In recent weeks the Tennessee Court of Appeals has issued favorable opinions for Bulso PLC clients in three cases.
In Pagliara v. Moses, the court reversed a trial-court order awarding attorney’s fees under Tennessee’s statute that shifts fees at the motion-to-dismiss stage. The court held that a defendant who prevailed on a motion to dismiss, but who failed to seek an award of attorney’s fees at any time prior to the disposition of an appeal from the dismissal, had waived the claim and could not recover. The appellant was represented on appeal by Bulso attorney Paul Krog.
In Charles v. McQueen, the court reversed a trial-court order dismissing the plaintiff’s libel claim under Tennessee’s anti-SLAPP act. The court concluded the trial court had improperly relied upon inadmissible evidence to determine the plaintiff qualified as a limited-purpose public figure. The Court of Appeals affirmed, however, the trial court’s ruling dismissing the plaintiff’s false-light claim. The appellant was represented on appeal by Bulso attorney Paul Krog.
In Meadows v. Story, the court affirmed the trial court’s judgment in an action to dissolve a limited-liability company. The court affirmed the trial court’s rulings on evidentiary questions and declined to disturb concurrent findings of the chancellor and master concerning the disposition of hundreds of items of personal property the parties had accumulated over the course of their business relationship. The court also left intact the chancellor’s finding that the appellant’s capital account had a deficit balance of more than $924,000, requiring this amount to be reimbursed to the appellee prior to division of the LLC’s remaining assets. The plaintiff-appellee was represented by Chris Thorsen from Baker Donelson, who argued the case at Belmont Law School, along with Bulso attorney Paul Krog and longtime Brentwood attorney Pat Flynn.