Computation of Time Under the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure to Change December 1, 2009

Here's a link to an article written by Professor Paine on the matter, to wit:

http://www.tba2.org/journal_new/index.php/component/content/article/369?ed=24

NPR Blog: "Docs Case for Tort Reform Harder to Make"

http://www.npr.org/blogs/health/2009/11/docs_case_for_tort_reform_gets.html

Slip-and-Fall Case: Summary Judgment for Defendant Reversed

The Court of Appeals just reversed a grant of summary judgment for the defendants in a slip-and-file case. The case is Burks v. The Kroger Co., M2008-02664-COA-R3-CV & M2008-02667-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Nov. 23, 2009).

Here's the link:

http://www.tsc.state.tn.us/OPINIONS/TCA/PDF/094/Elizabeth%20Burks%20v%20The%20Kroger%20Company%20OPN.pdf

Happy Thanksgiving!

I hope you all have a great Thanksgiving holiday.

I spent some time yesterday thinking about this past year and the year to come. I am very thankful for many things in my life; I have truly been blessed by God. And for that, I am grateful.

Unfavorable Sixth Circuit ERISA Opinion

The United States Court of Appeals, Sixth Circuit, recently issued an opinion that is unfavorable to tort plaintiffs who have had their medical care paid for by an ERISA plan. The case is The Longaberger Co. v. Kolt, 09a0399p.06 (6th Cir. Nov. 16, 2009).

The opinion is a must-read for all tort-practitioners because of one very important thing: the court specifically disallowed a reduction for attorney's fees from the amount paid back to the ERISA plan.

Here's a link to the opinion:

http://www.ca6.uscourts.gov/opinions.pdf/09a0399p-06.pdf

Admissibility of Autopsy Reports, Etc.

I found this statute while looking for something else and thought I'd share it, to wit:

The records of the division of post mortem examination, the county medical examiner, or transcripts of the records certified to by the chief medical examiner or the deputy medical examiner or the duly appointed representative of the chief medical examiner, and the reports of the toxicology laboratory examinations performed by the testing laboratory or transcripts of the reports certified to by the director of the testing laboratory or the director's duly appointed representative, shall be received as competent evidence in any court of this state of the facts and matters contained in the records or reports.

T.C.A. § 38-7-110(a) (emphasis added).

The Return to Notice Pleading in Federal Court

Here's a recent article on this subject that I found interesting:

http://www.law.com/jsp/article.jsp?id=1202435525918&rss=newswire

Veterans Day: Thanks to Vets

My dad was in the Army and fought in Korea. I have a friend and a mentor of mine who is a West Point grad who fought in Viet Nam. My cousin, who is more like a brother to me, fought in Iraq during Desert Storm; so did a very good friend of mine. I think a lot of our Vets. It is my pleasure to say "Thank you!" to all Vets on this day. Your service is greatly appreciated.

The Return of Seized Property Under T.C.A. § 39-11-709

The Court of Appeals issued an interesting opinion today in McWhorter v. Selby, M2008-01502-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Nov. 9, 2009). It has to do with the return of property seized by state authorities. Here is the summary of the opinion:

This appeal concerns the return of seized property. In the course of a criminal investigation, the respondents seized personal property from the petitioner. After a year passed with no forfeiture proceeding, the petitioner filed a petition for the return of his seized property, pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated § 39-11-709. The respondents filed a motion to dismiss or for summary judgment, asserting that they no longer had possession of the property. The trial court granted the motion. The petitioner now appeals. We reverse and remand, finding that the petition was correctly filed in the county in which the property was seized, that it correctly named as the respondents the parties who seized the property, and that the respondents were not entitled to dismissal of the petition on the basis that the respondents had transferred possession of the property.

Here's a link to the opinion:

http://www.tsc.state.tn.us/OPINIONS/TCA/PDF/094/James%20C%20McWhorter%20v%20Allen%20Selby%20and%20Sparta%20opn.pdf

Manual on Recurring Problems in Criminal Trials

This is a good resource from the late Judge Vorhees and the Federal Judicial Center, to wit: Donald S. Vorhees, Fed. Judicial Ctr., Manual on Recurring Problems in Criminal Trials (2001), available at http://www.fjc.gov/public/pdf.nsf/lookup/ManRecPr.pdf/$file/ManRecPr.pdf

Criminal Law: Probable Cause

This is a rare post to this blog because it has to do with criminal law. However, it's an important case from the Tennessee Supreme Court on probable cause, to wit: State v. Saine, No. M2007-01277-SC-R11-CD (Tenn. Nov. 4, 2009).

Here's a link to the opinion:

http://www.tsc.state.tn.us/OPINIONS/TSC/PDF/094/SC%20State%20v%20Cedric%20Ruron%20Saine%20opn.pdf

Article on Balance Billing

Here's an AP article from the Miami Herald on balance billing:

http://www.miamiherald.com/news/florida/AP/story/1314183.html