Lawyer 7 93 web by Alabama State Bar Association

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Quick .ce ••• to .upportlnlll .uthority Alabama', evidence law is. mue 01 common law ••tatut ... and cour! rule$. AlaNma Low 01 Evidcnn org.ni.", thi< diffu", _ y of law into. cle.,.• uthol"illlti ....... nd • .,.,....ible 'IIIt",""nt, making it easy t., Iocat. the rules 0/ evidence important to your ca.." The bo<>k 1<>Ilows the orsoniUltl"" 0/ tn., FtdOT.1 ruJ"', providing quick ao::ess lor "'ling the .pplkable law in mur! Or for on.poi~t p""rial ...... «h.

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Present your c •••• with confld.nce Alab am> Low of Evldenoe <011",,11< the information you need I""P""". and present the best c.... for y<>ur di.nt. Concise Y'" det.1ilOO f(lf au thorit.tive ",fe",,.,.,, uu. handbook cove ... evidentiary issues """t 0/"", ...-.cou.nt""'<! in the cour!· room. ouch asto ev.lu." .,

• /'reseflta,i.,n 01 witnesses • E>cpert and lay opinion testimony

• Rel""aocy • Exhibit$ and o<ientifl< evidence • Auth<"J\tication • He..... yand he .....yex<eptions • Privileges • Burd .... of proof • The Rul.,. of Crimi ... l !"'ro«dure

$8S· 81l POse>- """,oo.-.d, wi,h <u"""t .... pp!em<rt,. 019510, Thr M;.;.o,;,."""I",,),'

Authorlt.tlv., up-to-d.t. coverall. Writ«.-n for th(, trial arod 'Pl"'llate b;,,,,,l\.rod bar, Alabama Low 0/ Evide~tt p..-nts. f"-'$h treatme.tt of ,n., .ubje<:1. Colqu itt """mines evidence law from. variety of sou""".rod organi.", it in a practic.llormat, giving you tho: most up-todate .rod useful re!0Tentt On Alabama evidence. The book OO1Il11lns "'tations to leading <a....-ln.:;luding many of the mo&t rect'J\t- plus key 'IIItute<. rul.,.. I"'t"'"' jury instructions. arod appropriate treatise< arod .r!ieh", It includes a T.ble 01 Cases .nd.n """""ive lrod"". The author designed AI.bama Low of Eviden« lor annual .upplementa tion SO it will """"in. practi<al re/e.-ence .hould new rules of evidence b;, adopted.

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AIAI:IAMA IAWn;R

JUL.Y 1993 / 215

BRIEF

July 1993

Volume 54 , Number 4

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ON THE COVER:

!'t>ono (2051 ~ ' 5 'S

Historic liw I)ak$ shade Washington Square in

Mobil~.

, itt of the 1993 Alabama

State Bar Ann..al Meeting. Jul~ 15-17.

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THE AlABA."IA l.AWYER

CONTINUING LEGAL EDUCATION

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THE ALA6AMA l,AWYER

JUl YI99J / 211

PRESIDENT'S PAGE LETTER To THE GOVERNOR JUI>f 1. 19'93

TM lIononhle Jam .. E. Folsom. Jr.

G<Mrnor of Alabama Siale Capitol Building Montgomery. Alabama 36 130 Dar Covtmor Folwm:

