HCH March 2, 2007 Issue - Chattanooga Bar Association

6 Friday, March 2, 2007 HAMILTON COUNTY HERALD
The old home place is no longer
what it used to be
Just outside of Columbia, Tenn.,
in the boundary lines of Spring Hill,
is located the General Motors Saturn
manufacturing plant. Just beyond the
Read
employee parking lot of this state-ofthe-art
automobile production facility,
you can still find rolling farmland
that is kept in tillable production by
the GM organization.
With white plank fences and
Clifford Johnson v. Nissan
North America
Rutherford County - An
employee of Nissan North
America appeals the summary
dismissal of his action for retaliatory
discharge. The employee
alleged he was terminated
because he filed a workers’ compensation
claim. Nissan denied
liability stating the termination
was due to the employee’s violation
of medical restrictions related
to lifting and bending. Nissan
filed a Motion for Summary
Judgment, which the trial court
Read All About It ...
By Pettus L. Read
Tennessee Farm Bureau
well-kept roadsides, one can easily
get lost in a rural vista of thought as
you drive by the cultivated fields.
Across the road from the plant
are even more farmland and a historic
pre-civil war home that is open
for tours to the public. This area, too,
is a sight of rural life enjoyed by those
passersby on their daily trips to and
from work.
However, this side of the
road is getting ready to change.
Development is inching its way
across the farmland from the city of
Spring Hill, and soon the fields next
to the old brick antebellum home
will contain stores and other buildings
of today’s progressive lifestyle.
Acreage belonging to GM and once
farmed by the company is now set for
development on the east side of the
highway from the plant.
Progress is something that is
going to happen whether you like it
or not. The sad part is it comes at the
expense of farm and agricultural land
with their removal becoming very
permanent.
Farms must make a profit to sur-
granted. We have concluded, as
the trial court did, that Nissan
stated a legitimate, non-pre-textual
reason for termination, and
the employee failed to offer specific
facts to realistically challenge
Nissan’s stated reason for
termination. Therefore, we
affirm.
Garnett Goforth, et al, et ux
vs. State
Plaintiffs, parents and son
brought suit against the
University for injuries to the son
sustained while practicing football,
charging the coaches were
vive, and with the continued movement
of suburbia into the farming
communities, farm land costs and
profitably have become some major
problems.
It is easy for those of us who
come from farm-life backgrounds to
see the negatives in this continuous
movement. I do wonder — if food
someday becomes less plentiful in
this country, just how many milliondollar
homes will be torn down and
replaced with farmland? Yeah, I don’t
see that happening either.
The other day following a
recent farm sale that was caused due
to a new interchange being made for
Interstate, I wandered the grounds
around the house and barns that
would soon be moved or torn down.
The scene I saw reminded me of a
story I read many years ago in a gardening
magazine — I don’t remember
which one — that caused me to
start thinking.
The story described a person’s
return to her old home place
that was going into a housing
development and her memories
overflowed of days gone by. I too was
having some of those memories. As I
stepped upon the porch, I noticed the
weather-beaten screen door was now
hanging by one hinge.
That screen door reminded me
that it would no longer be slammed
by running children coming home
negligent in allowing practice to
continue under dangerous conditions.
The Commissioner ruled
in favor of the University, except
as to the dispute over insurance,
and awarded plaintiffs $3,600.00
under the contract of insurance
with the University.
Carlton B. Parks vs. State, et
al
Hamilton County - The
issue we address in this appeal is
whether the trial court erred in
granting the Defendants’
motions to dismiss the Plaintiff’s
complaint, on grounds that the
from school or used to let in cool
breezes for the owners on an early
summer night. If that door could talk,
I’m sure it would tell of visits by family,
return trips home from the hospital
with a new member of the household,
or even the number of times it
had been looked through by farm
kids checking on just what was being
prepared for supper.
