Happy New Year!

I hope 2011 is your best year yet.

Law School Lectures

Here are a few short lectures from Vanderbilt University Law School's Web site:

http://law.vanderbilt.edu/faculty/listen-to-lectures/index.aspx

Pay attention to the second one about half-truths of tort law.

Medical Malpractice: New Case on Certificates of Good Faith

The Tennessee Court of Appeals issued its opinion on Friday in Barnett v. Elite Sports Med., No. M2010-00619-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Dec. 17, 2010). The opinion addresses our state's relatively new law on certificates of good faith. The summary from the opinion states as follows:

In this case, we are asked to decide whether an amendment to Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-26-122, which became effective July 1, 2009, and requires the plaintiff in a medical malpractice action to file a certificate of good faith at the time of filing suit, was properly applied to an action initiated prior to the effective date of the amendment, voluntarily dismissed and refiled after the effective date. We also consider whether the requirement that the plaintiff file a certificate of good faith applies to an action for medical battery. We affirm the judgment in part, reverse in part, and remand the case for further proceedings.

Here's a link to the opinion:

http://www.tsc.state.tn.us/OPINIONS/TCA/PDF/104/Pamela%20Ann%20Barnett%20v%20Elite%20Sports%20Medicine%20Opn.pdf

Comparative Fault & Jury Verdicts

The Tennessee Court of Appeals released its opinion yesterday in Gray v. Bednarz, No. M2010-00010-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Dec. 16, 2010). While not that long of an opinion, it offers a good discussion on jury verdicts and the assessment of fault; the discussion is set out on pages 3-4 of the opinion. Here's a link to it:

http://www.tsc.state.tn.us/OPINIONS/TCA/PDF/104/Zula%20Gray%20v%20Joe%20Bednarz%20Jr%20OPN.pdf

Medical Malpractice: Defense Verdict in Claims Commission Upheld on Appeal

bThe Court of Appeals released its opinion in Brown ex rel. Anderson v. State, No. W2010-01036-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Dec. 15, 2010). Here's the summary from the synopsis:

Appellant, who was not placed on fall observations until after his fall, suffered a fall while under the care of the Western Mental Health Institute. A CAT scan performed three days after the fall revealed no hemorrhaging, however, a repeat scan performed approximately one month later revealed a subdural hematoma for which Appellant subsequently underwent two surgeries. Appellant, by and through his next friend, filed suit against the State in the Claims Commission alleging medical negligence. Following a trial, the Claims Commission found that a Western nurse breached the standard of care in completing the initial fall risk assessment, but that Appellant had failed to prove that such breach was a proximate cause of his fall. Additionally, the Commission found that Appellant had failed to prove that Western’s failure to later place Appellant on fall observations was a proximate cause of his fall. Finally, the Commission found that Appellant had failed to prove by a preponderance of the evidence that Western’s failure to order repeat brain imaging prior to January 26, 2006, was a breach of the standard of care. We affirm the judgment of the Commission.

Here's a link to the opinion:

http://www.tsc.state.tn.us/OPINIONS/TCA/PDF/104/BrownRobertOPN.pdf

Medical Malpractice: Tennessee Supreme Court Grants an Appeal and Denies Another

This post has to do with two prior posts.

First, the Tennessee Supreme Court recently granted the application for permission to appeal filed in Howell v. Claiborne and Hughes Health Ctr., No. M2009-01683-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. June 24, 2010), appeal granted, (Dec. 10, 2010). Here's a link to the Court's list of discretionary appeals showing the grant of the appeal:

http://www.tsc.state.tn.us/OPINIONS/TSC/certiorari/2010/Certlist20101213.pdf.

Howell was the subject of my June 25, 2010 post, to wit:

http://theduncanlawfirm.blogspot.com/2010/06/medical-malpractice-court-of-appeals_25.html#links

Second, the Tennessee Supreme Court recently denied the application for permission to appeal filed in Jacobs v. Nashville Ear, Nose & Throat Clinic, No. M2009-01594-COA-R3-CV (July 15, 2010), appeal denied, (Dec. 7, 2010). Here's a link to the Court's list of discretionary appeals showing the denial of the appeal:

http://www.tsc.state.tn.us/OPINIONS/TSC/certiorari/2010/Certlist20101213.pdf.

Jacobs is the subject of my July 16, 2010 post, to wit:

http://theduncanlawfirm.blogspot.com/2010/07/medical-malpractice-court-of-appeals_16.html#links

More on the Recent Changes to the Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct

Here's an article written by Lucian Pera that was recently published in the Tennessee Bar Journal. It outlines the recent changes to Tenn. Sup. Ct. 8, which contains the new Rules of Professional Conduct.

http://tba.org/journal_new/index.php/component/content/article/525?ed=36

Recent Changes to the Fed. R. Civ. P.

Here's an article written by Professor Don Paine on the changes from the Tennessee Bar Journal, to wit:

http://tba.org/journal_new/index.php/component/content/article/534?ed=36

The changes became effective on December 1, 2010.

Medical Malpractice: Petition to Rehear Denied in Barkes v. River Park Hosp., Inc.

This post is a follow-up from my Oct. 20, 2010 post. That post dealt with the recent Tennessee Supreme Court decision in Barkes v. River Park Hosp., Inc. The defendant filed a petition to rehear with the Tennessee Supreme Court, which was denied. Here's a link to the denial, to wit:

http://www.tsc.state.tn.us/OPINIONS/TSC/PDF/104/SC%20Debra%20M%20Barkes%20v%20River%20Park%20Hospital%20Inc.pdf

Police Stops, Etc.

I'm often asked "What do I do if the police stop me while I'm walking down the street?" or "What do I do if the police stop me while I'm driving?" I found the following document on the Nashville Public Defender's Web site, which I think is helpful, to wit:

http://publicdefender.nashville.gov/portal/page/portal/publicdefender/pdDownloadsMain/downloads/KnowYourRights.pdf

New Rules of Professional Conduct: Effective Jan. 1, 2011

The Tennessee Rules of Professional Conduct will change at the first of the year. Here is a link to the Tennessee Supreme Court's Order adopting the changes with a copy of the new rules appended to it, to wit: http://www.tba.org/ethics/TSC_Order_Adopting_TRPC.pdf.

Also, here's a copy of the final version of the new rules from the Tennessee Bar Association, to wit:

http://www.tba.org/ethics/2011_TRPC.pdf

What Is My Purpose?

I can't think of a better way to put it, to wit:

https://www.tnaj.org/index.cfm?pg=Purpose