Joe Burton v. Warren Farmers Cooperative

This appeal involves a dispute between a farmer and a co-op over a disappointing soybean crop. The farmer filed suit against the co-op in the Circuit Court for Warren County, alleging that his crop had been damaged by the manner in which the co-op had sprayed herbicide on his fields early in the growing season. At the close of the farmer's proof, the trial court granted the co-op's motion for involuntary dismissal under Tenn. R. Civ. P. 41.02(2) after concluding that he had failed to prove his breach of contract and negligence claims. The farmer asserts on this appeal that the trial court erred by dismissing his lawsuit. We have determined that the trial court properly dismissed the farmer's complaint at the close of his proof.