Tennessee

Contempt Conviction Upheld for Tenn. Lawyer Who Gave Judge the Finger

A Tennessee appeals court has upheld the contempt conviction of a Tennessee lawyer who made an obscene gesture as a judge was leaving the courtroom. The Knoxville News Sentinel reported on the July 23 opinion upholding a contempt conviction for lawyer Randy George Rogers in a story published yesterday. Rogers…

Oct 2, 2008 1:44 PM CDT

Tenn. High Court Hears Law Firm’s Plea for Judge’s Permanent Recusal

A Greeneville, Tenn., law firm’s effort to get a local judge to recuse himself permanently from its cases seemingly received a favorable reception today in a Tennessee Supreme Court hearing. The firm, Rogers Laughlin Nunnally Hood & Crum, is appealing to the high court Circuit Judge John Wilson’s refusal to…

Sep 5, 2008 4:50 PM CDT

Tenn. High Court to Hear About Fiery 25-Year Law Firm-Judge Spat

After 25 years of periodic dispute between a Greeneville, Tenn., law firm and a local Greene County judge, the situation has heated up to a point where the state supreme court is about to weigh in. The law firm, which is one of the largest in Greeneville, is asking the…

Sep 3, 2008 3:57 PM CDT

Ex-Prisoner Puts Tenn. Federal Judge Appointment on Hold

More than a year ago, President George W. Bush nominated Gustavus Puryear IV to be a federal district judge in Nashville, Tenn. His nomination is supported by Republican Sens. Lamar Alexander and Bob Corker of Tennessee, which ordinarily would put him on a fast track to confirmation. But a former…

Aug 14, 2008 3:51 PM CDT

Widow Charged in ‘92 Murder of Tenn. Prosecutor

When Ed Dossett died in 1992, only 44 years old and suffering from cancer, authorities said cattle had trampled the Knox County, Tenn., district attorney in an agricultural accident at his farm. But today his widow, Raynella Dossett Leath, 59, was charged with first-degree murder in his death, which is…

Jul 31, 2008 11:35 PM CDT

Prison Co.‘s Settlement Records are Public, Tenn. Judge Says

Corrections Corp. of America, a private company that runs state prisons in Tennessee, is subject to the state’s open records law, a Chancery Court judge has ruled, because it is the “functional equivalent” of a state agency. The company now plans to appeal. But if the ruling is upheld and…

Jul 30, 2008 6:09 PM CDT

Gibson Dunn Fights ‘Yo-Yo Effect’ in $13M Punitive Damages Case

From $98 million to $20 million to $13.3 million to zero and now back to $13.4 million again, the value of a closely watched Tennessee wrongful death case against an automobile manufacturer has swung back and forth, in what one defense lawyer refers to as a “yo-yo effect.” Now, after…

Jul 29, 2008 7:30 PM CDT

$13M in Punitives OK’d in Tennessee Wrongful Death Case

The Tennessee Supreme Court has upheld a $13 million award of punitive damages against an automobile manufacturer in a closely watched case claiming that a dangerous minivan seat caused the death of an 8-month-old passenger. But it rejected an additional $6 million in punitives for the mother’s emotional distress, reports…

Jul 28, 2008 6:30 PM CDT

Ex-Juvenile Court Judge Pleads Guilty to Viewing Child Porn at Law Office

A former juvenile court judge in Tennessee has pleaded guilty to possessing more than 100 images of child pornography on the computer at his law office. The former judge, Ronald R. Reagan of Sevierville, was sentenced to 46 months in prison and 10 years of supervised release, the Knoxville News…

Jul 25, 2008 1:22 PM CDT

Jackson Lewis Opens in N.M. & Memphis; 5th & 6th New Offices This Year

National employment boutique Jackson Lewis has opened an office in Albuquerque, N.M., acquiring four lawyers from the city’s Noeding & Jarrett in order to do so. The office is the firm’s 37th, and the fifth new outpost it has opened so far this year, reports the New Mexico Business Journal.…

Jun 26, 2008 11:20 PM CDT

Lawyer Seeks Cert for Football Players Booted Off Team for Petition Drive

High school football players booted off a team for a petition drive against their coach are asking the U.S. Supreme Court to hear their First Amendment case. Three of the students on the Jefferson County, Tenn., football team were not allowed to play after they circulated a petition criticizing coach…

Jun 18, 2008 5:18 PM CDT

Lawyer’s Quest to Marry Results in Nashville Policy Change on Immigrants

A county clerk in Nashville is allowing illegal immigrants to marry after a state attorney general’s opinion last week that sided with a lawyer seeking to marry a man without a Social Security number. The lawyer, Vanessa Saenz, had filed a suit in federal court saying she was denied the…

May 27, 2008 12:53 PM CDT

Tenn. Judge Slapped for Harsh Treatment of Immigrant Juvies

Tennessee disciplinary authorities have censured a Tennessee judge for his conduct in cases involving children of illegal immigrants and children he thought might be in U.S. illegally. Dickson County Juvenile Court Judge A. Andrew Jackson faced discipline over his handling of three hearings in 2007, the Tennessean reports. In each…

May 19, 2008 4:30 PM CDT

Lawyer Who Wouldn’t Stop Talking Suspended From Federal Practice

A Tennessee lawyer who kept talking after a federal judge ordered him to keep quiet has been suspended from practice in the Eastern District of Tennessee for at least three years. Chief U.S. District Judge Curtis Collier said Knoxville lawyer Herbert Moncier “harbors a disrespect for the institutional role of…

Apr 30, 2008 1:41 PM CDT

Order for Attys to Donate $500K to Charity Backfires on Judge

When Tennessee Judge Hamilton Gayden presided over a case involving of stockholders in a class action against CVS/Caremark, he wanted to see someone benefit besides the lawyers. After all, only the lawyers would see any money, in the form of legal fees, from the eventual settlement. So Gayden ordered attorneys…

Apr 23, 2008 11:51 AM CDT