COURT OF APPEALS OPINIONS

William H. Thompson, Jr., v. Department of Codes Administration, Metropolitan Government of Nashville and Davidson County
01A01-9808-CH-00438
Authoring Judge: Judge William B. Cain
Trial Court Judge: Chancellor Carol L. McCoy

This case involves the refusal of the Metropolitan Department of Codes Administration ("the Department") to issue building permits to the petitioner/appellant landowner. Planning to divide and sell his land, the petitioner made preparations to subdivide this land pursuant to the Department's advice on how to avoid regulation by the Metropolitan Planning Commission ("MPC"). However, due to a new interpretation of existing statutory law, the petitioner's preparations, once completed, were no longer adequate and the Department deemed that the land must undergo review before the MPC as a subdivision. Consequently, the zoning administrator of the Department denied the petitioner the building permits and the petitioner brought suit claiming first that the division of land was not a "subdivision" as that term is defined by statute. Furthermore, the petitioner contended that the zoning administrator's application of the newly-interpreted law to him violated his constitutional rights to equal protection and due process and effected against him the application of a retrospective law. In addition, the appellant claimed that the Department should be equitably estopped from refusing to issue the building permits. The trial court granted the Department's motion for involuntary dismissal of the petitioner's case. We affirm the decision of the trial court on all issues.

Linda Layne, individually and as the surviving spouse of James T. Lane, v. Pioneer Life Insurance Company of Illinois
01A01-9809-CH-00457
Authoring Judge: Judge William B. Cain
Trial Court Judge: Chancellor James L. Weatherford

This is a suit in chancery for declaratory judgment relative to a policy of insurance. The primary question presented is whether or not participation by the insured in a motorbike event known as an "enduro" constitutes "racing" within the meaning of an exclusion in the policy. After the insured died from injuries he received while participatingin an "enduro," the defendant insurance company denied coverage. The lower court found that the particular loss in this case was excluded from coverage. We affirm the decision of the trial court.

Allison Cooke Battles and Leslie Cooke Jones v. First Union Bank, Peggy Smith, Beverly G. Pitt, Leigh Ann Howard, and Exchange Insurance Co - Concurring
01-A-01-9809-CH-00497
Authoring Judge: Judge Ben H. Cantrell
Trial Court Judge: Chancellor Tom E. Gray

Two of the beneficiaries of a will sued the witnesses and a notary public because the will was not properly executed. The plaintiffs also sued a bank, the witnesses’ employer, for not training its employees on how to properly witness wills.  The Chancery Court of Sumner County granted the defendants summary judgment.  We affirm.

Southwest Progressive Ent., Inc. v. Shri-Hari Hospitality, LLC and Trans Financial Bank of Tennessee - Concurring
01-A-01-9810-CH-00542
Authoring Judge: Judge Ben H. Cantrell
Trial Court Judge: Chancellor Robert E. Corlew, III

A construction company sued a hotelkeeper for payment of the balance due on their contract. The trial court ordered the hotelkeeper to pay the balance, as well as pre-judgment interest and attorney fees. We affirm the award of pre-judgment interest, but we reverse the award of attorney fees. We also reverse a $500 offset the trial court granted to the defendant for the plaintiff’s alleged failure to complete a punch list.

Terry David Mackie v. Sarah Catheine Mackie
01A01-9810-CV-00536
Authoring Judge: Judge William B. Cain
Trial Court Judge: Judge Bobby H. Capers

This case represents an appeal from the grant of divorce upon stipulation of grounds pursuant to Tennessee Code Annotated section 36-4-129. The parties to this action, Terry David Mackie ("Husband"), and Sarah Catherine Campbell Mackie ("Wife") were married on November 6, 1984. Husband filed a complaint in Williamson County Circuit Court on March 6, 1997, seeking divorce on the grounds of inappropriate marital conduct and irreconcilable differences. On March 20, 1997, Wife answered and counterclaimed. In her answer, Wife admitted the ground of irreconcilable differences and alleged inappropriate marital conduct on the part of the Husband. Over the next 14 months the parties participated in successive proceedings regarding pendente lite custody of their severely ill minor child. The case was originally set for trial on June 3, 1997. Both parties agreed to continue the case; each sought a scheduling order for the sequence of discovery. The parties were ordered to attend mediation on February 23, 1998. On May 18, 1998, Husband moved to change pendente lite custody and to compel discovery. This motion was to be heard on June 3, 1998. At the June 3, hearing, in an admittedly unorthodox proceeding, the parties stipulated under oath that each had grounds for divorce. At this point in the hearing, both parties were sent into an antechamber to provide for the division of the marital estate and custody of the child. These negotiations are documented in handwritten notes, signed by the parties and their counsel, and appearing in the record.