From the front porch I could see
that now the livestock were gone, the
farm equipment was gone, the front
yard zinnias in the old milk can were
gone. There was no old shepherd
dog bounding out to greet you, and
not a single striped cat could be seen
scurrying under the porch. Out
behind the house, there was a
clothesline falling down, and the
yard no longer contained large green
metal yard chairs to rest in after a
hard day in the field by the
farmer who had lived there.
There was no sound of children
playing on the front porch or swinging
high in the old porch swing. In
fact, the porch swing, with its many
layers of paint, was now also gone.
There were no clay pots of petunias.
Just a porch with well-worn planks
walked upon by a family making a
living from the farm.
Inside the old white-frame
house, the school pictures, Farm
Bureau almanac calendars, and white
cook-stove were all missing. No
Tennessee Supreme Court appoints new chairman
William Ferber Tracy, (of Spears,
Moore, Rebman & Williams) has
been appointed by the Supreme
Court of Tennessee as Chairman of
the Board of Professional
Responsibility for the 2007 year.
The Board of Professional
Responsibility was created by the
Supreme Court of Tennessee in 1975
to enforce the professional responsibility
program for attorneys. Nine
lawyers and three non-lawyers comprise
the membership of the Board.
Members are appointed to three
year terms and are eligible for reappointment
to an additional three
year term.
Tracy has served as a member of
the Tennessee Board of Professional
Responsibility since 2002. He practices
with the law firm of Spears,
Moore, Rebman & Williams, a general
practice firm in Chattanooga,
where he has practiced since 1967,
following his graduation from Duke
University Law School.
Tracy is a member of the
American Bar Association (Labor
and Employment Law Section and
Dispute Resolution Sections), the
Tennessee Bar Association
(Employment Law Section), the
Chattanooga Bar Association (chair,
Labor and Employment Section,
1996), the Chattanooga Bar
Foundation, the Tennessee Defense
Lawyers Association (President 1984-
1985), Defense Research Institute
and Trial Lawyers Association, the
Association of Defense Trial
Attorneys, and the American
Employment Law Council (charter
member).
He is a recipient of the Defense
Research Institute Exceptional
Performance Citation, 1985, a fellow
of the American Board of Trial
Advocates Foundation, a certified
mediator for the United States
District Court, Eastern District of
Tennessee, and a member of the arbitration
panel, United States District
Court, Eastern District of Tennessee.
He engages in general trial and
appellate practice in state and federal
courts in commercial (including con-
Lance Bracy retiring after more than three decades of service
In 1976, when the Tennessee
Supreme Court tapped Lance Bracy
to be disciplinary counsel for the
newly created Board of Professional
Responsibility (BPR), 4,433 attorneys
were practicing law in the state.
During the next 31 years, Bracy,
who will retire May 1, has watched
that number swell to 18,400.
“As chief disciplinary counsel
for the Board of Professional
Responsibility, he has shaped its
direction, organization and, most of
all, given the office respectability and
stature among the citizens of the
state,” Chief Justice William M.
Barker said. “Lance has a unique
combination of sound judgment,
common sense and a real knowledge
of the ethical principals which govern
the legal profession.”
Governor Phil Bredesen offered
Bracy “personal thanks” for his years
of service.
“Tennessee has benefited greatly
from his dedication to the Board of
Professional Responsibility,” the governor
said. “For 31 years, he has been
at the forefront of improving
Tennessee’s legal landscape for attorneys
and clients. His proficiency and
expertise have been a tremendous
asset to our citizens, and we are grateful
for his efforts.”
The BPR, an arm of the
Supreme Court, is comprised of nine
lawyers and three non-lawyer members.
Its responsibilities include investigating
complaints against attorneys
and disciplining those who violate
professional rules.
While the BPR was created to
aid the Supreme Court in supervising
the ethical conduct of attorneys, the
board’s duties have expanded to
include other programs and services.
Along with those changes, Bracy’s
responsibilities and staff also have
grown.
