Tennessee Injury Law Center : Lawyers for Personal Injury and Wrongful Death : Serving Memphis, Nashville, Knoxville

 I just had a trial in my case and I lost - the jury ruled against me.  The jury was wrong and I want to appeal all the way to the United States Supreme Court.  I can, right?

If a plaintiff or a defendant has a complaint about the way the trial was conducted or the end result of the trial or the judge’s ruling on post-trial motions, he or she can appeal. In Tennessee, the first appeal is to the Tennessee Court of Appeals.

The Court of Appeals does not hear from witnesses. Rather, it looks at the transcript of the testimony given in the trial court, reviews the exhibits, and determines whether there were any errors than mandate a different result than reached in the trial court. The Court of Appeals can affirm the result reached in the trial court, order a new trial, and sometimes it can outright dismiss a case won by a plaintiff in the trial court.  It is extremely difficult to convince an appellate court to reverse a jury verdict by arguing only that they jury made the wrong decision.   In Tennessee, the appellate court will reach the same result as the jury if there is any material evidence supporting what the jury did.  The appellate court will not re-weigh the evidence - it just looks to see if there is any material evidence that supports the verdict.  If asked, the appellate court will also look at alleged errors of law.

A plaintiff or defendant that disagrees with the Court of Appeals decision about a case can ask the Tennessee Supreme Court to hear the case. The Tennessee Supreme Court does not hear every case it is asked to hear – it has the right to refuse to hear a case and does not have to give any reason for refusing to hear it. Usually, the Tennessee Supreme Court will not hear a case unless it presents an important issue of law.

Theoretically, the losing party can ask for the United States Supreme Court to hear the appeal. This is a complicated and expensive process. The United States Supreme Court will hear an appeal of a state court civil case only on extremely rare occasions. Most lawyers do not recommend that their clients incur the expense of asking for an appeal to the United States Supreme Court in state court civil cases absent very unusual circumstances.

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I was in a car wreck case.  My lawyer says that I should settle and I don't want to - I think I should get more money.  What should I do?

First,  lawyers can't give legal advice to a person already represented by another lawyer.  Therefore, neither I nor any responsible lawyer can give you that kind of advice without getting your lawyer's written permission to speak with you and without knowing a lot more information.

Second, I assume that you did adequate research before you hired the lawyer you have and considered the type of factors contained in our Legal Guide, "Understanding How to Hire a Lawyer in a Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Cases."  Thus, you obviously had trust in this lawyer's ability and judgment when you hired him or her.  Therefore, you have an obligation to listen to and carefully consider your lawyer’s advice. You are not required to take the lawyer's advice, but you should listen carefully to the advice and the potential impact to your case if you do not take the advice.

If you did not do a diligent job looking for a lawyer, or if you thought you had but now have a good reason to doubt the lawyer's advice, then ask the lawyer for permission to talk to another lawyer to give you a second opinion on the case.  This may hurt the feelings of the lawyer a little bit, but a good lawyer will not feel threatened by someone else looking over what has been done in your case.  You will have to pay for this second opinion, but at least you will be able to hear from someone you can trust before making a final decision.

All of this points to why it is important to make a careful selection of a lawyer in the first place.  It is an important decision, and the extra effort you make before you hire a lawyer will save you anxiety later.

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A neighbor has been telling horrible lies about me and I want to sue her.  What are the most damages I can recover against her?

Tennessee law has no limit on the amount of damages you can recover.  The jury (or judge, or if jury is requested) sets the amount of the damages based on the amount of harm you have suffered.

Of course, there is always the practical problem of being able to collect the damages you win.  But there is no damage cap imposed on jury awards in slander cases.

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I gave birth to my son two and one-half years ago in a Tennessee hospital.  The delivery was very traumatic.  My son was blue when he was born.  He was resuscitated but spent months in NICU.  He is very far behind developmentally and now I have been told that he suffered a brain injury during delivery from lack of oxygen.  Is it too late to have a lawyer investigate to see whether my son has a malpractice case?

No, but your son's deadline is approaching very fast.  Under current law if your son was injured by negligence during his birth appropriate legal action  against the health care providers who caused the injury within three years of the date of the negligence.  The first step in this process is giving formal notice of the claim to the responsible health care providers.  Do not attempt to do this on your own - it is more complicated than sending a letter or calling the providers on the phone.  You will need the help of a lawyer to get this done.