Your falher wa:; . lmed Governor of Alabama in 1946 OIl • platform of education refonn. Subsequently, his vision of ..... ell·educated constituency was frustrated by political (.,,,,ril i,rn Despite IN: levy of a tobacco tax, increases in the sales tax and a t..'fK:ent lIN. tax. all earmarked for edu· cation. Alabama 51ill ended up with an under/unlltd education system dri"'!" by political. mhe. than qualitative, educational con.sid<rations. Ltgislators without college degrees haw linn appointed pre$idenu of our CQlle~s. a barN. leaching prisoners his tonsorial .kill. is Pilid $17.000 more a year than a physics professor at Jefferson Stile, and n•• dle,s duplication of services abound as politicians re..,.,d their unqualified but infiuential friends with jobs. While such squanMring take.; place. I sixth· grade scienet teacher in south Alabama 500ws htr .tuden~ a pictu~ of a microscope because she does no! ha"" a ~.l one. The scienet studen~ in Choctaw County lin.! up to IlSt one of the onty I'.0Io Bu"",n burnet5 in the enti~ system. The kids at Alberta Elementary School p~tend to swing on a set that has no seats or chains. and a dwroom table in Wilcox County is propped up by mi lk cartons. Today. Alabama has >chool5 without >cience labs. libraries without librarians and books thaI are infesttd with termite•. Had your father's vi.ion in 1945 become reality. lhe speciallegislati"" .ession on .ducation and tax ~form which you ha"" WI<>-ed to call almost a half century later would be unne<:essary. His wish never became ~al ity and the impleml'ntation of that goal has fallen to}'Oll. Today. a half million of the dti~ens of our state are unable to read and writ •. One in three Alabama children lives in pOVE rty-the second high .. t in the nation. Th e 1991 census ranked us 47th among 50 stat .. in family income. lI'e Ire 50th in percentage of adults who finiSh high school. It should be a 'given" that each citi •• n in Alabama is enlmed to be taught the lessons 0( history 50 he Or she will no! repeat i~ mistakes. It is difficult. if not impossible. to relieve the burdens of paveri)' if ...." have never been taught

2t8 1JULYI993

the methods of self-impltwemenl that a sound education can m-eal All our lives are made easier when ....-e are given the tools which enable us to make wise decisions-to e. er· cise good judgml'nt--ilbout our health, oor wQrk and oor general ....-elfa~. To liw fruitful lives. though. wt must have the opportunity to be productiw. We are told by the e:<perU in industrial rocruittmnt that the education levtl 0( the available work force is. central consideration in site selection. In Icxlay's world 0( comp lex t~nology and global marke~. to rely on cheap but igoo. rant lobor to attract busin .... is ..,n..,le$l. Production of structurally complex products requires a !killed ond intelli· s.nt labor pOOl. Concomitant1l'. those higher skills result in higher pay for the emplo;-ee and his or her family. Alaba· ma wi ll never dose the per capita inrome gap behind other states until an of ou r people haw the opportunity to be Wl'1l-educated. No more studies are neu .... ry to implement the plans to Ichit\-e this goal. The expertise is available to guide you and the LeSislature in this critical endeavor. To understand the problem. one need on ly read Judge Gene Reese's Opin· ion holding that the funding 0( Alabama 5Chools;s uncon· stit u tional Ind has resulted in an inadequate and inequitable system. A$k Aubum's distingu ished pro(essor. Wayne fl\'Tlt. about the ~lat;onship between the qualit~ 0( our schools and OUr ecoool1ll'. To find the SOlution. study Alaboma Gap Analysis produced by Bill Smith and his A Plus Coalition. That document tells you whe~ ...." netd to take our >chools and how to 1I"t lhere. Call on So Torbert and Tom Carruthers. who headed tax reform commi ... ions. to show us how the funding must be generated. Through meaningful education and tax reform. Alabama can move to the forefront among progre ... i,'e southern states. The Alabama State Bar wants to help you take us there. Respedfull)·.

Cbren« .' 1. Small. Jr. Pruident. Ablmru. Stale Bar THE ALABAMA LAWYER

~S<=tcu 'If

N.td an updaled CLL Cal~ndar? Need to knOW if •• emin.rhos been apprOVl'd lor CLf. credit? W.nl. CLI; .eminar .1 a particular location or on • parlicular ,ubject malter, Call Diane al \_800_ 354_6\54 for. calendar and information , 'If If you attended or will be atlending a d CLf. .. minar lhal has not been approvt for CLf. cyedi\. call Diane al 1-800-3546\54 lor application information. 'If To ru.,...-e a meeling room lor a depOsilion. call Kim at \_800_354_6154. 'If Question! regarding Ihe purchase of )'(I\.lr OCcupation lice~ or 1"'~m~nt of dues? Can Alic. 10.1 1_800.354-6154 or \2051 269-\515, 'If Wanl 10 join Ihe La"yt! Referral S.rvice? C.ll Katherine al 1_800_392-5660_ 'If The slate bar's I"" number. main office, i. (205) 261-6310. 'If To f"" .omelhinll.IO Ihe Center for profusion.1 R.sporuibilil~. the number is (205) 261-63\ \. tt The lelepho!W number 10 r.ach eith.. offic. is (205) 269-1515. Monda"i thrOllg/'l friday. B•. m. to 5 p.m.

