Court Rulings

This appeal concerns whether a confidentiality agreement was assigned from one corporation to another. Danny M. Lingerfelt ("Lingerfelt") was an employee for many years of P.I., Inc. ("P.I."), a manufacturer. In 2015, Lingerfelt left P.I and a year later went to work for another company. In the meantime, Hydra Pools, the P.I. division in which Lingerfelt had worked, had become a separately chartered corporate entity, Hydra Pools, Inc. In 2016, Hydra Pools, Inc. filed a verified complaint against Lingerfelt in the Chancery Court for McMinn County ("the Trial Court") alleging that he violated the terms of a non-competition and confidentiality agreement ("the Agreement") he had entered into with P.I. Lingerfelt filed a motion for summary judgment asserting, among other things, that Hydra Pools, Inc. had no privity of contract with him because he had worked for P.I. and not its supposed successor. The Trial Court granted summary judgment to Lingerfelt on the basis that Hydra Pools, Inc. was not a party to or successor in interest to the rights or obligations of the Agreement. Hydra Pools, Inc. appeals. We hold that there is a genuine issue of material fact as to whether the Agreement was assigned by P.I. to Hydra Pools, Inc. We reverse the Trial Court's grant of summary judgment and remand for further proceedings consistent with this Opinion.

The Defendants, Darrell Partin and Chanda Partin, were indicted for theft in connection with Mr. Partin's employment at Tennessee Master Restoration ("TMR"), and the case proceeded to a bench trial. During trial, the Defendants discovered that the State had failed to produce documents in the possession of TMR which supported the Defendants' theory of the case. After a continuance, the trial court concluded that the failure to produce the documents was a violation of Tennessee Rule of Criminal Procedure 16 and of the duty to disclose exculpatory material under Brady v. Maryland, 373 U.S. 83 (1963). The trial court then granted a mistrial and dismissed the charges with prejudice based on the Rule 16 violation. The State appeals. After a thorough review of the record, we conclude that the trial court abused its discretion in dismissing the charges, and we remand for further proceedings.

REPORTED OPINION and ORDER: finding NCIS classified improperly Mr. Shea as FLSA exempt finding NCIS erred in good faith and with a reasonable basis, precluding liquidated damages denying plaintiff's request to reconsider grant of summary judgment to government on willfulness denying plaintiff's Motion to Compel awarding $42,750.84 in compensatory damages for July 2014 through September 2018 and awarding compensatory damages under the same methodology for overtime hours accrued after October 2018 until Mr. Shea has been classified as non-exempt. In due course, Mr. Shea may apply for an award of reasonable costs and reasonable fees for witnesses and attorneys under 29 U.S.C. § 216(b). The Clerk is directed to enter final judgment under RCFC 54(b) as specified. Signed by Senior Judge Charles F. Lettow.

In this retaliatory discharge action, the plaintiff filed suit against his former employer under both the common law and the Tennessee Public Protection Act. See Tenn. Code Ann. § 50-1-304 (2014). The plaintiff claimed that he was terminated for voicing his concerns about, or refusing to participate in, illegal activities. The former employer moved for summary judgment arguing, in part, that the plaintiff could not identify a specific illegal activity or a violation of a clearly established public policy. The trial court granted the summary judgment motion and dismissed the plaintiff's claims. Discerning no reversible error, we affirm.

In this post-divorce action, the trial court denied the wife's request for relief from a prior judgment and ordered the parties to comply with their written marital dissolution agreement regarding the sale of a parcel of marital real property. Following numerous motions filed by the parties, including several motions for recusal filed by the wife, the trial court eventually granted recusal. The newly assigned trial court judge held a hearing to consider pending motions and determine the status of the case, and the wife filed another motion to recuse shortly after that hearing. The trial court entered a subsequent order, wherein the court denied recusal and instructed the Clerk and Master to select a realtor and sell the parcel of property on the parties' behalf. Wife subsequently filed a motion seeking "relief of void orders," pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Civil Procedure 60, which was denied by the trial court. Wife filed a second but different Rule 60 motion thereafter, which was also denied by the trial court. Wife timely appealed. Discerning no error, we affirm the trial court's judgment in this matter. We grant Husband's request for attorney's fees pursuant to the parties' MDA and remand this issue to the trial court for a determination of a reasonable award of attorney's fees in favor of Husband. We deny Wife's motions seeking supplementation of the record and consideration of postjudgment facts.