Law Commons^™

Workers' Compensation, H. Michael Bagley, J. Benson Ward

Mercer Law Review

The 2014-2015 survey period included decisions of the appellate courts on a wide variety of issues impacting the workers' compensation system, ranging from the average weekly wage to the statutes of limitation.

Administrative Law, Jennifer B. Alewine, Courtney E. Ferrell, Erin G. Watstein

Mercer Law Review

This Article surveys cases from the Georgia Supreme Court and the Georgia Court of Appeals from June 1, 2014 through May 31, 2015 in which principles of administrative law were a central focus of the case. The Article begins with a discussion of cases on exhaustion of administrative remedies, followed by a series of cases discussing standard of review for an agency decision, a review of sovereign immunity cases, and a brief review of enactments from the 2015 regular session of the Georgia General Assembly.

This Article is dedicated to the illustrious Martin M. Wilson, who authored this Article for …

Business Associations, Crystal J. Clark

Mercer Law Review

This Article surveys notable cases in the areas of corporate, limited liability company, partnership, agency, and joint venture law decided between June 1, 2014 and May 31, 2015 by the Georgia Supreme Court, the Georgia Court of Appeals, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, and the United States district courts located in Georgia.

Construction Law, Frank O. Brown Jr.

Mercer Law Review

This Article focuses on noteworthy opinions by Georgia appellate courts between June 1, 2014 and May 31, 2015 relevant to the practice of construction law.

Criminal Law, Bernadette C. Crucilla

Mercer Law Review

The dynamic nature of criminal law is a result of the ongoing struggle between those who prosecute individuals charged with crimes and those who defend them. It is, therefore, not practical to try to include every change in criminal law occurring during a particular survey period. I have sifted through the cases and statutory amendments from June 1, 2014 through May 31, 2015 and selected those with the widest application or interest to criminal law practitioners.

Evidence, John E. Hall Jr., W. Scott Henwood, Jacque Smith Clarke

Mercer Law Review

This year represents only the second full survey period in which the "new" Georgia Evidence Code, Official Code of Georgia Annotated (O.C.G.A.) title 24, takes effect. These new rules took effect on January 1, 2013. The rules conform in large part to the Federal Rules of Evidence and continue to change the face of evidence law in Georgia. This Survey highlights cases decided by the Georgia Court of Appeals and the Georgia Supreme Court between June 1, 2014 and May 31, 2015 that have made an impact on evidence law in Georgia. This year's Article provides insight into the courts' …

Legal Ethics, Patrick Emery Longan

Mercer Law Review

This survey covers a two-year period from June 1, 2013 to May 31, 2015. The Article discusses noteworthy Georgia appellate cases concerning attorney discipline, disqualification, ineffective assistance of counsel, judicial ethics, and legal malpractice. The Article also discusses two significant opinions from the Formal Advisory Opinion Board, amendments to the Georgia Rules of Professional Conduct, and several recent miscellaneous cases involving legal ethics in Georgia.

Local Government Law, Ken E. Jarrard

Mercer Law Review

No abstract provided.

Real Property, Linda S. Finley

Mercer Law Review

A review of the survey of real property law for the last several years shows an evolution of topics. One year the creation of the Georgia Fair Lending Act, and the duties that new legislation placed upon attorneys and lenders was a critical topic; the following year (and the next), the topic of interest was how title to church property is determined when a congregation splits. For the last few years, the downturn in the Georgia and national economy, and the protection of consumers under foreclosure laws and from the unauthorized practice of law, have seen both judicial and legislative …

Torts, Phillip Comer Griffeth, Cash V. Morris, Christopher R. Breault

Mercer Law Review

This Article surveys recent developments in Georgia tort law between June 1, 2014 and May 31, 2015.

Trial Practice And Procedure, Brandon L. Peak, Tedra C. Hobson, David T. Rohwedder, Robert H. Snyder, Morgan E. Duncan, Joseph M. Colwell, Christopher B. Mcdaniel

Mercer Law Review

This Article addresses several significant opinions issued and legislation passed during the survey period of this publication for the Georgia civil trial practitioner.

Wills, Trusts, Guardianships, And Fiduciary Administration, Mary F. Radford

Mercer Law Review

This Article describes selected cases and significant legislation from the period of June 1, 2014 through May 31, 2015 pertaining to Georgia fiduciary law and estate planning.