More importantly, you need the help of a lawyer to investigate this matter.  Investigating birth-injury cases is a time-consuming effort, and thus I urge you to contact a competent lawyer as soon as possible.

The three- year deadline is an absolute deadline.  That is, unless all health care providers who caused you son's injury (if investigation reveals that the injury was caused by negligence) have appropriate legal action taken against them within three years of the date of the negligence your son's rights will be lost.  There are two exceptions to this absolute deadline.  One is not applicable to the facts as you have stated them because it requires that a foreign object be left in the patient that results in injury.   The other exception is fraudulent concealment of the claim by the health care providers.  This is an extremely complicated area of the law and you need the advice of a lawyer to determine if this exception applies to the facts of your case.  

Do not, under any circumstances, assume that "fraudulent concealment" applies to your set of facts unless a competent lawyer advises you that it does.  Thus, you should assume that your child's rights, if any, will be lost three years after the date of the medical error and thus take prompt action to determine whether there is a valid lawsuit under the facts.

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I was hurt in a car wreck and have filed a lawsuit.  I am scared to death about going to trial.  Will there be a trial or will my case be settled?

Now days, most cases do not go to trial. 

These statistics will give you an idea of how many cases are actually tried. In the one-year period ending June 30, 2009, there were about 11,000 lawsuits filed involving all types of personal injury and wrongful death in the state of Tennessee. (Many other cases were settled before a lawsuit was even filed; those numbers are not publicly available.) However, there were only 260 jury trials and 348 non-jury trials in personal injury and wrongful death cases during that same period. These statistics are about the same from year to year, and thus it is fair to say that only about 5% percent of personal injury and wrongful death cases in which lawsuits are filed actually go to trial.

It is difficult to predict, however, whether any particular case will settle.  My experience is that a case is more likely to settle at a higher dollar value if the insurance company (a) sees that the case has been prepared for trial and (b) has been appropriately prepared by lawyers who the insurance company  knows are not afraid to go to trial.( It is also important that the insurance company perceive that you (the client) are not afraid to go to trial.)

Thus, the lawyers in our firm prepares each case as if it is going to be tried. Quite frankly, this means we invest more time and money into cases than many other lawyers, but we believe that this approach leads to better results for our clients.

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Be especially careful when you drive this holiday weekend.  People will be rushing from house to house to participate in Thanksgiving activities and all too many of them will be under the influence of alcohol.  The cars will be filled with children, which increases the likelihood that the driver of the car can be distracted.

Have safe travels during this Thanksgiving holiday.

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I was in a car wreck yesterday.  It was probably my fault.  I looked at my automobile liability insurance policy and it says that I have liability limits of $100,000 / $300,000.  What does that mean?

It means that for any one car wreck that is your fault your insurance company will pay a person injured in the wreck up to $100,000 in losses and damages they suffer.   If more than one person is injured in the wreck, the company will pay, on your behalf, up to $300,000 but no more than $100,000 for any one person. 

So, if one person was hurt in the wreck, the insurer will pay no more than $100,000 in damages.  If two people were hurt, the insurer will pay up to $200,000, but no more than $100,000 per person.  If three people were hurt, the insurer will pay up to $300,000, but no more than $100,000 per person. Note that each person who is injured does not automatically get $100,000 - they must demonstrate amount of their damages and can recover up to $100,000 each.

To the extent that a person injured in the wreck has claim worth more than $100,000 you are personally responsible for the amount of damages over $100,000 if the wreck was your fault.

Your policy also has a separate provision for paying property damage to the other driver's car if it is determined that the wreck was your fault.

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I am a doctor.  I have been sued in a medical malpractice case.  My patient has asked for payment of her lawyer's fees?  Am I responsible for her lawyer bills?

Under current law you are not liable for the fees of her lawyer absent extremely unusual circumstances, even if you lose the lawsuit.   Similarly, if she loses the lawsuit she is not liable for your lawyer fees.