Let .. 1<t7~! 01 The n.~1 meeting of Ill<: Alabama

S13le Ilar Board of Commissionm is July 14. 1993 in Mobile. 01 ~jark your calenw.r-Alai)affi3 5131. Sa! Annual Me.ting-July 15-\7, 1993. Rivervi .... PI.,... Mobil •.

Bard' 5'5 , ..eclories for 1m 93 ~ Or ASB me be . now COSI non-membe m IS and $40 for mon IS. Send check eYOrd.rloAI ha Or tory. P.O. Box 41S: ma Bar DiTtc· /. Alabama 36101. . Monlgome!),. h

'" To chang. yo Itlephone nu ur~am •. address or U'.G. 10 Alice ~ Hr. $\'~d il IN WRIT_ sh,p Services PO endnx, Member_ Monlgomery . A" . Box 671. A T ' abama 3610 ogdad 'r. !. announc ass, '~d nol i~. an ement m"Abo Among ~'irlTl$' ut Members edilorinth J 'raleUertothe . Alabama U y 1993 iSlue of The Friday. May 2~~h. deadline Wa:! for mation 10 be REC(';lt the infor_ ~r. To ~t SOmethin,[D a~ Ih •• tate ""ptemher 199' In I". RECEIII(,;D t ~ 'ssu •. it has 10 be Friday lui ~~ e ,tale bar by • y ...... 1993.

,':w

&X4Ht- ~dlt"e4-! '" AI! bar exam a their cOmplel::~ica~u .hall have no later lhan N Pplocations filed the Februa ove~ber 1 precedi later than::r. and TIQng July txamina,~C I preceding the • L ,on forw L ' L w,." to sit."ueUC" '" , "Ie" the 'u CovemingAd . " . "ules Alabama Stat m'"'On 10 the mitt.ing affida:'::~!rAItOTMYS sub_ applocants should pro.pective the$\' dea"'" u "'e., be mmdful-' VI

~m",alion.

JULY 1993f 219

EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR'S REPORT ALABAMA HOSTS 1993 seBP