Insurance, Bradley S. Wolff, Stephen Schatz, Maren R. Cave

Mercer Law Review

Courts continue to address the unique issues that arise with respect to uninsured motorist (UM) coverage, often finding that coverage exists. In a case of first impression, the Georgia Supreme Court held that an insured may recover UM benefits from a policy, despite the partial sovereign immunity of the tortfeasor. An insured may be entitled to UM benefits after settling with the tortfeasor's liability carrier for the full policy limits, even though a limited liability release allocates the majority of the settlement amount to punitive damages. Further, courts continue to strictly adhere to the "case or controversy" requirement in order …

Product Liability, Franklin P. Brannan Jr., P. Michael Freed, Jake C. Evans

Mercer Law Review

This Article surveys developments in Georgia product liability law between June 1, 2013 and May 31, 2015. It covers noteworthy cases decided during this period by the Georgia Court of Appeals, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, and the United States district courts located in Georgia.

Domestic Relations, Barry B. Mcgough, Elinor H. Hitt, Katherine S. Cornwell

Mercer Law Review

This Article addresses significant case law that arose during the survey period,' minor statutory changes specific to child support, and changes to the Uniform Superior Court Rules.

Employment Discrimination, Peter Reed Corbin, John E. Duvall

Mercer Law Review

Perhaps the most significant cases during the 2014 survey period were those that were not handed down by United States Supreme Court, rather than the cases that were decided. Easily the most talked about case during the survey period was the case pending before the Supreme Court, Young v. United Parcel Service, Inc., in which the Court will decide whether the Pregnancy Discrimination Act requires employers to offer work place accommodations to pregnant employees in order to remain on the job. Another high profile case is Mach Mining, LLC v. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, in which the Supreme Court will …

Bankruptcy, John T. Laney Iii, Daniel Taylor

Mercer Law Review

This Article offers a review of recent bankruptcy-related opinions issued in 2014 by the United States Supreme Court and courts within the Eleventh Circuit. The topics are varied, ranging from the jurisdiction of the bankruptcy courts to the ever-developing law arising from "lien stripping."

Class Actions, Thomas M. Byrne, Stacey Mcgavin Mohr

Mercer Law Review

After an uneventful 2013 on the class action front, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit tackled an assortment of class action issues during 2014, which often required the court to navigate around a recent wave of Supreme Court precedents affecting that area.

Environmental Law, Travis M. Timble

Mercer Law Review

In 2014, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, addressing an issue of first impression, rejected the district court's use of a Lone Pine case-management order as a means of testing the sufficiency of the plaintiffs' pleadings in a state law environmental torts case. The court also interpreted Florida law to mean that plaintiffs are not required to allege that groundwater contamination exceeded regulatory maximum contaminant levels for drinking water to maintain their claims and that they could recover "stigma" damages to their property without alleging actual contamination. The United States District Court for the Middle District …

Evidence, W. Randall Bassett, Val Leppert, Stephen A. Mccullers

Mercer Law Review

The United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit's 2014 term featured several interesting opinions addressing the admissibility of evidence. For example, the court tackled two issues of first impression analyzing constitutional rights against the admission of evidence. In one case, the Eleventh Circuit decided whether the Confrontation Clause applies to evidence used by a district court in determining jurisdiction over the offense in a pretrial hearing. In another case, the court developed a rule to determine when an adverse inference jury instruction is warranted after a nonparty invokes its Fifth Amendment right to remain silent in a civil …

Federal Sentencing Guidelines, Rosemary Cakmis

Mercer Law Review

The sentencing decisions of the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit in 2014 focused on United States Sentencing Guidelines (USSG, or the Guidelines) enhancements applied in connection with economic, drug, immigration, firearm, and sex-related offenses. This Survey first discusses the precedential decisions dealing with enhancements that only apply to a specific type of offense, such as an economic, drug, or sex-related offense, and are found in Chapter Two of the United States Sentencing Guidelines Manual (the Guidelines Manual). Next, this Survey examines decisions reviewing the "Adjustments" in Chapter Three of the Guidelines Manual, which apply to any …

Federal Taxation, Robert Beard

Mercer Law Review

The past year saw few significant tax cases decided in the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit.' However, the court did issue two interesting opinions: one dealing with the characterization of a real estate developer's gain as ordinary income and another dealing with a statutory interpretation question relating to the first-time homebuyer tax credit. These two cases, both reversals of the United States Tax Court, are discussed below.

Trial Practice And Procedure, John O'Shea Sullivan, Ashby K. Fox, Tala Amirfazli

Mercer Law Review

The 2014 survey period yielded noteworthy decisions relating to federal trial practice and procedure in the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit, several of which involved issues of first impression. This Article analyzes recent developments in the Eleventh Circuit, including significant rulings in the areas of statutory interpretation, subject matter jurisdiction, arbitration, and civil procedure.

