to secure a trial date within 45 days as required by Davidson County Local Rule of Practice 20(b) (1999). The circuit court dismissed the case due to Nationwide's failure, and Nationwide filed a Tennessee Rule of Civil Procedure 60.02 motion to set aside the circuit court dismissal due to its attorney's excusable neglect. When the circuit court denied Rule 60.02 relief Nationwide appealed to this court. On appeal, we reverse the decision of the circuit court finding that it should have granted Nationwide's request for Rule 60.02 relief and set aside the dismissal of Nationwide's circuit court appeal.
Davidson
Court of Appeals
State vs. John Wayne Gray M1999-01615-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge David H. Welles
Trial Court Judge: Buddy D. Perry
The Defendant, John Wayne Gray, appeals as of right from his conviction of the sale of a schedule II controlled substance. On appeal, he argues (1) that the trial court erred by failing to grant his motion for acquittal or directed verdict because the State failed to establish circumstances and facts that would provide for a reasonable assurance of the identity of the evidence and because the State failed to establish an unbroken chain of custody; (2) that the evidence was insufficient as a matter of law to support the jury verdict; and (3) that the trial court erred in sentencing the Defendant to a mid-range sentence as a Range III offender. We find no error. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.
Franklin
Court of Criminal Appeals
Green vs. Innovative Recovery Services, Inc. M1999-02227-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge Ben H. Cantrell
Trial Court Judge: Carol L. Mccoy
The attorney for a woman who had been injured in an auto accident claimed that his services entitled him to a portion of the subrogation interest asserted by TennCare against the settlement proceeds. The trial court dismissed his claim. We affirm the trial court.
Davidson
Court of Appeals
Witt vs. Witt M1999-02234-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge Ben H. Cantrell
Trial Court Judge: Muriel Robinson
This is an appeal of the trial court's division of marital property in a divorce proceeding. Finding no error in the trial court's judgment, we affirm.
Davidson
Court of Appeals
Tuttle vs. Tuttle M1999-01578-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge W. Frank Crawford
Trial Court Judge: L. Craig Johnson
In a previous appeal, this divorce case was remanded to the trial court for a determination of whether the parties had any marital property and, if so, for the trial court to make an equitable division thereof. From the trial court's final decree in compliance with the order of remand, defendant appeals.
Coffee
Court of Appeals
Phelps vs. TDOC M1999-02109-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge William B. Cain
Trial Court Judge: Carol L. Mccoy
Petitioner/Appellant, a state prisoner, filed his petition for common law certiorari asserting that he was being unconstitutionally and illegally incarcerated by the state and had not been given proper credits under various sentence reduction credit statutes and policies. The trial court granted summary judgment and Petitioner appealed. We affirm.
Davidson
Court of Appeals
Thomas Rodgers, v. Tennessee Department of Corrections M1999-02585-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Herschel Pickens Franks, J.
Trial Court Judge: Hon. Carol L. Mccoy, Chancellor
In this Declaratory Judgment plaintiff sought statutory credits on his prison sentences. The Trial court granted the State summary judgment. On appeal, we affirm.
Davidson
Workers Compensation Panel
Mary Zelek v. Flagstar System, M1999-00269-WC-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Loser, Sp. J.
Trial Court Judge: J. O. Bond, Judge
The employer contends the trial judge erred by accrediting the expert medical testimony of a non-approved physician chosen by the employee, or her attorney, and that the award of permanent partial disability benefits is excessive.
Wilson
Workers Compensation Panel
State vs. Daniel Joe James M1999-1423-CCA-R3-CD
Trial Court Judge: Buddy D. Perry
On September 9, 1998, the Defendant, Daniel Joe James, was charged with possession of a controlled substance with intent to deliver. The Defendant was convicted by a jury of simple possession of a controlled substance. He received a sentence of eleven months and twenty-nine days probation and was fined $2,500.00. The Defendant now challenges the sufficiency of the convicting evidence. On appeal, the State has conceded that the evidence is insufficient to support a conviction. After a careful examination of the record, we agree that there is insufficient evidence against the Defendant to support a conviction. Therefore, we reverse the judgment of the trial court.
