Tennessee Tort Filings and Trials 2017-2018 — Truth In Lawyer Advertising Blog

In one of our most recent articles we reported on the actual trial records in tort cases tried to verdict in the courts of Tennessee of the largest spending television, radio, billboard and website lawyer advertisers in the Chattanooga area as reported in the Tennessee Jury Verdict Reporter (TJVR) for the year 2018.

Reputable Nashville trial lawyer and legal scholar John Day disseminated to the membership of the Tennessee Trial Lawyers Association (TTLA) and others the numbers posted in Tennessee Statistics in three articles dated February 26-28, 2019. I direct your attention to John’s website at jday@johndaylegal.com for the complete article.

As Nashville and Chattanooga continue to have significant population growth the number of trials in tort cases continues to decline. Why? The silly blog will give its viewpoint.

1. The Tennessee General Assembly has an overwhelming business oriented Republican majority and few lawyers committed to the protection of rights of injured individuals now serve;

2. The Tennessee Supreme Court the week after they were re-elected announced that they wanted to be more business friendly (I leave it to the individual to decide whether that statement has become effective);

3. The use of mediation has contributed to the resolution of some cases that might have been decided either for or against either side;

4. The restrictions in Workers Compensation cases have reduced a substantial amount of attorney’s fees that might have discouraged plaintiffs from filing said cases in order to earn fees that could be used to pursue more expensive cases such as Healthcare Liabiality and Product Liability cases;

5. The expense and difficulty of pursuing Healthcare Liability actions as the result of legislative enactments;

6. The solicitation of automobile, tractor-trailer and other personal injury cases by local and out-of-state advertising firms with million dollar budgets that necessitate early resolution (settlement) of cases;

7. The decline in the public’s perception as to the image of trial lawyers as the result of being bombarded with self-serving and deceptive advertisements on radio, television, billboards, websites, etc. (This also gives ammunition to our enemies in the legislature to enact more plaintiff unfriendly legislation).

The figures can also be deceptive. A few years ago a Chattanooga attorney got a multi-million dollar verdict for a client under the following facts:

1. Client severely injured by drunk driver who had no insurance;

2. Drunk defendant convicted of vehicular assault and was not in court at time of trial (jailed);

3. No insurance in effect;

4. No attorney appeared to defend drunk driver

5. No issue as to causation by drunk driver;

6. No substantial uninsured motorist coverage;

7. When asked by the trial judge why the plaintiff lawyer was wasting the court and jury’s time in pursuing the case it was stated for “the purpose of the same lawyer to qualify to get a badge on his website for acquiring a “Million Dollar or Multi-Million Dollar settlement or judgment?” Any deception there?

John Day’s three articles on Tennessee Tort Filings and Trials in 2017-2018 may be factually correct but I respectfully submit do not address the real reasons for the decline in said figures. (No criticism of John)

I encourage you to buy local products and hire local, reputable attorneys!