Ii il

he Alabama State Bar will ~ tht host for tht Silwr Annive.Sdry meeting of

Clea •. The Crand Hotel again has been ..,Iected as the 1993 location. The date will be Octoo.., 21-24, the Southern Conference of Bar Pre.;1993. Our conference "ill begin Thursday evening donls. The SCRP ~nnu.1 meeting was and conclude with a farewell brunch on Sunday. instituted in 1969 and r. ..t met in Biloxi. Mississip It is anticipated at least a minimum of 100 con· pi. In addition to an annual meeting each Octolxr. ferees with spoustS will come to Alabama. Eastern tht !XIflference meets at each annual and mid -year Shore. The.., conferences are ..,If·sustaining and muting of the Arnl,iC<ln Bar Associal ion for one .re supported "'ith a .egistration fet' paid by each aUendee. The Silve. Anniversary program will be. afternoon session preceding the meeting of Ihe Natiooal Conference of Bar Presidents. rdrospecti'" of the lasl 25 years of law p"clice T'w!>nty bar asrociations. within 11 states. COmand bar activities in the conf..enct region. United pri,. the SCBP since th ... are both unified and State, Circuit Judge Prank M, Johnwn. Jr .• who voluntary bar .w.ociations in North Carolina, Virk.,ooted Alabama's 1974 meeting, has been imited ginia and West Virgini •. Othu state. repr • ..,nted to keynole the 1993 gathe.ing. It is anticipdtod in the conference are Alabalhat several former ABA presi· ma. Arkansas. Florida, Ceordent>. whQ " .. re earlier presi . gia. Kansas, Kentucky , dents of the state bars, will be Louisiana, Maryland, Missis_ active participdnts on the pro· sippi, Missouri. Oklahoma , gram , South Carolina. Tennessee, lames R. Seale of Montand T~xas. gomery is the president of the There are live additional SCIIP as a conference tradi· regional conference. co,.. ring tion by virtue of Alabama'. other geographic areas of the host role. 'Spud" will pr •• ide country, Thue are the Midal the New Yo.k annual meet· Atlantic. New F.ngland, ~l i d· ing. as well as Ihe I~ mid· West. The Jack Rabbit year me.ting in Kansas City. (Association of the furs of the The pres iden", then will pas.s Western Plains and Moun to Kentucky, which will ho:;t taim). and Weltern Statu. the 1994 SCIIP meeting. Se.... . 1 Itates hold memberThis meeting "ill afford Il.\ ships in two different regional an opportunity to .howcase Rq i ... td T . H a mner conferencel. our Eastern Shon. Having The conferene .. usual ly attended the 1974 meeting. include as confe. ees • miniwhen the late Alto lee of mum 0( four delegates for each state , lhest are the Dothan "'lIS SCIIP leader. I know the positi"eS thai president, president-elect. immediate past presicome to OIlr bar assodation from lhe association's dent and uecutive director. Sev•• al confe.enees teadership rolo. I am excited that we ai!llin hI", invite all formu presidents. This is the poli", of this opportunity. It i. particularly meaningful that the Southern Conf•• once; however, the former past Presidents Stone, Harris .nd C.eaves. os Wl'1I presidents attend with less f"Quen", the further as President·elect Broox Holmes. will be able to away they are from their incumben",. host their colleagues from other states in thei r Alaroma ho:;tt<! the 1974 SCIIP meeting at Point local area. •

220 I JULY 1993

THE ALABAMA lAWYER

BAR BRIEFS RIWII'd C. K....... 01. Northport. Alabi..... U 1M ,"ip;f"! oIlhc 1992-93 BUrT & Forman Llow schoQrship, The award. I.,hich C<Mrs (Uliluitioo, is gi~n annu· ally 10 an OUI$W>dinIlMCond- or third· yol. law studtnt. Keller is a Ihird-ynr law Sludent at the University of AIVlama School of Law in TusaIOOl.l. Burr & FOl'Tl'lin's OllleH Jr. located in Birmingham .. nd HunUvillc.

pli.s ITt limited 10 only one book per peQOll or businas ..;11 Ix senL liowtvn. Ihost who rective the book may reprint or 00Vi the book for further dis· tribution. R.qunU for the book should be unl to: Businus Division. Alabama SeCTtt.!.ry of State. 1'.0. BOle 5616. Mont· gomery. Alabamll 36103. Phone (205)

242·7200.

Accordi"ll to Honry T. H. nul. prui. elml 01. AltorMy'l Iu urlnct Muhul of AllJNo ma. Inc., IS or Mil' 6, 1993. AIM had ncttdtd 1,000 in.urrd •• wi th an aact counl 01. ],004. AI M is lilt AlabII ..... Stat. lIar-ulattd malpractice insuran« Cl)m1Wl)'.

NOTICE

ALABAMA

Robtrt C. Tot. , a unior partner with 8 u... ,\1 Forman. hu betn appOinttd to . 5~cial panel formed by tht Ame rican Arbit ration Ano-ciation. Calltd "Th.

