Tennessee Unclaimed Property

 

The state of Tennessee has a website for unclaimed property:

 https://unclaimedproperty.tn.gov/app/claim-search

 Apparently, the state is holding close to $70 million in funds. 

 https://tntribune.com/68-7m-unclaimed-in-tennessee/ 

 Chances are you personally and your firms are owed some money.  

Social Media Terms to Know

Hacked= use a computer to gain unauthorized access to data in a system.

Cloned=cloning  the process of copying the contents of one computer hard drive to another disk or to an “image” file. 

Spoofed= Spoofing is a type of scam in which a criminal disguises an email address, display name, phone number, text message, or website URL to convince a target that they are interacting with a known, trusted source. Spoofing often involves changing just one letter, number, or symbol of the communication so that it looks valid at a quick glance. For example, you could receive an email that appears to be from Netflix using the fake domain name “netffix.com.”

Phishing= the fraudulent practice of sending emails or other messages purporting to be from reputable companies in order to induce individuals to reveal personal information, such as passwords and credit card numbers.

CLE of Interest

 

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New Home Warranty Act

The Mississippi New Home Warranty Act outlines specific timeframes for builders to address repairs or defects in newly constructed homes. Typically, the Act requires builders to rectify warranted defects within a reasonable time after receiving written notice from the homeowner.

However, the Act doesn't specify an exact timeline for repairs. What's considered "reasonable" can vary depending on the nature and severity of the issue. Minor repairs might be expected to be resolved more quickly than major structural problems. It's often helpful to communicate directly with the builder to establish expectations for the repair timeline. This is something that needs to be fixed in the statute.

Impeachment Material Discoverable in Tennessee

 

Where surveillance videos of plaintiff were obtained in preparation for litigation and were thus work product, the Court of Appeals affirmed the trial court’s decision to require defendant to only produce those surveillance videos he intended to use at trial for impeachment purposes.

In Locke v. Aston, No. M2022-01820-COA-R9-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Sept. 25, 2023), plaintiff filed an HCLA action against defendant doctor. After plaintiff nonsuited her first case and in anticipation of plaintiff re-filing, defendant’s counsel obtained surveillance videos of plaintiff. After plaintiff re-filed her case, a discovery dispute arose around the production of these surveillance videos. While the trial court originally ruled that the defendants should produce the videos without limitation, it subsequently amended its ruling and ultimately found that the surveillance videos were work product and that defendant was only required to produce those videos he intended to use at trial for impeachment purposes. On appeal, this ruling was affirmed.

Tenn. R. Civ. P. 26.02(3) governs when material that qualifies as work product is nonetheless discoverable by an opposing party. The Rule requires the person seeking discovery to show that they have a “substantial need of the materials in the preparation of the case and [are] unable without undue hardship to obtain the substantial equivalent of the materials by other means.” By ruling that only the videos that would be used for impeachment were discoverable, the trial court had agreed with defendant that plaintiff did not have a substantial need of surveillance video that corroborated her claim. Thus, substantial need was the primary issue in this appeal.

Muniment of Title

 In drafting orders for muniments of title, I had a title insurer start asking for some unusual items.    They are asking for title insurance purposes that the muniment of title entered by the Court specifically divest any heirs who don't want the property of title even if they sign consenting to only one family members being given the property.   

Rebuttal Expert Witnesses in State Court

 

September 28, 2023 Comments Sought on Proposed Amendments to Rule 26 of the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure In a 2018 comment to proposed amendments to Rule 26 of the Mississippi Rules of Civil Procedure, the Mississippi Association for Justice (MAJ) proposed “adding an explicit rule regarding disclosure of rebuttal expert opinions.” The Court referred MAJ’s proposal to the Advisory Committee on Rules.l The Court’s Rules Committee on Civil Practice and Procedure seeks comments on the Advisory Committee’s proposed amendments to Rule 26 and to Rule 26’s Advisory Committee Notes.  Comments must be filed with the Clerk of Appellate Courts at Post Office Box 249, Jackson, Mississippi 39205. The filing deadline is October 30, 2023.