Jerry Summers
The immortal words of the late Lawrence “Yogi” Berra, Hall of Fame catcher for the New York Yankees, may have some applicability in the current legal dispute between the Hamilton County Mayor (W.W.) and Hamilton County Attorney (R.T.)
Unless the matter gets resolved, there will be continuing legal expenses to the taxpayers, who may be more concerned about whether the dam on the “Ole McDonald Farm” is going to break and drain the pond on the lush farm land designated for some economic development than paying for R.T.’s salary through 2025.
After diligently reviewing all the evidence the High Chancellor upheld the contract that was evidently approved by a prior administration and commission.
The next step in the legal process is an appeal to the Tennessee Court of Appeals, Eastern Section, in Knoxville.
The last hurrah may be an appeal to the Tennessee Supreme Court who may or may not grant a further appeal to their court in their discretion.
An interesting potential development is whether newly appointed Justice Dwight Tarwater will sit on the case after giving a legal opinion in his capacity as advisor to the Hamilton County Mayor.
The argument on the legal issue of whether the High Chancellor in the Trial Court should also have asked for a different judicial officer to hear the case will also surely be addressed in any appeal.
(Yogi’s quote is very applicable to the disbursement of Justice in Hamilton County.)
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You can reach Jerry Summers at jsummers@summersfirm.com