Tennessee Court Talk

Send us Fan Mail The guardian ad litem (GAL) in Tennessee plays a crucial role in family court, acting as a voice for the child. As a legal representative of the child, they meet the child where they are in a case and advocate for the child's best interests and ensure their protection until the completion of the matter. On this episode, Nick Morgan welcomes Judge Robert Philyaw of Hamilton Co...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Tennessee Court Talk, Samantha Fisher leads Chief Justice Holly Kirby, Justice Sarah Campbell, Justice Dwight Tarwater and Justice Mary Wagner  down memory lane. The discussion focuses on traditions the justices had during the Thanksgiving holiday as children and the traditions that have created with their own families they celebrate with today.  This episode is...

Send us Fan Mail Attorneys are permitted to bill for travel time and expenses, and there are specific guidelines under Rule 13 that determine what is and is not compensable regarding  travel time and reimbursable expenses. In this quick episode, host Joe Byrd explains everything you need to know about these guidelines. This podcast is intended for attorneys. 

Send us Fan Mail With election season in full swing, Tennessee voters had the chance to vote on the retention of an appellate court judge and a Supreme Court Justice in August 2024. Tennessee Court of Criminal Appeals Judge Matthew Wilson was one of those judges. In this episode of Tennessee Court Talk, Nick Morgan sits down with Judge Wilson in Jackson, TN to discuss the purpose of retention elec...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode, Chancellor Jim Ripley and Judge Carter Moore of Tennessee's fourth judicial district sit down with host and Communications Director, Samantha Fisher to discuss the moments leading up to the storm striking East Tennessee. Judge Moore explains the effects on inmates in Cocke County and Chancellor Jim Ripley details the plans for his temporary courtroom. This ep...

Send us Fan Mail By day, Knox County Clerk Mike Hammond files, maintains, records, and preserves the records of the Knox County Criminal, General Sessions – Criminal, and Fourth Circuit Courts.  However, there is a lot to know about this interesting man that lies just under the surface. He is a superhero of sorts. He uses his powers during the day to help the people of Knox County, while holding o...

Send us Fan Mail Section 6 of Rule 13 states that "counsel will be held to a high degree of care in keeping of contemporaneous time records, and that failure to provide sufficient specificity…may constitute grounds for denial of the claim for compensation or reimbursement." Nobody likes returned claims on either side, neither the attorneys nor the people processing the claims.  Here to h...

Send us Fan Mail Medical debt is an unwelcome burden with lasting repercussions for many Tennesseans each year. The Hamilton County General Sessions Court is at the forefront of a pilot program that began in 2021 that gives those with unpaid medical bills to Erlanger Hospital in Chattanooga the opportunity to negotiate a better outcome for themselves without ever having to enter a courtroom. On th...

Send us Fan Mail On this episode, the newest member of the Tennessee Supreme Court, Mary Wagner sits down with host Nick Morgan to discuss her transition from the trial bench to the appellate bench. Justice Wagner also discusses growing up in a family of lawyers and her favorite music to listen to on the road.  This episode is for all audiences.  An audio only version Justice Wagner's investi...

Send us Fan Mail A step back from our normal style of episode to bring our audience a complete audio version of Judge Mary Wagner's investiture to the Tennessee Supreme Court. Justice Wagner received a warm welcome to the appellate bench as family, friends, colleagues, elected officials, and the judiciary joined her in Germantown for a ceremonial investiture by Governor Bill Lee. For an inter...

Send us Fan Mail This episode covers the new amendments to Rule 13, including redactions that are no longer required, policies relating to mistrials, and deadlines for the 180 day rule. Host Joe Byrd explains the changes you will see moving forward, in a podcast intended for attorneys.  Produced by David Stripling, Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts

Send us Fan Mail Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Roger Page is a man of two careers. After 25 years of service to the Tennessee judiciary, he is hanging up his robe for a life of travel and home improvement. On this episode of Tennessee Court Talk, Justice Page sits down with host, Nick Morgan, to discuss growing up on a farm in Chester County, his love for the San Francisco Giants  and how a boy...

Send us Fan Mail Understanding what happens in a courtroom can be difficult. Even more so when English is a litigant’s second language. There are services in Tennessee to ensure that every litigant has the access to understand their day in court. In this episode of Tennessee Court Talk, host Nick Morgan sits down with Ryan Mouser, the Language Access Program Manager at the Administrative Office of...