SUPREME C OURT

Lugt, Complex CUt Prog ram", the IWlOI "'IS ut1bll$htd 10 proYid. an alt ..· nati"" method 0( rnolution rn, Ing•. complex bwinHS diJjlUIts. The Ameri· an Arbitration AI.soc:iation Kltcttd 36 approved arbilUlion aIlO"'"')'$. fiY<: 01. whom Ut from Alabi ...... to strw 00 lilt GtorgWAIab.loma PiMI. Tatt is • mt,,*r fltiIt Nntrian Col. leS_ of Trial Lawyers. tht AI~blm~ Ikltnst UWYUI Anocia!ion. and th. Litigation $tction of Ihe Ame rican Bar Associalion. Unifo"" Commerclll Code filers con· fused II}' UCC procedures can find help in a new IIIndbook produc.d b}I the Sec· r.~ry 01 Stat.·1 offic•• Alobama:S Uni·

form Commucial Code Filing I'roctduru & Forms ukn UCC cu.' tomtrs throuih the wlllt. where. when and how of fiIinlS under 3 and ""rt

""rt

4 althe UCC. In ~ition to helping CltSIomtrs wilh comet filing prOUdur... lilt book 01.11· lines tilt ming iysttm in tilt Stcreury of Stat.'. office and how public informll' tion requtSU on OCC matters. including requem for copies. art handltd. The book Is free 10 th. ~ u blic. Sup· THE AUBAMA LAWYER

Davi d .'11 . Oli ve of f ort Smith, Arbnsis was appointed to lhe A1bnsas Bar Anodation'l In.Hous. Corpoutt Counsti Commin~ r«tnlly. The com· mittee consists of anomeys wilh speC ial int.rUI in this arta who provide a foru m for lawyns employed by co rpou tion. and other bUllnus organizations to examine common probltms and develop

The Supreme COJrt 01 Alabama presenlly has before ~ e sel 01 proposed rules 01 evidence Those proposed rl.lle$ have been published lor notice purposes in the Southern Reporter (2d) advance sheeC (Sated May 13. 1993. A tupfeme courI order 01

A4l"1 27, 1993 published ill the same advance sheet allows il'l!l!Ifeslad per10nS 10 file comme"ts ragarding those proposed rules. Such corrmenls should be Wed Wlth Robert G. Esdaie.

clerk. Supreme Court of Alabama., Judicia l BuIld ing. 445 Dexter Avenue . Monlgomery, Alabama 36104. Comments must be filed no

~ter

than August 27. 1993.

The courl h.as scheduled a hea.mg 00 those proposed rules. at 9 I .m. Thursday. Oc1obe< 7. 1993 in the supreme CXU!'s court· room.

Jl.nfooe desiring 10 appear before the court II !hat hear·

ing IhouId lile In Ippropriate requeSI with lhe cle<k no later

IhInAugusl27. 1993.

Q....,.. brt .....Ith Aepor1 ... of Deeilione "'..bII,.,. Sullreme Cour1

JULVI9931 22t

educational jlrogralTl$ 0( particular inter• st to la~ .. worki ng for businuses. Olivt is a 1975 admiUee to the Alabama State Bar and works with Donrey Med ia Group. Ro but ''''cOa~ ld Smith recently received Ihe 1993 Sam Pipu Award given by the Farrah Law Society. The PiPH Award is presented annually to the Univer$ily 01 Alabama School 01 Law alumnus who makn the great.,t contri_ bution toward making the law ""hool a n.tionalleader in legal education. Smith is the senior parlner in the

Birmingham firm 01 Lange. Simpson, Robinson & 5;)me,..,il le. He is a 1942 graduate 01 the Univer,ily 01 North Carolina. He received his LL.B. Irom the Univtr$ity of Alabama School of l.aw in 1948 and his l.I"M, from Har~ard UniVl' rsity in 1949. Smith was admitted to the Alabama State Bar in 1949. and has practiced with Lange SimpSOJ1 since then. He i, a member of the Amerkan Judicature Socidy and a fel low 01 the American College 0( Trial La......,.m. /II, Loui . Sa lmon h .. committed a deferred gift 0($100.000 to create the M.