Improvements during Bracy’s
tenure have included an ethics opinion
service for lawyers; a consumer
assistance program; summary suspension
of lawyers for threats of irreparable
public harm; mandatory notification
of attorney trust account overdrafts;
a BPR website; and professional
enhancement programs.
“I claim no credit for the development
of these programs,” Bracy
said. “Members of the board, hearing
committee members, the staff and
the Supreme Court all contributed to
their development. I only assisted.”
Justice Janice M. Holder, who
serves as the Supreme Court’s BPR
liaison, praised Bracy for his “exemplary
service.”
“It has been of immeasurable
worth to the bench, bar and citizens
of this state,” Holder said. “We are
fortunate to have had the benefit of
his expertise and dedication.”
During his tenure with the
BPR, Bracy has assisted the board in
drafting and publishing more than
140 formal ethics opinions, 600 advisory
ethics opinions, and responded
to more than 12,000 informal ethics
inquiries by attorneys.
From its inception through June
30, 2006, the board received 36,883
complaints, resulting in 162 disbarments,
398 suspensions, 479 public
Case Digests
TENNESSEE COURT OF APPEALS SYLLABUS
statute of limitations had run
and that the Defendants were
immune from liability under the
doctrines of sovereign immunity,
judicial immunity, and prosecutorial
immunity. We hold that
the trial court correctly found
that the complaint was timebarred
by the applicable statute
of limitations, and that under
the facts presented, the
Defendants were entitled to
absolute immunity from suit. We
therefore affirm the judgment of
the trial court.
Lyubov M. Lee vs. David
longer was there the concern of farm
loans, next year’s crop, and the need
for the vet’s phone number scribbled
with a lead pencil between two patterns
of flowers on the torn wallpaper.
Everything was now gone. It
was like the shell of a cicada hanging
on a maple tree; only the hull of the
farmhouse still remained.
No more Sunday dinners of
fried chicken to be served, no more
birthdays to celebrate, no more
Christmas trees to decorate, no more
announcements of a new calf in the
barn, and no more hopes for the next
generation to farm the land.
The house still stood, but not
for long. After the auction it would
be bulldozed, pavement would be put
down and soon carloads of people
would drive over the spot that now
only holds memories of another day
and time.
Those people in those cars will
have their concerns, but those concerns
will not be about next year’s
crop or seed prices. However, they
should have the concern of where
their next meal will come from, but
the source will not be from this farm.
But, that’s what they say progress is all
about.
Pettus L. Read is Director of
Communications for the Tennessee
Farm Bureau Federation.
He may be contacted by e-mail at
pread@tfbf.com ❖
struction, patent, ERISA, and antitrust
matters), tort (including personal
injury, professional malpractice, and
products liability), employment, labor
(including NLRB and FLSA), and
contract dispute litigation.
Tracy has extensive experience
in labor arbitrations as an advocate,
primarily representing the interests of
employers, and substantial experience
as a mediator and arbitrator in
general civil litigation in both state
and federal courts. ❖
censures and 2,793 private reprimands
or admonitions. Tennessee
attorneys have contributed $28.4
million in annual court assessments
to finance the board’s programs, with
no contributions from other sources.
“For the past 30 years I have
been extremely blessed with a wonderful
opportunity to pursue one of
my lifetime missions of service to others,”
Bracy said. “My visions and
expectations while working for the
board have been exceeded, but only
because of the outstanding efforts of a
wonderful staff of co-workers and the
faithful support of exemplary board
members.”
Now, he said, “the time has
arrived for fresh ideas and
visions.” ❖
Craig Lee
Knox County - Lyubov M.
Lee (“Wife”) and David C. Lee
(“Husband”) were married in
May of 1995, and divorced in
May of 2003. The parties have
one child, an eight year old son.
The divorce was contentious, at
best, and this behavior continued
following the divorce. When
the divorce was granted to Wife,
the Trial Court ordered Husband
to pay Wife’s attorney fees of
$65,000. The parties’ continuing
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