Tennessee’s rules of civil procedure now permit the use of declarations in lieu of affidavits. TRCP Rule 72 provides as follows: Wherever these rules require or permit an affidavit or sworn declaration, an unsworn declaration made under penalty of perjury may be filed in lieu of an affidavit or sworn…
Yet another effort to restrict the right of jurors to award damages based on evidence has been declared unconstitutional. This time, the Supreme Court of Missouri struck down the damage caps imposed on damages for pain, suffering, disfigurement, and disability. In Deborah Watts as Next Friend for Naython Kayne Watts…
The Winter 2012 edition of the FDCC Quarterly includes an article called "Juror Misconduct in the Age of Social Networking." Written by Michael K. Kiernan and Samuel E. Cooley, the article discusses how a juror’s use of social networking tools "can result in a denial of the defendant’s due process rights…
It is not uncommon for defendants in severe brain injury, spinal cord or burn injury cases to ask that the plaintiff not be present in the courtroom. The argument goes that the injured person cannot contribute to the prosecution of the case and therefore the only purpose that they are…
AAJ is sponsoring a case planning workshop in Washington, D.C. on July 12-14, 2012. This in-depth program takes your active case through six critical workshops and three group sessions to help you define your case strategy. The hands-on format provides constant attention to your wrongful death or catastrophic injury case.…
The United States Supreme Court will determine whether an employee benefits plan govered by ERISA is subject to equitable limitations when it demands reimbursement of benefits paid a covered employee who recovers money in personal injury and wrongful death litigation. The case that will be reviewed is U.S. Airways, Inc.…
A federal court of appeals has ruled that a court may take judicial notice of a Google map image. In United States v. Perea-Rey, No. 10-50632 (9th Cir. May 31, 2012), the Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit ruled that We take judicial notice of a Google map and…
Article 1, Section 17of the Tennessee Constitution provides that " all courts shall be open; and every man, for an injury done him in his lands, goods, person or reputation, shall have remedy by due course of law, and right and justice administered without sale, denial or delay.” The Tennessee Attorney…
The Tennessee Attorney General has weighed in on the "Restrict the Civil Justice Rights of Tennesseans In Exchange for the False Promise of Low Paying, Unspecified Jobs Without Benefits Act of 2011," more commonly known as the Tennessee Civil Justice Act of 2011. Senator Jim Kyle made these inquiries? …
The United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit has ruled that an employer-based health insurance plan did not have a right to full reimbursement from a personal injury plaintiff who recovered only a fraction of her damages from the wrongdoer. The case is CGI v. Rose, No. 11-35127…