News - Friday, May 18, 2012

William Robinson III, president of the American Bar Association, was the Chattanooga Bar Association’s featured speaker at its 2012 Annual Law Day Celebration, held May 10 at the Sheraton Read House. Robinson spoke eloquently on the importance of having an adequately funded judiciary and urged attorneys to speak out against attempts to cut funds to the courts – something he said threatens the freedom people in the United States enjoy. Here is the full text of his speech, edited for readability.

During the Chattanooga Bar Association’s Law Day celebration, the Southeast Tennessee Paralegal Association presented its annual Judge W. Neil Thomas III Paralegal Utilization Award to attorney Angela Ripper. Pictured are Lynn Hager, owner of Paralegal On Call, who presented the award; Ripper; and Gail Elsea, Ripper’s paralegal, who nominated her for the award. (Alex McMahan Photography)

The organization known as CLSA-Chattanooga Legal Professionals has installed new officers for 2012. Pictured in the back row, left to right, are Treasurer Gail Spitler and President-Elect Kim Chapman. Pictured in the front row are Secretary Kerry Hryhor, Vice-President Angela Gipson and Governor Janet Daniel. Not pictured: President Ginny Hogan. Formerly known as Chattanooga Legal Secretaries Association, the 55-year-old group exists to “unite into a local and national organization all persons employed in work of a legal nature, enabling ideas to be exchanged, knowledge to be increased and friendships friendships with others sharing an interest in the legal field to develop.” To inquire about joining their ranks, contact them through Facebook. (David Laprad)

Saturday, May 19

Central High School has been chosen to receive the Bellamy Flag Award for 1963, one of the nation’s highest honors for a secondary educational institution. Presented annually, the Bellamy citation recognizes the patriotic contribution of Francis Bellamy of Rome, N.Y. who wrote the Pledge of Allegiance to the American Flag. Each year, a state is selected for the award. Tennessee was designated for 1963 and Central was declared the outstanding school over 67 other competitors.

May 19

Chickamauga Battlefield Bicycle Tours begin

Outdoor Chattanooga will once again partner with Chickamauga and Chattanooga National Military Park for free monthly bicycle tours of Chickamauga Battlefield beginning May 19 at 9:30 a.m. at the Battlefield Visitors Center. Adults and kids ages 8 and older are invited to take a leisurely ride around the battlefield with a National Park interpretive ranger to learn about Civil War history. Bring your own bicycle or borrow one from the Outdoor Chattanooga mobile bicycle fleet. Riders must be at least 5’ tall to borrow a bicycle. To reserve a loaner bike, call the Battlefield Visitors Center at (706) 866-9241. Helmets are required for all riders.

State of Tennessee v. Kenneth Nathaniel Jones.

Direct Appeal from the Criminal Court for Hamilton County

Case Number: E2011-02621-CCA-R3-CD

Authoring Judge: Judge Robert W. Wedemeyer

Originating Judge: Judge Rebecca J. Stern

The weather was perfect this week in the Levison Towers – perfect means that temperature range where neither the heat nor the air conditioning are needed, and thus neither can fail. Unfortunately, I wasn’t around to enjoy the spring temperatures, as I was back in Oklahoma for my high school reunion.

It was a good week for weather lovers. Low humidity and sunny days with highs in the upper 60s and low 70s – the way May ought to be. May is also the month when we have the most office birthdays here at The Daily Record, of which I am one. And there seems to be a lot of other people I know with May birthdays. Maybe it’s because it is named for the Greek goddess Maia, who was identified with the Roman era goddess of fertility, Bona Dea, whose festival was held in May. 

Little Rock’s Drew Smyly won his first Major League game on April 28, at of all places, Yankee Stadium, smack dab in the middle of the Bronx. A New York taxi driver once told me, after I had asked about driving by Yankee Stadium for a glance, “Sir, you don’t want to go there at this time of year.” I figured if the cabbie didn’t care much for traveling in that neighborhood, there was no need for a follow-up question.

In 1975-76, I had Ken Gould for Torts. Two years later, I had him for Practice Skills. In the latter, he surprised us one day with a written exercise. “Take out a sheet of paper and write out, informally, what you think would be your ideal legal career. Take 15 minutes.”

