OPINION Sharon G. Lee , C.J. , delivered the opinion of the Court, in which Cornelia A. Clark , Gary R. Wade , Jeffrey S. Bivins , and Holly M. Kirby , JJ. , joined. The issue we address in this appeal is whether the Court of Appeals properly granted the defendant a Tennessee Rule of Appellate Procedure 10 extraordinary appeal. The trial court denied the defendant's motion for a waiver of the contiguous state requirement in Tennessee Code Annotated section 29-26-115(b) as to an expert...
OPINION CORNELIA A. CLARK , J. , delivered the opinion of the Court, in which SHARON G. LEE , C.J. , and GARY R. WADE , JEFFREY S. BIVINS , and HOLLY M. KIRBY , JJ. , joined. We granted review in this interlocutory appeal to determine whether the analysis the Court of Appeals employed in Young v. Davis, No. E2008-01974-COA-R3-CV, 2009 WL 3518162, at *6-7 (Tenn.Ct.App. Oct. 30, 2009), to conclude that Tennessee Public Protection Act ("TPPA") claims against governmental entities must...
OPINION GARY R. WADE , J. , delivered the opinion of the Court, in which SHARON G. LEE , C.J. , and JANICE M. HOLDER , CORNELIA A. CLARK , and WILLIAM C. KOCH, JR. , JJ. , joined. The defendant was indicted for seven counts of rape of a child. Prior to trial, the State sought permission to offer as evidence a video-recorded statement made by the child victim to a forensic interviewer. At the conclusion of a pre-trial hearing, the trial court refused to allow the video-recorded...
OPINION JON KERRY BLACKWOOD, Sr., J. An employee injured his head, neck, and back in a tractor-trailer accident while working for his employer. The employee was ultimately diagnosed with a nerve-entrapment condition, which the employer denied was caused by the accident. The trial court found in the employee's favor and awarded benefits. The employer appeals asserting that the trial court erred in excluding the expert testimony of an accident reconstruction engineer on the issue of causation....
OPINION DEBORAH C. STEVENS, Judge. The employee alleged that he sustained a compensable back injury when a stool on which he was sitting collapsed, causing him to fall to the ground. His treating physician opined that he sustained permanent impairment as a result of the incident. Two evaluating doctors opined that his symptoms were related to a prior motor vehicle accident. The employee had not informed the treating physician of the prior motor vehicle accident nor of his prior history of...
OPINION SHARON G. LEE , C.J. , delivered the opinion of the Court, in which JANICE M. HOLDER , CORNELIA A. CLARK , GARY R. WADE , and WILLIAM C. KOCH, JR. , JJ. , joined. The issue presented is whether the defendant is entitled to a new trial based on ineffective assistance of counsel. A Shelby County jury convicted the defendant of first degree premeditated murder and sentenced him to death. Following unsuccessful appeals, the defendant filed for post-conviction relief on the grounds...
OPINION WILLIAM C. KOCH, JR. , J. , delivered the opinion of the Court, in which SHARON G. LEE , C.J. , JANICE M. HOLDER , CORNELIA A. CLARK , and GARY R. WADE , JJ. , joined. This appeal concerns the admissibility of incriminating statements made by a defendant to the mother of a sexually abused child while the mother was secretly cooperating with the police in their investigation of the abuse. After a grand jury indicted him on six counts of aggravated sexual battery and four...
OPINION SHARON G. LEE , C.J. , delivered the opinion of the Court, in which CORNELIA A. CLARK , GARY R. WADE , and WILLIAM C. KOCH, JR. , JJ. , joined. A jury found that an employer retaliated against an employee in violation of Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964 ("Title VII") and the Tennessee Human Rights Act ("THRA") and awarded the employee compensatory damages. The Court of Appeals reversed the award, holding that the employee had failed to prove that his supervisor had...
OPINION GARY R. WADE , J. , delivered the opinion of the Court, in which SHARON G. LEE , C.J. , and JANICE M. HOLDER , CORNELIA A. CLARK , and WILLIAM C. KOCH, JR. , JJ. , joined. The defendant and an accomplice were indicted for aggravated burglary and employment of a firearm during the commission of a dangerous felony. At the trial of the defendant, the court denied a request by the defense for a special jury instruction on the definition of actual and constructive possession as an...
OPINION SHARON G. LEE , J. , delivered the opinion of the Court, in which GARY R. WADE , C.J. , and JANICE M. HOLDER , CORNELIA A. CLARK , and WILLIAM C. KOCH, JR. , JJ. , joined. The defendant was convicted of multiple counts of especially aggravated sexual exploitation of a minor, criminal exposure of another to the human immunodeficiency virus ("HIV"), and aggravated statutory rape. The Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed the convictions. Based on our review, we hold (1) there is...