Loui. Salmon Professorship 01 Law at the University of Alabama School 01 Law . Salmon i, a member 01 Lange Simpson at the firm's Huntsville office. He i, a 1948 graduate of the UniVl'rs ity of Alabama School 01 Law, and currently SOfWS on the law school's Capital Campaign Steering Committee. He is a member of the board of directors and past president of the UniVl'rsity of Alabama School 01 Law Foundation and WaS instrumental in the law school completion campaign. He served as president of the Hunt.".illeMadison County Bar Association. •

AFFORDABLE COMPUTERIZED

.. It

LEGAL RESEARCH

a small finn attorney or <Qle practitioner why they have not yet subscribed to a computerized legal esearch .\elViee and you "'ill probably get a four- tentr word in TeSpOrl.st: cost. 1'Ilere is an altemativt. A new program called ," 'uimum Value ProductJ oilers a different twist on traditio ....1 computerized research subscription' a:; well as CD RD."' . NO'oO, ,mall firms and <Qlos can conducl unl imited LEXIS@reseJrch in all of the Alabama materials. for one flat. low month!)' rate. A law office can ha,-e a LEXI&t subscription for SI35 a month. plus applicab le subscription fees (S25 ~r month through the Alabama S\2Ite Bar). for up to three attorneys. The LEXI S@MVPprogramCOSI$$45amonthloreachaddi_ tional attorney. An MVP subscriber can search Alabama castlaw , annoted statutes and the advanced legislative service, as well lIS severat top law reviews as much as th ey want under the monthly fixed rate. Online material, are continuously updated as information ~comes available. SO users wil l haw unlimited access to the most current materials at all times. Authors Barry D. Bay"" and Benjamin H. Cohen miev.'t(\ Mead Data Cenlr.rs new MVP program in ut;a/ Times and concluded that. -La~rs ....;th primarily state law concorn.. or those practicing alone Or in small groups should find MVI' allTl()$t irresistable: In additi<m. MVP subscribe ......ill be able to choose a $45a-month oplion for up to three atlorney. for unlimited ontine printing 0( MVP documenl$. Another option available is a SJO-a·month flat rate fo r up to three attorney,; to search

2221 JULY 1993

United States District Courl and applicable U.S. Circuit Court 0( Appeals cases. for a limited time only. an introductory offer of 550 for on. month', unlimited us. i, a"ailable to all new subscribers, through the Alabama State Bar. Mead I)ata Central. the provider of the LliXl&t service . said the /IIVP program con\2lins the materia ls tllO$t needed by smaller law office., as confirmed in a recent survey it conducted. The survey found that. """rail. a typical attorney in a finn of roVl' Or fewer la~r5 conduct.\ more than six hours of legal research a week. allTl()$t 90 percent of il in ,tate materials. "These ..search patterns "'ere uppermost in our minds when we de""loped the MVP program: said G.M. McGill , "ice-president of sales and marketing for legat information se"ieesat Mead Data Centra L McGill said the MVP program provides a mOre efficient, C<»t~ffectivt .....ay to conduct tegal research by giving equal access to exteru;iw state law materials. Complete and currtnt state statutes and codes are the most impOrtant legal resource. said the attorneys sUr\"tyed. Currenl~ is a key attribute of online research and "'as considered ''elY impOrtant to th= surveyed when they ",e .. asked what types of materials they r.search. Atthough it "aries by state, 75 to 90 ~rc.nt ofthost ques· tioned said they ha,-e access to. ~rsona l computtr, most often in thei, office. thaI mearu; the onli ne service should saVl' a trip to the law library. To find out more about the /IIVI' program. contact Teresa Normand at ISOOI3so.fi548. •

Tm; ALABAMA LAIVVliR

ABOUT MEMBERS, AMONG FIRMS ABOUT MEMBERS IIa.old T. Ackorman has InOV"d 11'$ offices to 1821 C.nttr Point Rood. Binningham. Alabama 35215. Phone (205) !!53·6896. Fnnk II. IIlwthQrnr, J r. announ,~$ he hu ttft Ih. firm of ~lcPhillip" Hawthorn., Shinbaum &. Cill Ind his rww offi~ is loal.d al 207 ~Iootgomery Sind. Suit. 1100. Montgomery. Abba· rn.l. 36104. Phont (205) 2$-5010. S hlron O. tlind .... n innOUllCts tho o~ning 01 her offiu ill 1] L Jackson "wnu•. South. lIusullvillt. AlIbi"", 35653. The ~ilin8 add,us is P.O. BoJE 339. RUJulivili. 35653. Phon. 12051

:1l:!.7002. Ell n n R. i'l l lcom announces the opening of her office at 209 S. Marku Str •• t, Suile 215. Scotlsooro. Alabama. The mailing addrns il P,O. Box 924 , Scntl5boro 35768. Phon. (205) 2593500. Milton E. Yarbrough. Jr. IInoou!>Cu thai

he Iu$ forrnt<lIM ,',",roup.

