Highlights from 33 TAM 19, May 12, 2008
Supreme Court
• Supreme Court sets forth what is necessary to hold hospital vicariously liable for negligence or wrongful acts of independent contractor physician. For the full text, click here.
Supreme Court Workers’ Compensation Panel
• Supreme Court Workers’ Compensation Panel affirms award to truck driver who injured his back while sleeping in cab of his truck while waiting to make delivery. For the full text, click here.
• Supreme Court Workers’ Compensation Panel rejects contention of school employee that her average weekly wage should be based on school year, or 36 weeks, rather than calendar year, or 52 weeks. For the full text, click here.
Court of Appeals
• Court of Appeals affirms award against school board in case in which plaintiff, 14-year-old student who had reported verbal harassment and threats by 15-year-old male student to school administrator and had been assured that administrator would take care of situation, was punched in face with fist by male student. For the full text, click here.
Court of Criminal Appeals
• Court of Criminal Appeals says that when defendant’s vehicle was stopped for running red light, and arresting officer subsequently learned that defendant was driving without license, officer was not required to issue defendant citation in lieu of arrest. For the full text, click here.
General Assembly
• General Assembly revises Chapter 7 of Uniform Commercial Code on documents of title. For the full text, click here.
Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals
• Sixth Circuit says that neither fact that defendant was traveling from California to Atlanta, fact that passengers in car appeared to be “nervous,” nor fact that value of vehicle that defendant was driving was greater than value of vehicle that he was towing supplied deputy with valid nonimmigration-related reason for defendant’s continued detention beyond traffic stop. For the full text, click here.
Number of reported offenses on college campuses drops
In April, the Tennessee Bureau of Investigation (TBI) released its 2007 Crime on Campus report, an annual summary of the nature, number, and extent of reported crimes on the campuses and student housing of colleges and universities throughout the State of Tennessee. For the rest of the story, click here.
Legal News
Chief Justice Barker to retire in September
Chief Justice William M. Barker will retire on September 1 after 25 years of judicial service. Barker, 66, is a native of Chattanooga. He earned his Bachelor’s degree from the University of Chattanooga and his law degree from the University of Cincinnati School of Law. Following graduation from law school, he entered the United States Army, serving for two years as a captain in the Medical Service Corps.
For the rest of the story, click here.
Judge Crawford dies, Judge Hayes retires
Tennessee Court of Appeals Judge W. Frank Crawford, 81, lost his battle with lung cancer on April 17. Judge Crawford, who continued working until two weeks before his death, was appointed to the Western Section Court of Appeals in 1982. During his 26 years on the bench, he ruled on many important cases. In 2001, he was part of a three-judge panel that ruled unanimously that no public vote was needed to spend taxpayers’ money to build the FedExForum in Memphis. In 1996, Judge Crawford wrote the majority opinion that citizens have a fundamental right to privacy when the panel ruled that a Tennessee law making homosexual acts a crime was unconstitutional.
Court of Criminal Appeals Judge David G. Hayes will retire from the bench June 30 to become one of Tennessee’s senior judges. Hayes, 64, who recently moved to Camden, was appointed to the Court of Criminal Appeals in April 1994 and was elected to the unexpired term that same year. He was re-elected to an eight-year term in 1998 and again in 2006.
For the rest of the story, click here.