The only risk you have of paying your adversary's fees in a medical malpractice case is if you assert a frivolous defense or do not  participate in the discovery process in good faith.  The discovery process is  the phase of the litigation during which each side finds out about the other side’s claims and defenses. The various methods of gaining this information are often referred to as tools of discovery or simply “Discovery.” These methods include depositions, interrogatories, requests for production, medical evaluations, requests for admissions, and subpoenas.  Read more here.

The lawyer hired by your medical malpractice insurer can explain all of this to you.  In the unlikely event any fees are awarded against you they are almost certainly covered by your medical malpractice insurance policy unless you engage in intentional or fraudulent conduct.

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I have hired a lawyer to represent me in a lawsuit.   Can she charge me for time she travels while working on my case?

It depends on the fee agreement the two of you entered when she started working for you.  

In personal injury and wrongful death cases, most attorneys work on a contingent fee basis.  If you have a lawyer working on a contingent fee, it would be highly unusual for the agreement to provide that the lawyer is  paid extra for travel time.  Travel expenses are usually provided for in a contingent fee agreement, but travel time is usually part of the contingent fee and no extra charge for traveling is assessed.  (Read this post for information on travel expenses.)

If you hired a lawyer by the hour, it is not unusual for the lawyer to be paid for travel time.  Lawyers who work by the hour are selling not only their knowledge but also their time, and time spent traveling on behalf of a client is time that they cannot be working for another client.

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What does it take for someone to qualify as an expert witness in a Tennessee medical malpractice trial?

This is a question that is very difficult to answer.  To make this a little easier to follow let's assume that an internist has been sued.

In Tennessee, an expert testifying about whether the internist committed an error must be familiar with good professional practice (the "standard of care") for the internists in the community in which the defendant internist practices or in similar communities and must testify that the internist did not follow that standard of care.  In other words, the witness must be able to say that the internist either did something he or she should not have done or did not do something he or she should have done.  The expert need not necessarily be an internist - depending on the circumstances a family practice doctor or other type of doctor could testify about the standard of care for an internist under a particular set of facts.

An expert is also necessary to testify that more likely than not  the error caused an injury or death that would not have otherwise occurred.  This may or may not be the same expert who testified about the standard of care.

In Tennessee, expert witnesses in medical malpractice cases must come from Tennessee or states that are contiguous to Tennessee. This goofy rule, unique to Tennessee, was passed by the Legislature at the urging of doctors to make it harder for patients to find experts to testify against Tennessee doctors.  It works.

The qualifications of the expert to testify are determined by the trial judge, who undertakes the effor to see if the witness has sufficient knowledge on a subject matter to testify.  There is often a big fight about the qualifications of expert witnesses to testify in a given case, particularly in medical malpractice trials.  To qualify as an expert the witness in a medical case the expert does not need to be "super doctor."  In fact, one argument often made by doctors who are sued is that the patient's expert is a "super doctor" who practices at a level higher than the standard of care requires.

As suggested above, this is a relatively simple answer to a very complicated question.  An experienced medical malpractice lawyer will be able to answer this question when presented with the circumstances of a particular case.

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I was driving to work in Franklin, Tennessee.  A police car driven by an officer who was on-duty ran a red light and hit my car.  I had to go to the hospital in an ambulance and spent three days in the hospital.  Can I sue the police officer?

No, you cannot sue the police officer.  Tennessee law does not permit you to sue a government employee who negligently caused an automobile wreck while he or she was on-duty.

However, you can sue the governmental entity that employed  the police officer, and it is responsible for the harm caused by the police officer if he or she is found to be negligent.  There are special laws that limit the liability of governmental entities that cause harm to their citizens in automobile wrecks and other types of personal injury cases, but an experienced personal injury lawyer can guide you through this process.

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I settled a lawsuit against a neighbor who slandered me.  Do I have to pay federal income taxes on the money I received?

Probably, but check with your tax advisor.  Under current law, money received in cases arising from personal injuries or death do not have to be included on your federal income tax form.  These amounts are excluded from gross income because they arise from a physical injury.  This is so even if there is a "pain and suffering" component to claim for physical injury or death.

Damages recovered  for slander and libel usually do not involve physical injury and thus probably do need to be included on a tax return.  Please check with your tax advisor.  He or she will be better able to give you accurate advice after hearing all of the relevant facts concerning your case.

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How many jurors will hear a medical malpractice case in Tennessee?