Franklin
Court of Criminal Appeals
Rodgers vs. TDOC M1999-02585-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Herschel P. Franks
Trial Court Judge: Carol L. Mccoy
In this Declaratory Judgment plaintiff sought statutory credits on his prison sentences. The Trial court granted the State summary judgment. On appeal, we affirm.
Davidson
Court of Appeals
William Lavern Davis vs. State M2000-00341-CCA-R3-PC
Authoring Judge: Judge John Everett Williams
Trial Court Judge: William Charles Lee
The petitioner argues that in finding that his trial counsel was not ineffective and denying his post-conviction petition, the petitioner appeals from the trial court's denial of his post-conviction petition. He argues that the trial court erred by finding that his trial counsel was not ineffective. The trial court's order is affirmed.
State vs. Lawrence Sherrill W1999-01488-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Judge Alan E. Glenn
Trial Court Judge: C. Creed Mcginley
This appeal results from the defendant's conviction by a Carroll County jury for introducing contraband into a penal institution. He was sentenced to six years incarceration and fined $2,500. On appeal, the defendant asserts that the trial court erred in not granting his motion for a new trial based on the lack of evidence to corroborate the testimony of his accomplice required for a conviction. After careful review of the record, we affirm the judgment of the trial court.
Carroll
Court of Criminal Appeals
Monceret vs. The Board of Professional Responsibility E1999-00545-SC-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Justice E. Riley Anderson
Trial Court Judge: Irvin H. Kilcrease, Jr.
This is an appeal from the Knox County Chancery Court, which affirmed a hearing panel's ruling that the appellant violated Tenn. R. Sup. Ct. 8, DR 7-104(A)(1) by deposing a witness that he knew to be represented by counsel. We hold that the chancery court correctly determined that the term "party" used in DR 7-104(A)(1) is not limited to the named plaintiff or defendant in a lawsuit and may also include a witness who is represented by counsel. We further hold that the protection of the Rule cannot be waived by the party but only by the party's lawyer. Accordingly, we affirm the judgment.
Knox
Supreme Court
Wyatt vs. State E1998-00097-SC-R11-CO
Authoring Judge: Justice E. Riley Anderson
Trial Court Judge: Thomas W. Graham
This is an appeal from the judgment of the Bledsoe County Criminal Court, which denied the defendant's petition for habeas corpus relief. The Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed the trial court's denial of the petition, rejecting the defendant's argument that his original indictment, which charged attempted first-degree murder by an "attempt to kill," was insufficient for failing to allege an overt act and thus failed to confer jurisdiction on the trial court. We granted the defendant's application for permission to appeal. We hold that the indictment in this case sufficiently alleges an act as required by the criminal attempt statute in stating that the defendant "did . . . attempt to kill" and that habeas corpus relief was thus properly denied. Accordingly, we affirm the lower courts' judgments.
Bledsoe
Supreme Court
The Shelby Ins. Co. and The Anthem Cas.Ins. Group vs. Henry Mathes , Joann Mathes and Jerry Stewart E2000-00186-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Herschel P. Franks
Trial Court Judge: Jean A. Stanley
In this declaratory judgment action the insurance company sought a declaration that an incident giving rise to a suit by Stewart against the insurance company's insured Mathes, was not covered due to an exclusion in the policy. The Trial Judge ruled the exclusion did not apply, and the insurance company appealed. We affirm.
Washington
Court of Appeals
Roane County, TN vs. Christmas Lumber Co. E1999-00370-COA-R9-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge Charles D. Susano, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Russell E. Simmons, Jr.
This is a condemnation case. The trial court entered an order finding that Roane County ("the County") has the right to condemn the respondents' property for use as an industrial park. We granted the respondents' application for an interlocutory appeal to review the trial court's determination that the County has the right to condemn the subject property. Finding that the County's petition is legally deficient, we vacate the trial court's order and remand for further proceedings.