I’m often asked questions about Uncle Sid and Aunt Sadie whom I write about in my columns, which I appreciate very much. Those two individuals have returned a time of life to many of my readers that they enjoy reminiscing about, and have brought back memories of family members, just like my two family characters. And the recipe for Aunt Sadie’s teacakes that Uncle Sid and I enjoy so much continues to be a major request from readers.

It seems like the Presidential election has been going on forever. It seems these days that they start as soon as they end. Truth be told, they start before they end as people find themselves jockeying for position years in advance. It is sometimes hard to keep the electorate interested, and the demand of the 24 hour news cycle requires a candidate to be constantly exciting or face being forgotten behind the latest flavor of the minute.

What candy did you like growing up? Chances are, thinking about it stirs memories, not just of the treat but also of a time and place in your life. My favorite candy bar was the Charleston Chew. I remember biking to a convenience store in Toledo, Ohio, grabbing a strawberry Chew off the rack, giving the cashier 15 cents, ripping off the wrapping and biting through the thin layer of chocolate to the chewy goodness beneath. I also liked taking a bar home, sticking it in the freezer and then eating it in brittle chunks a few hours later.

Hamilton County Department of Education Superintendent Rick Smith on May 9 armed Realtors who attended the latest Greater Chattanooga Association of Realtors Information Gathering with facts that can help them address one of the most commonly asked questions when showing houses to parents with school age children: “Where are the best schools?”

There seems to be a common perception in our area of the country that any body of water, no matter how small, that can accommodate any device capable of transporting a human being - whether it be an inner tube, kayak or bass boat - is a “navigable waterway” and available for anyone to use. This belief usually manifests itself in disputes between those who own land bordering a lake, river or stream and those who wish to use the waterway for their own recreational or commercial purposes.

Saturday, May 18

A distressing accident occurred on South Crest Road when two popular Chattanoogans riding in a Maxwell smashed into a stone wall. Pope Brown, son of Hon. Foster J. Brown was smothered to death and Sam Devine was so badly burned he is not expected to live. Devine is the son of Sam W. Devine, former head of the Street Railway Co.

If “The Avengers” is the first must-see movie of the summer, then “Dark Shadows” is the season’s first must-miss movie. As one would expect from director Tim Burton, the visuals are top notch and Johnny Depp delivers an entertaining performance as Barnabas Collins, a 200-year old vampire. But Burton bounces aimlessly between campy humor and creepy gothic horror without striking a consistent tone, and the story appears to have been drained of life before it ever reached the screen.

The Smart Dog School of Fundraising ( www.schooloffundraising.com ), an Arizona based school that offers certified training to animal welfare staff, will bring its highly rated one day animal welfare fundraising workshop to the McKamey Animal Center on June 20.

Education reformers have made teacher quality a top concern in Tennessee and elsewhere – and rightly so. But without the support of a great principal, working quietly behind the scenes to create the conditions for success, even the best teachers will inevitably be limited in what they can accomplish in the classroom. The Education Consumers Foundation is, therefore, proud to recognize the achievements of 18 of these principals from across the state through its annual Value-Added Achievement Awards. The foundation will present these awards during a ceremony held at 1pm at the Tennessee Supreme Court.

Things to do and places to see. School is almost over, so it is time for you and the kids to hit the road! Try on some of these mountains for size. Although some of them are not so kid friendly!

1. One of the world’s tallest peaks, the Matterhorn, is a part of which European Mountain range? Alps; Caucasus; Carpathians; Sudetes.

For the past few weeks, our family has been celebrating graduations: Kindergarten graduations, high school graduations, and this past Saturday evening, a college graduation.

Along with these graduations come the typical family get-together eating episodes. We have no problems with those! We have tasted a lot of tasty things: some new and some of the old standbys.

Champion agent can convey the six key rules that equate to professional value to any prospect or client. They are able to drive home the key points to raise their value to the prospect.

1. We don’t sell properties

We are salespeople, but we are really selling something other than a property. What we really sell to the marketplace is our knowledge. Our knowledge is better and more complete than our competitor’s, which enables us to charge a higher fee for our service. Why is one Attorney $500 an hour and another is only $100 an hour? It’s an hour for both. Assuming they can accomplish a similar volume of work, why pay the higher price?