La..

Firm with officu in the Cnat Oak. Offict Building .•956 B.Gad Street. Mooresville, AlAbama 356-49. Phone (Z(l5j

.. Io<;"ltion of her office to 302] l.orllll Road. Suitt 100, Birmingtwn. AlWma 35216. I'IloM (205) 979·7529. !.any R. Mann. 1000000rly 01 Aldrid~ 0; Ilawkiru, ann()tJn(U tilt opening of his office at 1305 Brown Mane Tawer. 2000 First Avenue. No rth, Bi rmingham. AIab.1ma35203, Phone (205) 326·6500. R. ggie 5 t. phtn, announce. tM relocation 01 his office from lItO ~Iontlimar Drive, Suite 530, to Suite 810, Mobile. Alwrm36609, Phont (WS) 344·68..'>2. Jo/In C. Calhoun lnnoullCU lhot relocation of hi' oIfl«S to 505 20th Strttt, No rth . Suilt 950, Financial Centtr. Birminghim, Alabama 35203, Phon. (20S125 1~.

""Ilam E. CaN announces lhot relou.t,oo of his office to One Office Park, Suite 413, Mobilt, Alahllm.t 36609. " icki. E. lt ouH, formerly with. Veiga.. 0; Cox, announces the open ing of her office at 100 W. ColI.ge St reet, Columbiana, Alabama. Th. mailing address is P.O. Box ]871, Columb;a~ 35(151. I'hor.e 1205) 669· 1000. ....tte r. h Muhammad announces thot OPtn,ng 01 her offiCI at 204A S. Elm Strftt, Russell PIwo. Tuskogee, AWoama 360&3. Phone (205) 727· 1997.

35(1.22~.

Dou, ll1 W. In , ram announus the • eloca1ioo 0( his office to 2244 Center Point ROId, Suitt 101. Birmingham, Alahllrm 35215. Phone (2051853-8081. Thomu ltylon. Jr. announces tht .elo. cation or hi, OmetS to 221 Eost Sidt Squirt, Suitt t· '\, ll unUville, Alabama 3580 1. The mailing address is P.O. Box 18654, Huntsville 35804, Phone (205) 53J..ll03, Clayton T. 5 wu noy announe .. the apening 01 his oIfo« al Mounbin BTOOIe Center, 2700 Highway 280 East. Suite 15(1E, Birmingham. Alabama 35223. Phont (205) 871-8855. ,\tlorlr D. Mullin. ;tr1noul"lCU thot open· ing of his offict at 880 5. Lawrence Strut. Montgome ry, Alihllmi 36104. The mailing addre" is P.O. Box 141. Montgomery 36101. Phone (205) 834.

8070. "nne R,

S t rk~land

announces the

THE Au\Bi\o'IA u\WYER

AMONG FIRMS

nord " t·.rroambucq annourn:es that Randall W. Nicholl hal b«ome a part· ner ,nd the firm na'm h.u ~en changed to BO)'II, FtrroambuClj <Ii Nichol •• Offic •• lrt Iou.led al2801 University Boulevard, Suil. 302, Birmingham, ~hlIma 35233. Phont (205) 93(1·9000. CLork. Scott" S ullivan .. noounc .. thai J tffrt y L. Luthe r hlS breome a partmr in thot firm. The finn has offices in Mobile ind Birmingham, AJab;,rru and JKbon, MississiPCli. lion , loy, Budlt y '" Rohrhon annour>Ces that Ralph K. Slnwn , J r. h.u become a member 0( the firm, and lhat Kimbrrly II. Skipper has become an a$$OCiate with the firm, with offices" 754 Chntnul Strtet. Cadwtn, Alabama

