Jerry Clark v. Metropolitan Government Of Nashville & Davidson County
M2016-01014-COA-R3-CV
| Tenn. Ct. App. | Apr 3, 2017Background
- Jerry Clark, a Metro Nashville correctional officer, was allegedly battered by a fellow officer during training on October 4, 2012; he reported the injury, sought treatment, and filed a criminal complaint.
- Metro investigated, deemed his allegations unfounded, and terminated Clark for dishonesty on December 26, 2012.
- Clark sued Metro in June 2013, took a voluntary nonsuit in November 2013, and refiled on November 18, 2014 asserting TPPA and common-law retaliatory discharge claims and invoking the Tennessee savings statute, Tenn. Code Ann. § 28-1-105(a).
- Metro moved to dismiss, arguing Clark’s claims were time-barred because the savings statute does not apply against governmental entities and because no process issued or was served within the required periods.
- The trial court dismissed the complaint as untimely; Clark appealed. The Court of Appeals affirmed, holding the savings statute cannot “save” suits against governmental entities due to sovereign immunity and noting process was never issued.
Issues
| Issue | Plaintiff's Argument | Defendant's Argument | Held |
|---|---|---|---|
| Whether Tenn. Code Ann. § 28-1-105 (general savings statute) can revive Clark’s claims against a government defendant | Clark: savings statute tolls/revives his timely filing after a voluntary nonsuit | Metro: general savings statute does not apply to suits against governmental entities because of sovereign immunity | Held: Savings statute unavailable against Metro; sovereign immunity bars its application |
| Whether Clark’s refiled complaint was timely given the one-year limitations period for TPPA/retaliatory discharge claims | Clark: refile within savings statute period (invoked § 28-1-105) | Metro: claims accrued at termination (Dec 2012); one-year limitations expired before Nov 2014 filing | Held: Claims time-barred absent savings statute; dismissal affirmed |
| Whether failure to issue or serve process prevented tolling based on original commencement | Clark did not dispute factual finding that process never issued | Metro: no process issued or served within Rule 3 timeframes; plaintiff cannot rely on original filing to toll statute | Held: Even assuming savings statute applied, Rule 3 failure to issue process justified dismissal |
| Availability of common-law retaliatory discharge against a municipal employee post-2014 | Clark asserted common-law claim | Metro: common-law retaliatory discharge is for private employees; TPPA supersedes common law for claims after July 1, 2014 | Held: Common-law retaliatory discharge inapplicable to public-entity employee; claim was misguided (not outcome-determinative here) |
Key Cases Cited
- Trau-Med of Am., Inc. v. Allstate Ins. Co., 71 S.W.3d 691 (Tenn. 2002) (standard for reviewing motion to dismiss and construing allegations as true)
- Sneed v. City of Red Bank, Tenn., 459 S.W.3d 17 (Tenn. 2014) (general saving statutes do not apply to suits against governmental entities unless expressly permitted)
- Farmer v. Tenn. Dep’t of Safety, 228 S.W.3d 96 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2007) (savings statute inapplicable to TPPA claims against governmental entities)
- Williams v. City of Burns, 465 S.W.3d 96 (Tenn. 2015) (common-law retaliatory discharge available only to private-sector employees; TPPA amendments supersede common law for certain claims)
- Weber v. Moses, 938 S.W.2d 387 (Tenn. 1996) (retaliatory discharge is a tort subject to a one-year statute of limitations)
- Bratcher v. Hubler, 508 S.W.3d 206 (Tenn. Ct. App. 2015) (sovereign immunity requires strict enforcement of statutes limiting suits against government)