A Tennessee Legal Resource

I was doing some research on the Web and I came across this page:

http://law.vanderbilt.edu/library/research/tennessee
_legal_publications.html.

There's some good stuff there (e.g., Tennessee specific resources on evidence, civil procedure, etc.). It shows you where to find a resource in Vanderbilt's law library too.

Enjoy!

Tennessee Local Rules of Court

Here's a link for the local rules throughout Tennessee:

http://www.tsc.state.tn.us/geninfo/courts/LocalRules
/LocalRules.htm

I'd safe this link so that you can access it in the future.

Wrongful Death Proceeds: How Are They Distributed?

In Tennessee, wrongful death proceeds are distributed under the laws of intestate succession. Kline v. Eyrich, 69 S.W.3d 197, 202 n.3 (Tenn. 2002).

Also, the proceeds pass free of creditors' claims. Tenn. Code Ann. sec. 20-5-106 (a),(b).  There may, however, be exceptions to this premise: namely, Medicare subrogation, etc.

Calaway: The Petition to Rehear

For those of you that haven't heard, and who have followed Callaway, here's the link to the per curiam order of the Tennessee Supreme Court regarding the petition to rehear, inter alia:

http://www.tsc.state.tn.us/OPINIONS/TSC/PDF/062/calawayord.pdf

For purposes of explanation, Calaway held that a minor's medical malpractice claim is not tolled during minority. Based upon prior case law, most everyone familiar with Tennessee law thought minors' claims were tolled. Justice Barker writing for the Court held that this was a matter for the legislature because the Tennessee Medical Malpractice Act does not allow for tolling of such a claim.

Hope You Have a Happy Holiday

Happy Easter or Passover to you all.

Sorry if there has not been a substantive post in a while, I've been swamped. I will get back to the grind on Monday. Meanwhile, I hope everyone has a great holiday.

Personal Injury Claims & Bankruptcy

Have you ever had a personal injury client come to you and they're in bankruptcy, or have been recently discharged? If you have, you need to read this case: Headrick v. Bradley Cnty. Mem'l Hosp., No. E2005-00925-COA-R3-CV, 2006 WL 236931, at *2-7 (Tenn. Ct. App. January 31, 2006) (no application for perm. to appeal filed as of March 27, 2006). It largely depends upon whether the debtor's case was a Chapter 7 or 13, and when the debtor's cause of action accrued.

You should also look at Witko v. Menotte (In re Witko), 374 F.3d 1040, 1043-44 (11th Cir. 2004) for a general view of the effects of bankruptcy law on a post-petition tort suffered by a debtor.

Headrick is available at:
http://www.tsc.state.tn.us/OPINIONS/TCA/PDF/061/headrick.pdf