In a recent insurance policy case, Lance. v. Owner’s Insurance Company, the Court of Appeals of Tennessee set aside a jury’s award of punitive damages in the amount of $267,500 against Owner’s Insurance Company (a subsidiary of Auto-Owner’s Insurance Company). The case involved the complete destruction of the Plaintiff…
Many people who are entitled to benefits under a life insurance policy are denied the benefits by the insurance company on the basis that the insured (the person whose life was covered) made a misrepresentation. In life insurance cases where the insurance company denies payment on the basis of misrepresentation,…
Step One: Determining Which Statute of Limitations Applies The Six Year Statute of Limitations Applies Most of the Time Most breach of contract cases in Tennessee will be subject to the six (6) year statute of limitations codified at T.C.A. §28-3-109. There is one (1) other possible statute of limitations…
Pre-judgment interest is the interest which accrues from the date an obligation is due to the plaintiff until the day the judge or jury enters a verdict in favor of the plaintiff. Given that a breach of contact case or other commercial litigation case may take a year or more…
In Tennessee, a bank account, certificate of deposit, money market account, or other type of financial account may be maintained as a joint account with a right of survivorship. Such accounts may also be maintained as single owner accounts, but be made payable on death to a named beneficiary. Payable…
Daniel Kahneman’s bestseller, Thinking Fast and Slow, is not only a fascinating read, but also, it contains insights that can be an immense help to clients in making decisions about their cases, choosing lawyers, negotiating settlements, and evaluating the advice of their lawyers. Here is what clients (and trial lawyers)…
There are, generally speaking, two types of long term disability insurance policies. There are “private” policies which are not obtained through employment. There are also long term disability policies which are obtained as the result of employment. If you have a long term disability policy through your employer’s group long…
Forum selection clauses are prevalent in contracts entered into by Tennessee companies and residents. Often, the purpose of a forum selection clause in a contract is to force another party to litigate in a particular court in a particular state. For example, companies which are based somewhere other than Tennessee,…
If you file a breach of contract case in Tennessee and demand a jury, what are the chances that the jury will actually decide if there was a contract, and/or if it was breached? In my experience, in many Tennessee breach of contract cases, those issues are decided before they…
When you are faced with a lawsuit or have filed a lawsuit, do yourself a big favor, hire a Tennessee lawyer with trial experience (aka a “Tennessee trial lawyer”) at the outset of your legal matter. Having practiced trial law and handled litigation and arbitration matters for nearly 25 years,…