In Commercial Painting Co. v. Weitz Co. LLC, No. W2019-02089-SC-R11-CV, 2023 Tenn. LEXIS 39 (Weitz), the Supreme Court of Tennessee (Supreme Court) considered whether the economic loss doctrine barred the plaintiff’s claims...more
The Supreme Court of Tennessee has approved a trial court’s consideration of extrinsic evidence regarding whether an individual with Down syndrome had the capacity to execute a durable power of attorney that his brother used...more
The Tennessee Supreme Court recently issued an important decision making clear that in a breach of contract dispute, the aggrieved party may recover more in damages than the parties’ contract permits, such as punitive,...more
The Tennessee Court of Appeals recently issued an opinion extending application of the economic loss doctrine to certain construction claims. Among other things, the economic loss doctrine prevents a party from recovering on...more
Although Tennessee courts recognize claims asserted against an employer such as negligent hiring, training, supervision, and entrustment, recent case law suggests that those claims may no longer viable after an employer...more
On June 30, the Supreme Court of Tennessee issued an opinion interpreting the retainage provisions in Tennessee’s Prompt Pay Act (the Act). The opinion has significant implications for construction projects across Tennessee....more
In a 28 page decision issued earlier this year, which the Supreme Court of Tennessee described as “a cautionary tale on the ethical problems that can befall lawyers on social media,” the court increased a lawyer’s 60 day...more
In 2011, the Tennessee legislature enacted limitations on non-economic compensatory damages and punitive damages which are recoverable in Tennessee. T.C.A. 29-39-102 was part of the Tennessee Civil Justice Act of 2011. It...more
The Tennessee Supreme Court’s opinion in Carolyn Coffman et al v. Armstrong International, Inc., et al., at least implicitly, recognized a “bare metal defense” for the first time under Tennessee law. The Court addressed the...more
Courts ended 2020 with a flurry of insurance decisions. Our January 2021 Update highlights some of these decisions, including several by state supreme courts. We begin with a new twist on pandemic-related claims. ...more
In contrast to Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 26(a)(1), the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure do not require initial disclosures—but that could be changing soon. On August 13, 2019, the Tennessee Supreme Court issued an...more
In Dialysis Clinic, Inc. v. Kevin Medley, 567 S.W.3d 314 (TN 2019), the Tennessee Supreme Court decided as a matter of first impression that attorney communications with a third party for the purpose of providing legal advice...more
On June 19, 2019, the Supreme Court of Tennessee accepted certification of three questions of law relating to Tennessee's statutory non-economic damages cap. The certification follows on the heels of a decision from a divided...more
Insurance policies are designed to indemnify an insured by putting the policyholder in the same position he or she would have been in had no loss occurred. In the context of property insurance policies, damaged property is...more
In unanimously holding that a bank was not shielded from liability after removing a joint tenant with right of survivorship from accounts without his consent, the Tennessee Supreme Court dropped a lengthy footnote resolving...more
The Sixth Circuit recently issued a divided opinion holding that Tennessee’s statutory cap on punitive damages, Tenn. Code Ann. § 29-39-104, is unconstitutional. What makes the case interesting is that the court decided the...more
Last week, the Tennessee Supreme Court revised the factors for determining the enforceability of releases signed before participation in an activity or obtaining a service. These releases, often called exculpatory agreements,...more
The Tennessee Supreme Court overruled three decades of precedent in Athlon Sports Communications, Inc. v. Duggan, giving trial courts broad discretion in the method used to determine the “fair value” of shares in “dissenters’...more
The Tennessee Supreme Court has now determined that money withdrawn from a joint checking account and placed into a certificate of deposit in the name of only one of the spouses loses its status as entireties property. In re...more
Is an employee who quits her job then injures herself before she gets out the door still covered by workers’ comp? In a recent Tennessee case of first impression, the court ruled that after an employee says “I quit,” the...more
Last month the Tennessee Supreme Court, in Dedmon v. Steelman, affirmed the long-standing collateral source rule in personal injury cases. As long as an injured plaintiff can establish that the medical expenses they incurred...more
In a stunning reversal of what appeared to be the trend towards discounted medical damages in personal-injury cases, the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled on Friday, November 17, 2017, that the Collateral Source Rule reigns...more
The Tennessee Supreme Court recently held that Tennessee’s Trust Code and broad trust-instruments authorize a Trustee’s execution of a pre-dispute arbitration clause. That isn’t a per se breach of fiduciary duty, but the...more
Predictability that joint owners/tenants need today: This spring, the Tennessee Supreme Court ruled that joint property owners can eliminate the survivorship rights of jointly held property, changing their ownership to...more
The Tennessee Supreme Court recently ruled that “a joint tenancy with an express right of survivorship can be severed by the unilateral actions of one of the co-tenants.” Darryl F. Bryant, Sr. v. Darryl F. Bryant, Jr., No....more