Usually there are twelve.  The parties to the lawsuit can agree on less than twelve, but usually no such agreement is reached.

The jury must reach a unanimous verdict.  That is, all must agree on the decision.  If there is not a unanimous verdict, a mistrial is declared by the judge and there is another trial.

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I have a DePuy hip implant that has been recalled.  What is my deadline for taking legal action?

Under Tennessee law you have one year from the date you knew or should have known that your hip problems were related to a problem with the implant itself.  For people who are currently symptom-free it is safe to assume that the one year started on the day you received the recall letter.  If you did not receive a letter you should assume that the one-year period for action started on the date you first heard about the recall on the news (or otherwise) and knew that it applied to the hip implant that you had inserted.

If you had hip problems before the recall the exact legal deadline will depend on what you knew about the nature of the problem and when you knew it.  An experienced product liability lawyer will help you ascertain the date but immediate action is suggested.

Tennessee law will almost certainly apply if your hip was implanted in Tennessee, although it is possible that the law of another state will apply depending on the circumstances.

I suggest you contact an experienced products liability lawyer as soon as possible.   We have filed five of these cases to date and are investigating others.

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I have a jury trial in state court in Nashville in a couple weeks in my car wreck case.   Do I have to pay the other side's attorney's fees or other costs if the jury rules against me?

Ordinarily, a person who loses a jury trial in personal injury or wrongful death case in state court in Tennessee does not have to pay the winning party's attorney's fees.  However, the losing party may have to pay certain costs incurred by the winning party, such as costs for expert witnesses to give depositions and appear at trial, costs charged court reporters, etc.  These costs are known as "discretionary costs" because a trial judge has the discretion to order that the loser pay some or all of certain costs incurred by loser.   Your lawyer should be able to estimate what those costs would be.  

The only time you would have to pay the winning party's attorney's fees after a loss in a personal injury or wrongful death case  is if the trial judge determined that your lawsuit was "frivolous."   The mere fact that a case is lost does not mean it is frivolous.   You should ask your lawyer whether there is any risk that your case could be determined frivolous by the trial judge, but my experience is that it would be very uncommon for a judge to declare that a car wreck claim or defense was "frivolous."  The only exceptions I can think would arise in situations where it was determined that a person faked (not just exaggerated, but truly faked) an injury, encouraged or paid others to give patently false testimony in support of the case, and other situations that are extremely rare.

There are some different rules that apply in medical malpractice cases.  Also, in non-personal injury and wrongful death cases there are quite of few situations in which the losing party can be forced to pay the winning party's fees and expenses.  Be sure to ask your lawyer whether there is any risk of fees and expenses being awarded in your case.

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I am looking for a personal injury lawyer and have noticed that many personal injury law firms have blogs that report big verdicts.  They must be pretty good lawyers to get such good results.  Do you think they will take my case?

Be careful.  Read the blog post over very carefully.  Many of these posts are written by lawyers who had absolutely nothing to do with the case.  Instead, they are simply writing about cases handled by other lawyers.  The purpose of these posts is to make you think that they handled the case and that they have the ability to get significant jury verdicts or settlements for you.

This is a disgusting practice that I find to be misleading.  Lawyers who have to blog about the results obtained by other lawyers without making it clear that they had nothing to do with the case are not the type of lawyer you should hire.  Although their behavior is not as scummy as  lawyers that call accident victims they don't know and solicit cases, their behavior is beneath that which we have a right to expect of lawyers.

So, how should you determine who to hire in a personal injury case?  Read our Legal Guide - "Understanding How to Hire a Lawyer in a Personal Injury and Wrongful Death Cases."

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I hear personal injury lawyers advertise that they will work on a "contingent fee."   What does that mean?

A contingent fee is a fee that is payable only in the event the case is successful.  No fee is owed if the case is not successful.  

In personal injury and wrongful death cases some lawyers will accept the case for a percentage of the recovery.  For example, if a lawyer agrees to accept representation in a case on a one-third contingent fee, that means that the lawyer will not charge any money if the case is lost.  If the case is successful the lawyer will be paid one-third of the total recovery.  For example, if the recovery is $60,000, the lawyer's fee is $20,000.   If the case is lost, the lawyer charges no fee for the work performed on the case. 