Down The Rabbit Hole: Crawford V. Lvnv Funding, Llc Upends The Role Of The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act In Consumer Bankruptcy, Brittany M. Dant

Mercer Law Review

For decades courts have faced the issue of whether the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (the FDCPA) applies to filing proofs of claims in consumer bankruptcy cases. Courts have historically been cautious of applying the FDCPA in the realm that the Bankruptcy Code covers. As such, the majority of courts faced with this question found the answer to be a resounding "no." However, in Crawford v. LVNV Funding, LLC, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit turned the tide when it held that the filing of a proof of claim on a timebarred debt in Chapter …

Custodial Collies Of Transparency-The Competitive Advantage Of Protecting Investing Lamm[Bs] From Advising Wolves: Lamm V. State Street Bank & Trust, Steven L. Jones

Mercer Law Review

Unscrupulous investment advisers who defraud their unsuspecting clients are increasingly prevalent in our society. Consequently, investors must be increasingly vigilant to protect themselves from such individuals. A custodial bank is one way investors can prevent mismanagement and misuse of funds and securities they entrust to financial advisers. However, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit opinion Lamm v. State Street Bank & Trust illustrates that the mere presence of a custodial bank does not adequately insulate investors from fraudulent adviser activity. Under current Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) regulations, specifically 17 Code of Federal Regulations (C.F.R.) Section …

More Than Money: Emotional Distress Damages In Bankruptcy Proceedings, H. Thomas Shaw

Mercer Law Review

The bankruptcy process is often viewed as purely financial, evoking images of only dollars and cents, secured and unsecured debts, and reorganization. However, there is more involved than purely financial matters. It can be personal, emotional, and leave a lasting effect upon the debtor's life. Historically, bankruptcy could be devastating to an individual, leading to public shame and humiliation. Although the public is now more accepting of a debtor's plight, it is still a harrowing experience. Due in part to the sensitive nature of bankruptcy, the drafters of the Constitution gave Congress the ability to pass uniform bankruptcy laws throughout …

The Guiding Hand Of Counsel: Effective Representation For Indigent Defendants In The Cordele Judicial Circuit, Lesley Rowe

Mercer Law Review

The right to be heard would be, in many cases, of little avail if it did not comprehend the right to be heard by counsel. Even the intelligent and educated layman has small and sometimes no skill in the science of law.... He lacks both the skill and knowledge adequately to prepare his defense, even though he had a perfect one. He requires the guiding hand of counsel at every step in the proceedings against him. Without it, though he be not guilty, he faces the danger of conviction because he does not know how to establish his innocence. If …

The Relationship Between Christian Theology And Legal Ethics In The Thought Of Jack Sammons, Timothy W. Floyd

Mercer Law Review

Jack Sammons is a man of enormous breadth of interests and expertise. This Symposium, with its diverse topics and contributors, is a testament to his remarkable range of thought, his unmatched creativity and originality, and his influence on generations of scholars. I am convinced that no one who has followed Jack's career for these past decades can keep up with him in all the paths he has trod. Fortunately, none of the contributors here have been asked to comment upon his entire range of scholarship.

Two areas in which Jack and I share an interest are legal ethics and Christian …

Hearing Voices: Reading As Listening In Literature, Law, And Theology, James Boyd White

Mercer Law Review

Jack Sammons has always written from the center. Whether he is writing about teaching, or the legal profession, or law, or religion, or music, or baseball, or manners, everything he says comes from the same mysterious and powerful place: coherent, honest, generous, and sincere, not at all aggressive, but insistent upon the value and importance of the inquiry at hand. Jack writes as the whole person he is, with a constant and deep integrity.

As we all know, an important part of what Jack has written about is the world of sound and music, to which he is richly alive. …

Kantian Intuitionism As A Framework For The Justification Of Moral Judgments, Robert Audi

Mercer Law Review

Intuitionism in ethics has often been thought to lack a way to unify the plural standards it endorses. It has also been taken to have at best meager resources for explaining how we should resolve conflicts between prima facie obligations. On this resolution problem, W. D. Ross appealed to Aristotelian practical wisdom. He argued that neither Kantian nor utilitarian ethics (the two most promising rival views he considered) offers an adequate alternative.' There is, however, an interpretation of Kant's humanity formula of the categorical imperative for which this negative assessment is unduly pessimistic. This paper will show why. I am …