Send us Fan Mail Attorneys, investigators, and experts are not only entitled to a reasonable fee, but they are also entitled to be reimbursed for their reasonable and necessary expenses. Section 4 of Tennessee Supreme Court, Rule 13 gives guidelines for what is covered. In this episode of Appointed Counsel, host Joe Byrd explains this guidance in detail; covering filing fees, travel, and other nec...

Send us Fan Mail Baseball is full of surprises. You never know when you walk into a ballpark if you might see a perfect game, a runner caught in a pickle, a measuring-tape home run…or an historic legal precedent! On August 20th, 1955, Earl Averill, Jr of the Nashville Vols punched Lyle Luttrell of the Chattanooga Lookouts in an on-field skirmish. Luttrell ended up with a broken jaw, Averill ended...

Send us Fan Mail In this very short episode, host Joe Byrd explains the compensation rate increase for indigent attorneys in Tennessee, and how it has been implemented as of July 1st of 2024. There has also been an increase in the cap, based on hours worked. This podcast is intended for attorneys. Produced by David Stripling, Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts

Send us Fan Mail The simple explanation of the role of an appellate court judge is to determine whether or not the law was applied correctly in the trial court. However, everyone in an appellate courtroom is human and judges strive to understand the situations of the parties in front of them. Some of those situations can be very personal, especially for self-represented litigants. In this episode,...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Appointed Counsel,  host Joe Byrd speaks with Lisa Angel, Court Reporter Manager for the AOC, as they discuss the importance of court reporters, the processes of invoicing, and exactly how attorneys should work with court reporters to prepare transcripts. This episode is intended for attorneys and court reporters.  Produced by David Stripling, Tennessee Administ...

Send us Fan Mail There are many members of a court staff that make a courtroom work efficiently and effectively.  In Tennessee, circuit court judges may have three to four county courtrooms to manage with different staff members in each courtroom. In this episode of Tennessee Court Talk, AOC Communications Director Samantha Fisher sits down with Chancellor J.B. Cox of the 17th Judicial District in...

Send us Fan Mail In this episode of Tennessee Court Talk, AOC Communications Director Samantha Fisher discusses misconceptions in the courtroom with Tennessee Senior Judge, Don Ash.  Find out why Judge Ash considers presiding over court a lot like umpiring a baseball game and the rules that judges in Tennessee follow in order to rule  from the bench. Recorded at the Spring 2024 TJC conference in M...

Send us Fan Mail Almost half of all claims that come into the AOC are related to Juvenile Court. In this episode, host Joe Byrd welcomes Stacy Lynch, Director of the Court Improvement Program, who has a lifetime of experience with Juvenile Courts. Here, Stacy and Joe give insight into how attorneys can navigate the system effectively, including discussion of Rule 13, Rule 40, and necessary informa...

Send us Fan Mail Appellate courts can be a mystery. In this episode of Tennessee Court Talk, judges of the Tennessee Court of Appeals and Court of Criminal Appeals pull back the curtain. Judges Jill Ayers, Frank Clement, Tom Greenholtz, and Steve Stafford explore a wide variety of topics ranging from arguing cases before appellate courts to the issuance of opinions. Judge Jeffrey Usman hosts their...

Send us Fan Mail Technology is changing at a rapid pace, and judicial systems here in Tennessee and around the U.S. are finding innovative ways to keep up, from positive uses of AI, to civic education, to improved access to justice, data access, and more. In this episode--recorded at the 2024 Conference of Chief Justices in Nashville, Tennessee--Justice Sarah Campbell interviews Chief Justice Mary...

Send us Fan Mail This episode of Appointed Counsel deals with how to get paid when a case in General Sessions court is bound over to the grand jury.   As an attorney appointed to represent a defendant in one of these cases, one may question whether or not they may be compensated for the extra time.  The short answer is yes, and Joe Byrd is here to explain the details. This podcast is intended for...

Send us Fan Mail April is Help4TN month!  In this episode, the hosts of Lady Justice: Women of the court take over Tennessee Court Talk to discuss the Tennessee Justice Bus. Justice Elizabeth D. Walker of West Virginia and Justice Rhonda K. Wood of Arkansas sit down with Tennessee Supreme Court Justice Jeff Bivins and Anne-Lousie Wirthlin, Director of Access to Justice and Strategic Development fo...