The advantage of the contingent fee for the client is that he or she does not have to pay a lawyer a flat fee ( a set amount) or an hourly fee to handle the case.   Rather, he or she can wait and pay a fee at the end of the case and, if the case is unsuccessful, there is no obligation to pay any fee whatsoever.

Most lawyers who accept personal injury and wrongful death cases on a contingent fee basis also charge the client money for out-of-pocket expenses that are incurred by the lawyer for prosecuting the case.  These include fees paid for expert witnesses, court reporters, creation of exhibits, case-related travel and other expenses.  Some lawyers require the client to pay these expenses as they are incurred, while other lawyers advance these costs and are re-paid out of the proceeds of any settlement or judgment.  Some lawyers will insist that the client re-pay the expenses if the case is lost, and other lawyers will agree to be responsible for the expenses even if the case is lost.  If the lawyer agrees to work on a contingent fee and accept responsibility for expenses if the case is lost, the client has absolutely no financial risk for payment of legal fees and expenses in the event the case is unsuccessful.

Any fee agreement with the lawyer should be in writing to eliminate any misunderstandings.  

I have accepted cases on a contingent fee for over twenty-nine years.  Before I accept the case, I meet with the potential client and undertake an effort to determine the merits of the case.  There is no charge for an initial consultation.  

If you want to contact me about a potential case you can call me at 615.742.4880 or email me here. 

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I was hurt in a car wreck six months ago.  It wasn't my fault.  I have been waiting for over a year for the case to settle.  I lost three months of wages and have had to pay some medical bills that were not covered by my health insurance.  Can I get the insurance company to pay interest on my settlement?  It doesn't seem fair that they can delay my settlement and not have to pay interest.

Not under Tennessee law.   Tennessee law does not permit the recovery of interest in personal injury or wrongful death lawsuits.  

The only exception to this rule is if you win a case and a judgment is entered by the court you are permitted to recover interest.  Interest accrues at the rate of 10% per year on the amount of the judgment that is unpaid.  

For example, if you win a judgment of $365,000 at a jury trial in Tennessee you are entitled to collect interest of $100 per day from the date of the jury verdict until the date the judgment is paid.  If a partial payment of the judgment is made the interest is payable only on the unpaid portion of the judgment.  (Note:  you have to pay income taxes on the interest that you are paid.  Be sure to talk with you tax advisor about this.)

The inability to collect interest on personal injury and wrongful death lawsuits (unless a judgment is entered) is yet another reason why you want to hire a lawyer who will work to finish your case promptly.  

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I am getting ready to sue someone over a car wreck.  My lawyer says that she is going to file a "complaint."  What is that?

A lawsuit is initiated by the filing of a “complaint.”  A complaint identifies the persons or entities being sued.   It includes a short and plain statement of the pertinent facts, outlines the legal claims, and states the types of damages that resulted from the negligence of another person. The person who files a lawsuit is called a “plaintiff.”

The complaint is delivered to the person who is sued (the "defendant") with a court order to respond to the lawsuit (a "summons").  In Tennessee, a complaint must be responded to by a defendant within thirty days after it was received by the defendant.

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I believe that my doctor committed medical malpractice on me and injured me for life.  What is the deadline for filing a medical malpractice case in Tennessee?

The short answer to this question is one year plus one hundred-twenty days. But the issue is really more complicated than that.

Generally, medical malpractice cases must be initiated within one year of the incident which causes the injury. For example, if a doctor performs surgery on the wrong arm of the patient, the patient will have one year from the date of the surgery to initiate a claim. A new Tennessee law requires that medical providers be given 60 days advance notice in the proper form before being sued for medical malpractice. The notice must be given before the expiration of the time limit for initiating the claim, so generally within one year. If proper notice is given, the deadline for filing the lawsuit is then automatically extended by 120 days.

Medical malpractice claims are subject to what is known as a “statute of repose.” A statute of repose imposes an absolute time limit for bringing a claim regardless of the age of the injured person or when the person became aware of an injury. The statute of repose for bringing a medical malpractice claim is three years. This means that a medical malpractice lawsuit must be filed within three years of the date of the malpractice, regardless of the age or competency of the injured person or when the injury is discovered.

