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Day on Torts

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Gym Not Liable for Sexual Assault in Locker Room

Where a plaintiff claiming that he was sexually assaulted in a locker room failed to present any evidence that the “health club knew or should have known of prior assaults by the assailant or anyone else,” summary judgment for defendant health club was affirmed. In Boswell v. Young Men’s Christian…

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City’s Duty to Protect Against Dangerous Dog Fell Under Public Duty Doctrine

A plaintiff’s claim that the city had a duty to protect her against a dog owned by another citizen fell under the public duty doctrine, and summary judgment for defendant city was thus affirmed. In Fleming v. City of Memphis, No. W2018-00984-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Mar. 5, 2019), plaintiff filed…

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Plaintiff Must Name “John Doe” if Other Driver in Car Accident Case is Unknown.

In order to bring a direct claim against a plaintiff’s uninsured motorist insurance carrier, the plaintiff must have filed his initial complaint against the uninsured motorist (or “John Doe” if unknown) within the one-year statute of limitations. In Fults v. MetLife Auto & Home Insurance Agency, Inc., No. M2018-00647-COA-R3-CV (Tenn.…

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Claims Commissioner Must Make Conclusions of Law For Each Theory of Negligence

  Where the Claims Commissioner’s ruling for defendant on a negligence suit did not include conclusions of law regarding both of plaintiffs’ theories, the order of dismissal was deemed deficient and was vacated by the Court of Appeals. In Kim v. State, No. W2018-00762-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Feb. 26, 2019),…

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Rule 59.04 Motion Does Not to Save Medical Malpractice Case

A nurse who worked in an administrative capacity in the year preceding an incident underlying an HCLA claim may not be qualified to give expert testimony in the case.  A Rule 59.04 motion did not cure the deficiency in the initial affidavit. In Smith v. Methodist Hospitals of Memphis, No.…

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Fall Down Steps Not Enough to Prove Premises Liability Case

Where plaintiff failed to present any proof that the stairs owned by defendant were defective, the trial court’s finding for defendant was affirmed. In James v. City of Dyersburg, No. W2018-00614-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Feb. 22, 2019), plaintiff filed a GTLA premises liability suit after falling on stairs outside of…

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2017 Tennessee Health Care Liability Statistics – Part 3

We have been reviewing data from the 2018 Tennessee Health Care Liability Claims Report, which reports data for claims closed in 2017 as well as other data. Some additional statistics of note: Health care facilities paid 46.44%  (738) of all claims paid in 2017. Medical doctors were next at 28.5% (453)…

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2017 Tennessee Health Care Liability Statistics – Part 1

The Tennessee Department of Commerce and Insurance has released the 2018 Tennessee Health Care Liability Claims Report (“Report”).  The 2018 Report was released in 2019 but contains data for 2017.   The Report is required as a result of legislation passed by the Tennessee General Assembly in 2004. Some 1589 claims…

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Motion to Amend Must Be Considered Before Hearing Motion to Dismiss

Before granting a motion to dismiss, a trial court should fully consider a pending motion to amend the complaint. In Grose v. Kustoff, No. W2017-01984-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Jan. 17, 2019), plaintiffs filed a pro se legal malpractice claim against defendant attorney. Instead of filing an answer, defendant filed a…

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