Roane
Court of Appeals
Timothy P. Hancock, et al vs. The Chattanooga- Hamilton Cty Hospital Authority , d/b/a T.C. Thompson Children's Hospital, et al E1999-00169-COA-R9-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge Charles D. Susano, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Samuel H. Payne
The issues in this medical malpractice case turn on whether the holding of the Supreme Court in the case of Jordan vs. Baptist Three Rivers Hospital, 984 S.W.2d 593 (Tenn. 1999) applies to the facts now before us. Because the cause of action in the instant case accrued prior to the release of the Supreme Court's opinion in Jordan, we conclude that the holding in that case cannot be retrospectively applied to the instant case. Accordingly, we affirm the trial court's judgment dismissing that portion of the amended complaint seeking loss of consortium damages.
Hamilton
Court of Appeals
Hunt vs. Hunt M1997-00221-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge William C. Koch, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Thomas E. Gray
This appeal involves the financial aspects of a divorce that ended a seventeen-year marriage. Both parties sought a divorce, and following a bench trial, the Chancery Court for Sumner County granted the wife a divorce based on the husband's inappropriate marital conduct. The trial court awarded the wife most of the marital estate, apart from the parties' pensions. The court also directed the husband to pay most of the marital debt and a portion of the wife's legal expenses. While the trial court did not require the husband to pay long-term alimony, it required him to pay $4,200 in alimony in solido. The wife asserts on this appeal that the trial court should have awarded her a greater portion of the marital estate and permanent spousal support. We have determined that the trial court's distribution of the marital estate is essentially equitable. However, in light of the length of the marriage and the disparity in income, we have determined that, in addition to the alimony in solido, the husband should pay the wife $120 per month beginning after his last alimony in solido payment through January 2007.
Sumner
Court of Appeals
State vs. Daniel Christian Russell M1999-00202-CCA-R3-CD
Authoring Judge: Sr. Judge L. Terry Lafferty
Trial Court Judge: J. O. Bond
The appellant, Daniel Christian Russell, referred herein as "the defendant," appeals as of right from the judgment of the Wilson County Circuit Court imposing concurrent sentences for aggravated assault and vandalism. The trial court imposed sentences totaling five (5) years to be served concurrently in the Department of Correction. The defendant presents two appellate issues: 1) whether the length of the sentences imposed by the trial court are excessive; and 2) whether the trial court erred by denying the defendant's request for probation. Because the defendant received illegal concurrent sentences, we vacate the judgments of conviction and remand the case for further proceedings.
Wilson
Court of Criminal Appeals
Phillips vs. Phillips M1999-00212-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge David R. Farmer
Trial Court Judge: Muriel Robinson
This appeal arises from a dispute between Plaintiff Melanie Dianne (Davis) Phillips ("Wife") and Defendant Thomas Hickman Phillips ("Husband") regarding the terms of their divorce. The trial court (1) granted a divorce to Wife, (2) divided the parties' marital property, (3) awarded rehabilitative alimony to Wife, (4) awarded attorney's fees to Wife, and (5) denied a motion for costs filed by Husband. For the reasons set forth below, we modify the court's division of the parties' marital property. In all other respects, however, we affirm the ruling of the trial court.
Davidson
Court of Appeals
Green vs. Johnson M1999-00808-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge David R. Farmer
Trial Court Judge: Tom E. Gray
James R. Green appeals the trial court's final judgment dismissing his petition to establish the parentage of A.G.J., the minor daughter of Appellee Jennifer Leigh Johnson. Green previously filed a petition to establish parentage in April 1997, but this petition was dismissed with prejudice based on Green's failure to prosecute the action. In June 1999, Green filed the present petition in which he sought relief identical to that sought in the earlier petition. We agree with the trial court's ruling that Green's present petition is barred by principles of res judicata, and we affirm the trial court's judgment of dismissal.
Sumner
Court of Appeals
Saddler vs. Saddler M1999-01258-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge David R. Farmer
Trial Court Judge: Robert P. Hamilton
This appeal arises from a dispute between Plaintiff Dwight Saddler and Defendants Leonard and Paula Saddler regarding the ownership of a piece of real property in the estate of Edwina Groom Saddler known as the Hancock Farm. The trial court awarded this property to Dwight Saddler, finding that he is the owner of the property as the beneficiary of a resulting trust. Because we agree that Dwight Saddler has proven with the required degree of certainty that the Hancock Farm is the subject of a resulting trust in his favor, we affirm the ruling of the trial court.