Certain exceptions apply to these general rules such as instances when an instrument or sponge is left inside the patient and the patient is unaware. In this instance, the time limit for bringing the lawsuit is one year from the date of discovery.

There is lots of room for error here, and all lawyers would tell you that determining the deadline for filing suit in a particular case is very complicated. Therefore, the safest course of action is to contact an attorney as soon as possible if you believe you may have a claim. Unless a lawyer with knowledge of all of the relevant facts advises you to the contrary, you should assume that you have one year from the date of the incident causing you an injury to give the formal notice of medical malpractice claim described above. In the malpractice resulted in the death of the patient, you should assume that proper notice must be given within one year of the injury that later caused the death unless a lawyer with knowledge of all of the relevant facts advises you that you have more time.

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My husband was killed in a car wreck by a drunk driver.  What damages can be recovered by me and our children?

These are the types of damages that can be recovered: (a) medical expenses; (b) funeral bills; (c) conscious pain and suffering from the date of the injury until the date of death; (d) loss of enjoyment of life between the date of injury and death; (e) loss of earning capacity between the date of injury and death; and (f) the pecuniary value of life.

In all cases, the pecuniary value of life includes the present value of the decedent’s lost future earning capacity less those living expenses necessary to maintain the decedent’s person so that they can work. In cases involving the death of a spouse, the surviving spouse can recover damages for the loss of consortium of the decedent. In cases involving the death of a parent, the children can recover damages for the loss of love, society, affection and guidance of the parent.. Each of these types of damages are included in the definition of the “pecuniary value of life.”

An experienced wrongful death lawyer can help you evaluate and prosecute this case so that you and your children can achieve justice in this case.

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I was hurt when I fell in on a slippery floor in a grocery store.   I broke my right leg.  I missed ten weeks of work on my construction job.  My lawyer says that we need a statement from my employer stating that I missed ten weeks of work and indicating how much money I would have made had I worked.   Why is that necessary?  I don't want to hassle my boss with this.

Insurance companies need documentation to evaluate personal injury cases because some people don't tell the truth about what happened to them or how the injuries they suffered cost them money.    The claims adjuster for the insurance company has to make sure that his or her file demonstrates that they did a good job gathering evidence to properly evaluate the claim.  This includes seeking information from other people, like your boss, to back up what you say.

I am sure that you are telling the truth about the time you missed from work.  The insurance adjuster may think you are, too.  But the adjuster needs to be able to prove to his or her boss that your claim was thoroughly and properly evaluated, and that is why documentation is necessary.  The files of insurance adjusters are evaluated from time-to-time by auditors to make sure that they are not handing out the company's money without good reason, and thus the insurance adjusters want to make sure that their files reflect a reasonable basis for the decision they made to settle the claim.

An experienced personal injury lawyer should help you get this from your boss.

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I was hurt in a car wreck.  I missed two weeks of work and have a bunch of medical bills.  I think I need to talk to a lawyer about my rights but I don't have money to pay my mortgage much less pay a lawyer. What  do you charge for meeting with me?

Our firm does not charge clients with potential personal injury cases for an initial meeting or for any investigation we do to determine if we can accept representation.  

If we are able to represent you, we are willing to work on a contingent fee, which means that we are only paid if we are able to collect money on your behalf.  The financial arrangements are discussed in detail at our initial meeting and are reduced to a written fee agreement.  

Occasionally we are asked to accept personal injury cases on an hourly basis.  We are willing to do so under the same conditions that we have when we do hourly work.  In other words, we ask for some amount of money "up front" to place on deposit toward future fees and expenses and then send a bill to our client each month.  Payment of this bill is due on receipt.

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My lawyer says I have to give a deposition.  What is that?

Depositions are sworn statements taken from a party or witness in a lawsuit and they are often part of the discovery process. The person giving the statement is called the deponent. At the beginning of the deposition the deponent is asked to swear or affirm that the statement will be truthful. The deposition is taken by a lawyer asking questions of the deponent. 

“Proof” depositions are taken and presented at trial as evidence in lieu of having the witness testify in person. A “proof” deposition may be taken for the convenience of the witness who cannot otherwise appear in person at trial or as a cost saving mechanism to avoid the expense of bringing the witness to testify live at trial.  In Tennessee certain people, such as doctors, are not required to come to trial to testify about their care and treatment of a patient who has brought a lawsuit and thus they testify at trial via a proof deposition.

