The Cost of Medical Records in Tennessee

What are medical records supposed to cost in a non-workers' compensation case in Tennessee? The answer is in Tennessee Code Annotated sections 63-2-102 (pertaining to non-hospital records) and 68-11-304 (pertaining to hospital records).

The charges are required by law to be twenty dollars for the first forty pages and twenty-five cents per page thereafter for physicians offices (i.e., non-hospital facilities). Tenn. Code Ann. sec. 63-2-102.

Hospitals charge fifteen dollars for the first five pages; seventy-five cents per page for the sixth to the fiftieth page; fifty cents per page for the fifty-first to the two hundred and fiftieth page; and twenty-five cents per page for all pages thereafter. Tenn. Code Ann. sec. 68-11-304.

Here's the link to the free (unannotated) Tennessee Code:

http://www.michie.com/resources1.html

Virtual Knee Surgery

Here is a link to view a virtual knee surgery:

http://www.edheads.org/activities/knee/

I thought you all would like to see this.

Holiday Break

Folks,

I'm taking a break for the holidays and won't post anything substantive until after the first of the year.

Enjoy your holidays.

Thanks.

Virtual Hip Replacement

Here's an interesting link to watch a virtual hip replacement.

http://www.edheads.org/activities/hip/index.htm

A Famous Quote and Case Law Too

Joseph Story said that the law "is a jealous mistress." Those of you who are lawyers -- or are married to a lawyer -- know this to be true. I have lost many a night's sleep reading, studying, and learning the law (she just won't let you go sometimes).

If you are the same way (or your spouse is), you should read this case: Overstreet v. Shoney's Inc., 4 S.W.3d 694 (Tenn. Ct. App. 1999). This opinion is an excellent overview of the elements of a personal-injury claim in Tennessee. Judge Koch authored the opinion and -- as always -- did an excellent job.

Enjoy the read.

Rule 12 Motions to Dismiss Are Not Responsive Pleadings

Yes, you read the title of this post correctly. Rule 12 motions to dismiss are not responsive pleadings for purposes of Rule 15 amendments to complaints (of course, we are talking about the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure here).

Why is this important? It's important because a lot of lawyers (myself included, until recently) think that you can't file an amended complaint without the other side's permission or leave of the court if a motion to dismiss is pending (Rule 15 allows an amended complaint to be filed any time before a repsonsive pleading is filed). This is simply not the case. Adams v. Carter Cnty. Mem'l Hosp., 548 S.W.2d 307, 309 (Tenn. 1977) (stating that a motion is not a responsive pleading); Vincent v. CNA Ins. Co., No. M2001-02213-COA-R9-CV, 2002 WL 31863290, at *5 n.4 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2002) (also stating that a motion to dismiss is not a responsive pleading).

NBA's Appellate Practice Manual: Update

I have posted before about the Nashville Bar Association's ("NBA") manual on appellate practice in Tennessee. It has recently been updated. To get to it, you can go to the NBA's Web site. The site is located at http://www.nashbar.org/, then click on the "Members" tab on the left-hand side. The manual (updated in June) is there to view or download.

Good luck!

Politics, Government, and America

This really has nothing to do with the law (at least not directly), but, whether you're a Democrat or a Republican (or a member of any other political party), you have to remember that we are all Americans. Americans who want the same things, e.g., to be safe from terrorism, good schools for our kids, to make a good living, and so on. These are true no matter what political party you belong to.

Somehow we have lost sight of the fact that we are ONE nation (made up of Democrats, Republicans, and all other political parties). This is what has made this American "experiment" in government work so well (i.e., everyone has a voice -- if they choose to exercise it). Sure, some may say that it's a terrible system, but, look around, it's still the best thing going. I always say: "Nothing worth having comes easy." This is true for almost everything. For our system of government to continue to work, we need more citizen involvement, and we need people to step up and not just assume that "someone else will do it." I'm going to "step up" and do more. Are you? You should if you're able to do so.

Cases That Cannot Be Recommenced After Being Voluntarily Dismissed

There are at least two types of cases that cannot be recommenced after they have been voluntarily nonsuited/dismissed. The first is a Governmental Tort Liability Act ("GTLA") case. Lynn v. City of Jackson, 63 S.W.3d 332, 337 (Tenn. 2001) (stating that the savings statute will not extend time in which an action must be filed under Tennessee's GTLA). The second type of case is a will contest action. In re Estate of Barnhill, 62 S.W.3d 139 (Tenn. 2001) (holding that a will contest action cannot be refiled after it has been voluntarily nonsuited/dismissed).

