A snappy, aspirationally weekly newsletter from the lawyers at Horwitz Law, PLLC summarizing the week’s decisions from the Tennessee Court of Appeals.
January 11–24, 2025 Probate court for Shelby County (one of Tennessee’s two most reliably reversed judicial districts) enters a surprise, unexplained, sua sponte order dismissing a conservatorship action. Tennessee Court of Appeals: The trial court’s order is inexplicable, so even though a trial court speaks through its
December 28, 2024–January 10, 2025 After receiving an anonymous report of sexual assault that the anonymous reporter alleged was perpetrated by Pastor, the Southern Baptist Convention contacts Pastor’s employer both orally and in writing. Orally, an employee of the Southern Baptist Convention suggests that
December 21–December 27, 2024 Plaintiff seeks a declaration that provisions of her settlement agreement with Fellowship Bible Church of Williamson County that have the purpose or effect of concealing the details relating to a claim of child sexual abuse are unenforceable under Tenn. Code
December 7–December 20, 2024 Tennessee inmate files declaratory judgment action based on the Tennessee Constitution’s safe prisons clause, noting that he has been attacked once already, remains in danger, that the private prison operator that runs the prison has agreed to transfer him elsewhere,
A “Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation” (a SLAPP-suit) filed by Jonathan Gilbert—a Smyrna auto mechanic—against Horwitz Law, PLLC client Daylan Langford is now dismissed with prejudice under the Tennessee Public Participation Act, the Circuit Court for Rutherford County, Tennessee has ruled. The court also
November 30–December 6, 2024 A county regional planning commission denies an application to place a quarry in an agricultural zone because: (1) the quarry is not a permitted use, and (2) the relevant zoning scheme states that all nonpermitted uses are prohibited. The trial
November 23–November 29, 2024 Construction company and its principal falsely represent that a store renovation they were hired to complete would be completed in time for the new store’s opening, fail to finish the work in time for the store to open, charge extra
The Tennessee Supreme Court will hear the Nashville Banner’s appeal seeking to unseal judicial records that may shed light on claims that Davidson County Criminal Court Judge Cheryl Blackburn—who suffered a stroke in 2021—is incompetent. The Tennessee Supreme Court’s order granting the Nashville Banner’s
November 16–November 22, 2024 Before she dies, Decedent executes a Durable Power of Attorney form designating Daughter as her attorney-in-fact. The form states: “THIS DOCUMENT DOES NOT AUTHORIZE ANYONE TO MAKE MEDICAL AND OTHER HEALTH-CARE DECISIONS FOR YOU.” Afterward, Decedent is admitted into a
By Daniel A. Horwitz: Defending Criminal Contempt Cases in Tennessee[1] Under Tennessee law, courts may punish a person’s contempt of a court order as a criminal offense. Courts’ criminal contempt authority “is designed to preserve the power and vindicate the dignity and authority of the