OPINION WILLIAM C. KOCH, JR. , J. , delivered the opinion of the Court, in which GARY R. WADE , C.J. , JANICE M. HOLDER , CORNELIA A. CLARK , and SHARON G. LEE , JJ. , joined. This appeal involves whether the statute localizing venue for lawsuits filed by indigent inmates applies to lawsuits based on causes of action that accrue when an inmate is housed in a facility operated by a private corporation. An inmate housed at a correctional facility operated by a private entity filed suit...
OPINION CORNELIA A. CLARK , J. , delivered the opinion of the Court, in which GARY R. WADE , C.J. , and JANICE M. HOLDER , WILLIAM C. KOCH, JR. , and SHARON G. LEE , JJ. , joined. We granted permission to appeal in this premises liability action to address two issues: (1) whether the undisputed facts establish either the accepted work doctrine exception or the nondelegable duty to the public exception to the general rule that property owners are not vicariously liable for the...
OPINION GARY R. WADE, Chief Judge. The defendant pled guilty to aggravated burglary and theft of property over five hundred dollars. The trial court imposed concurrent, Range I sentences of five years and one year and six months, respectively, all to be served on probation. On appeal, the defendant contended that the trial court erred by imposing excessive sentences and by denying her application for judicial diversion. The Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed. We granted the application for...
OPINION CORNELIA A. CLARK, J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which GARY R. WADE, C.J., and JANICE M. HOLDER, WILLIAM C. KOCH, JR., and SHARON G. LEE, JJ., joined. The defendant was charged with the June 2005 first degree premeditated murder of her mother. The jury convicted her of second degree murder after a trial in which the evidence was entirely circumstantial. The Court of Criminal Appeals affirmed her conviction and sentence, although the judges on the Panel were not unanimous...
OPINION GARY R. WADE, C.J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which JANICE M. HOLDER, CORNELIA A. CLARK, WILLIAM C. KOCH, JR., and SHARON G. LEE, JJ., joined. The petitioner pled guilty to charges of attempted first degree murder, second degree murder, and especially aggravated robbery. Later, he filed a petition for post-conviction relief, claiming that his trial counsel was ineffective and that his guilty pleas were not knowingly and voluntarily made. When the petitioner subpoenaed his...
OPINION J.B. COX, SP.J. Pursuant to Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 51, this workers' compensation appeal has been referred to the Special Workers' Compensation Appeals Panel for a hearing and a report of findings of fact and conclusions of law. Employee filed a request for reconsideration pursuant to Tenn. Code Ann. 50-6-241(d)(1)(B), which Employer opposed on the ground that Employee's loss of employment was due to Employee's voluntary resignation and/or his employment-related misconduct....
OPINION J. B. COX, SP.J. An employee alleged he injured his back on two occasions during late 2008. His employer initially accepted the second claim as compensable, but then denied the claim after receiving records from the employee's primary care physician. The Department of Labor and Workforce Development denied the employee's Request for Assistance. This civil action was subsequently filed in the Chancery Court for Montgomery County. That court awarded workers' compensation benefits to the...
OPINION GARY R. WADE, C.J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which JANICE M. HOLDER, CORNELIA A. CLARK, and SHARON G. LEE, JJ., joined. The employee suffered bilateral shoulder injuries in January and March of 2008. After undergoing separate surgeries on each shoulder, the employee agreed to a voluntary buyout of his employment. Later, he filed suit for workers' compensation benefits. The trial court awarded temporary total disability benefits and assessed a 90% permanent partial...
OPINION The plaintiff filed a civil action in the general sessions court asserting a health care liability claim against the defendant. Following a trial, the general sessions court entered judgment in the defendant's favor. The next day, the plaintiff filed a notice of appeal and deposited $211.50 with the general sessions court clerk, which represents the amount of the standard court cost of $150 for an appeal to the circuit court required by Tennessee Code Annotated section 8-21-401(b)(1)(C)...
OPINION WILLIAM C. KOCH, JR., J., delivered the opinion of the Court, in which GARY R. WADE, C. J., JANICE M. HOLDER, CORNELIA A. CLARK, and SHARON G. LEE, JJ., joined. This appeal involves the manner in which a trial court granted motions for summary judgment in a proceeding involving the death of a patient whose treatment for viral encephalitis was delayed because he was also being assessed for involuntary commitment to a psychiatric hospital. The widow of the deceased patient filed suit...