Grei S. Hinsen, v. Mark E. Meadors, Individually and D/B/A MEM Contractors, and Hailey Brown
01A01-9811-CH-00583
Authoring Judge: Judge Ben H. Cantrell
Trial Court Judge: Chancellor Carol L. McCoy

This is an action by a homeowner against a remodeling contractor and a painter for the failure of the paint inside the house. The Chancery Court of Davidson County dismissed the homeowner’s claims. We affirm.

Tire Shredders vs. ERM
02A01-9803-CV-00058
Trial Court Judge: James F. Russell

Edwin Elam vs. Martha Elam
02A01-9812-CH-00362
Trial Court Judge: Dewey C. Whitenton

02A01-9908-CH-00237
02A01-9908-CH-00237

Kesterson vs. Dept. of Safety
01A01-9805-CH-00256

Wilson vs. Dept. of Corrections
01A01-9806-CH-00302

Curtis vs. Curtis
01A01-9810-CV-00566
Trial Court Judge: Muriel Robinson

Gipson vs. Taylor
01A01-9811-CH-00611

Doe vs. HCA Health Services of TN
01A01-9806-CV-00306
Trial Court Judge: Hamilton V. Gayden, Jr.

Lee Simmons vs. City of Lexington
02A01-9810-CH-00282
Trial Court Judge: Joe C. Morris

James Cozart vs. Lynn Cozart
02A01-9810-CV-00285
Trial Court Judge: James F. Russell

Victoria Robbins vs. Bill Wolfenbarger, D/B/A Wolf's Motors and Sam Horne
E1999-02012-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Herschel P. Franks
Trial Court Judge: W. Dale Young
Plaintiff Robbins filed a complaint for damages against Wolfenbarger and Horne, alleging breach of contract, intentional misrepresentation and negligence, per se. On August 26, 1999, an Order of Compromise and Dismissal was entered as to Wolfenbarger individually and d/b/a Wolf Motors. Horne did not file an answer during the time allowed by the Rules of Civil Procedure, and Robbins filed a motion for default judgment on July 9, 1999. Horne wrote a letter to the plaintiff's attorney in response to the complaint and summons, postmarked July 16, 1999. The letter was forwarded to the Clerk of the Court for filing by plaintiff's counsel's letter dated July 30, 1999. On August 27, Robbins' Motion for Default Judgment was heard, but Horne who had notice did not attend. A default judgment was entered against Horne and the Trial Court subsequently overruled Horne's Motion to Set Aside the Default. Horne has appealed. We affirm the judgment of the Trial Court.

Gregory B. Hinton vs. City of Chattanooga
03A01-9901-CV-00013

Begley Lumber Company, Inc. vs. Wendell Trammell
03A01-9902-CH-00047

Robert Odom v. Mary Odom
M1999-02811-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Judge William C. Koch, Jr.
Trial Court Judge: Allen W. Wallace
This appeal involves a bitter custody dispute over three children between the ages of nine and fourteen. During the divorce proceeding in the Chancery Court for Dickson County, the parties agreed that the mother would have custody of the children and also agreed on visitation arrangements that accommodated the mother's planned move to another state. Several months after the entry of the divorce decree, the father petitioned to change custody and to hold the mother in contempt for interfering with his relationship with the children. During the ensuing three years, the parties traded allegations of sexual and physical abuse of the children and other misconduct. Following a bench trial in December 1998, the trial court found that there had been a material change in the children's circumstances and granted the father custody of the children. On this appeal, the mother asserts that she was denied due process by the trial court's refusal to require the parties and their children to undergo a psychological examination and that the trial court unlawfully delegated its judicial authority to a psychologist who had been counseling the children. We have determined that the mother received an essentially fair hearing on this custody dispute and, therefore, affirm the trial court.

John Seals vs. James Bowlen, Warden, et al
M1999-00997-COA-R3-CV
Authoring Judge: Presiding Judge Patricia J. Cottrell
Trial Court Judge: Ellen Hobbs Lyle
Petitioner, a state inmate, filed the underlying pro se petition for a writ of certiorari to challenge the result of a disciplinary proceeding against him. The trial court dismissed the suit for failure to state a claim. We reverse the dismissal of all parties except the Department of Correction and affirm the dismissal for failure to state a claim.

Nationsbank, N.A. vs. FormPak, Inc. & Ron Campbell
03A01-9808-CH-00279

Nationsbank, N.A. vs. FormPak, Inc. & Ron Campbell
03A01-9808-CH-00279

William Terry Wyatt vs. Billie Carey
03A01-9809-CV-00307

Saul T. Mallen (Sports-Wear Mills, Inc.) vs. PI, Inc.
03A01-9811-CH-00364