The Tennessee Claims Commission: Rules of Procedure

For the most part, the rules governing procedure in the Tennessee Claims Commission are the same as in circuit or chancery court. There are, however, some differences. You can find out what they are at this link:

http://www.state.tn.us/sos/rules/0310/0310-01-01.pdf

Products Liability Law

Interested in products liability law? Need to find an answer to a products liability question? Scott Baldwin (a pioneer in this area of the law), and others, have written an excellent book on this subject. The name of the book is: Preparation of a Product Liability Case.

Aspen Publishers has it. The link to their site is below:

www.aspenpublishers.com

Once you get to their site, click on the "Litigation, Insurance & Tort Law" link, and then the "Product Liability/Tort Law" link to find this book.

An ERISA Roadmap

ERISA can be confusing enough without having to try and figure out which part of it is located where (for those of you who don't know, ERISA is not in sequence in the United States Code). Here is a roadmap of what sections are located where, to wit:

http://benefitslink.com/erisa/crossreference.html

Thanks to my friend and ERISA lawyer John Wood for pointing this out to me.

The Importance of Time Management and Atticus

Time management is one of the most difficult problems a lawyer faces -- it truly is. I attended the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association's Annual Convention at The Peabody in Memphis, Tennessee last month.

At the Convention, Mark Powers (President of Atticus) spoke about time management strategies for your practice. He was great! He offered a lot of insight into the blatantly obvious "traps" that lawyers fall into all the time with their practices, e.g.: poor time managment, failing to delegate non-legal duties, etc. All of this results in running out of time to get things done, working weekends, missing out on family time, not marketing your practice, and so on. Most, if not all, of these "traps" can be avoided with careful time management. That's where Mark comes in to help.

Here's the link to his Web site: http://www.atticusonline.com/

Click on the "Articles" tab at the top and read the article entitled: "Ranking Your Clients: The Good, the Bad and the Ugly."

Mark and Atticus can change how you practice law -- for the better!

Get your life back and keep your law practice!

Runaway Juries?

Why is it that when I file a lawsuit (medical malpractice, car wreck case, etc.) and I don't ask for a jury, the defense does?

If juries are so "out of control" why does the defense almost ALWAYS ask for one?

Food for thought.

Statutes of Limitation for Every State

Here's a link to a Web site that has the statute of limitations (personal injury) for each state, to wit:

http://freeadvice.com/resources/personalinjury_statute_of_limitations.htm

(Please read my disclaimer at the top of this Blog; I am in no way endorseing this site or its contents.)

Did Somebody Say "Mary Carter"?

Have you ever heard of a "Mary Carter" agreement? I had not, not until today.

If you have, then you know what I'm talking about (i.e., a type of settlement agreement in a multi-party lawsuit). If you haven't, you can read about it at this link:

http://www.settlementnegotiation.org
/settlementconference/marycarter.html

I thought this might be of interest to some of the younger lawyers out there like myself.

Supreme Court of Florida Overturns $145 Billion Punitive Damage Award

Today the Florida Supreme Court overturned a $145 billion dollar punitive damage award. The Court held that the award was excessive as a matter of law.

Here's the link to the story:
http://news.moneycentral.msn.com/ticker/article.asp?
Feed=AP&Date=20060706&ID=5847740&Symbol=US:MO

Have a Great 4th!

Folks,

I will be out of pocket and will not post anything until after Tuesday.

Enjoy this weather, the food, fun, your families, and the fireworks!

Have a great 4th!

Dynamite and Deadlocked Juries

Judge Cottrell, writing for the Middle Section of the Tennessee Court of Appeals, authored an opinion that was released yesterday in Waters v. Coker regarding "dynamite charges" given to a deadlocked jury.

The court held that the charge given was prejudicial, reversed the trial court, and remanded the case for a new trial. (The first trial was a two week jury trial, too.)


The link to that opinion is as follows:
http://www.tba2.org/tba_files/TCA
/2006/watersg063006.pdf

This case is a good reminder to counsel and the judiciary about how "dynamite charges" should be used. (I had forgotten about some of this and found the opinion to be a great reminder.)

Ex Parte Contact with Non-Party Physicians Disallowed

Today, the Tennessee Supreme Court, in Alsip v. Johnson City Medical Center, ruled that ex parte communications between defense counsel and a plaintiff's non-party physician are not allowed.

The link to the opinion is as follows:
http://www.tsc.state.tn.us/OPINIONS/CURRENT/AlsipJenniferOPN.pdf
/AlsipJenniferOPN.pdf CURRENT/AlsipJenniferOPN.pdf

The Court held that these sort of communications violate the implied covenant of confidentiality between physicians and patients. (This only makes sense because a person's medical information is very intimate.)

Moreover, the Court reasoned, this information can be obtained through formal discovery -- if it is relevant.