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 I was hurt in a car wreck six months ago.  I lost my job and my medical bills are enormous.  I am behind on my mortgage and have been unable to make my car payments. Should I file bankruptcy, get my financial house in order, and then file a lawsuit against the trucking company?    I want to be able to get rid of all this debt and be able to keep whatever money I recover in the lawsuit to meet my needs for the rest of my life.

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When I complained about my car insurance rates my agent said that the reason rates were so high was lawsuits.  Is that right?

Well, it is true that insurance companies pay claims and, when they don't pay the claims they should or don't pay a fair amount lawsuits will be filed.   Of course, that is the business they are in.

The facts are that Tennessee consumers and juries are very conservative and our insurance rates reflect that.  While no one likes writing a check to an insurance company,  Insure.com tells us that Tennessee has the 8th lowest auto insurance rates in the nation.

The average Tennessee premium was $1,170.12 per year.  That puts us 42nd on the list of all states, with Louisiana having the highest average premium at $2510.87.    The national average is $1420.78.  We have lower rates in Tennessee than every other southern state except one - North Carolina - and its rates are only  less than $40 less per year than our rates.

 So - do lawsuits affect insurance rates?  Of course.  But we buy insurance to protect ourselves from personal financial loss in the event we negligently injure another, and we have a right to depend on fair treatment by insurance companies when we are injured by the negligence of others.  

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 I was in a  wreck with a tractor trailer several weeks ago.  The truck driver's insurance company called me and asked me some questions.  I then asked him how much insurance his driver had, but he refused to tell me.  He said that in Tennessee I could not find out how much insurance the other driver had, even if I filed a lawsuit.  Is that true?

Yes.  Tennessee is the only state in the nation that does not require an insurance company to disclose the amount of liability insurance in place for an accident.  This is a result of a powerful lobbying effort in the Legislature, led by Tennessee Farmers Mutual Insurance Company.

Sometimes an insurance company will voluntarily disclose the amount of coverage it has.  However, in the ordinary situation, the only way you can discover how much insurance the other driver has is to win a lawsuit and start the process to collect the money you are due.

In trucking cases,  federal law requires a minimum amount of insurance coverage and there is a website from which one can get some indication of the amount of liability insurance available.  An experienced trucking accident lawyer can help you gather this information.

Let me add one thing.  The amount of insurance does not influence the value of your case. In other words,  the value of your case depends on the nature and extent of your injuries, the amount of your medical bills, and many other factors.  (Read more on the damages recoverable in personal injury cases in Tennessee here.)  The amount of liability insurance is not a factor and in fact the jury is never about the existence, much less the amount, of insurance.  The amount of insurance only determines the likelihood of being able to recover the full amount of the damages you sustained.  If there is an insufficient amount of insurance available, you will be forced to try to collect the excess from the driver and the trucking company.

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My husband and I have a trial in Lebanon, Tennessee next month.  Our lawyer said that the other side filed motions in limine.  What does that mean?

"Motions in limine" are papers filed with the court asking the court to reach a pre-trial ruling on certain matters, usually evidence issues.  For example, if I am representing a person  who was convicted of a crime 15 years ago and now has a trial in a car wreck case I will probably file a motion in limine asking the court not to let our opponent mention the prior criminal conviction.  This motion in limine gives the judge the opportunity to rule on the issue before the jury has any chance of hearing about it. 

The judge does not have to reach a decision on any motion in limine before trial.  

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 I have a personal injury case going to try in Cookeville, TN next month.  How many jurors need to vote for me for me to win?

You will probably have a 12-person jury.  That is the typical number of jurors in a civil jury trial in Tennessee.  You and your opponent may agree to a lesser number of jurors, but you will almost certainly have 12 jurors (and one or more alternate jurors) hear the case.

All twelve jurors must vote for you for you to win the case.  Some states permit a lesser number (10 of 12, 9 of 12) but in Tennessee the jury verdict must be unanimous unless the parties to the lawsuit agree on that the verdict may be something other than a unanimous verdict.  For obvious reasons, the defense will rarely agree to such a proposal.

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