35901. Phone (205) 543·9190 . Bond" 801" annoUnCH thai John C. .... r .. n hu b«om. ~;al«l with lhot finn. He previously Krl'td on act;\'t dut~ ...ilh Ihe U.S. Army Judge Advocate C.neU!"J Corps at R.ddone Arsenal, Alabama. I-I e i$ jo;nin8 the firm·, Huntwill t office. Karr .. &. Pond ,nnounees that ""tlam E. Pipkin, J r.. formerly an iSS<r ci.l.t. with Sintz, C~pbtll, [)ulc. &: Ti)'lor, has joined thot finn. The firm's ......... h"s betn clllInged to Kalfn, Pond" Piplda , OmCH art Ioat«l al ISO eov. ernment StruI, Suite 3003, Mobile. Alabama 36602. The firm's mailing addrHS is P,O, Bolt 2104. Mobile 34i6S2. Phont (~5J 438· ]308. Thaxlon " Olnl. 1I .. nnoune .. that Cart J. Roneagllone, J r. ha.s b«ome an wodate 01 t"-' firm, with officts at 1115 Virginia Strut, East, P.O. Ro~ 313, Charluton, West VirQ;nia 25321, He is a 1992 admittee to tM Alabama State Bar. \'em tr. LUprer!. Bernhard, !lkPh ..Ion" "and announcu th.il Kathy O. S mith has become auociat.d wilh tho firm in lhot WuI\ington, D.C. offICI. Th. firm also hIlS offices in MeLtan, Virginia and Houston. TUiS. She is " 1987 admitttt 10 thot ALohllrm Slate

"'..

Conlnl &Ionk of tM South announcu th.il Oanl. 1 B, Cn,'tItw bNn promo!. ed to l$$OCial. gemral counKI for tht bank and it$ alfiliales. Graves joined Central Bank in 1991 IS $tnior legal couns.l. \\1lJon. I'um roy " Tumtr announces thai CtOrp D, RoblnJOn has become" part nu. Ollie" are located at 143\ Leighlon A\'tnue, Anniston, Alib;,rru 3621:11. Phonr (205) 236-4222. Plrn.11 , Crum " Andruoft in· noun(H lhit Robtrt J. Ru_ lI, Jr .. form" prosecutor for Ih. Montgomery County OiJtricl Attornoy·. Office. has btcomt UIOC~ttd ";th lhot finn. Officn are located ~I 641 S. Lawrenu Street, MontgOmery, Al.tbam.t 36]04. Cherry, elv'n " P. I.... Lftckoll &: Oi at announctJ Ihat J ly 0 , " 1I1iaml, Jr. has become a member of the firm. JULY 1993 / 223

Phone (205) 322-8684. Morr i,. Smith. Cloud. r e .. &: Conchin announce. Ihal Mau ..en C. Kent}' hilS become ;wociated with the f,rm. Offices are 10000ted al 521 Madison Street. Second Floor. Hun\ivill e. Alaba · ma 3580 l. Phone (205) 534·0065. Ca ... w.y HOI,ilol. of Alaltaml announce that William D. former as.sociate coun sel with Carraway ,inc. 1978, has betn promoted to general couOKI and appointed vice ·president of legal affai rs. Office, are 10000led in Carraway Method i.t Modical Center. 1600 N. 26th Street. Birmingham. Alabama 35234 _Phone 1205) 226·6298. Richard 1. Le hr, O.. id J . •\lld dl .· brook. , R. Da"id Proctor. Alb .. t L. Vrul~nd. II and 8~nt L. Crumpton announce Ih . fo rmat ion of l.eh •• Mi d· dlebrookl &: Proctor. Office, are 10000ted at 2021 Third Menut. North. Suite 300. Bi rmingham. Atabama 35203. Phone 1205) 326·3002. r.'ojjar lknaiJurg announces that Hub Ibrrington has joined Ihe firm. Offices ar t locate d at 2125 Morris Avenue. Birmingh am. Alabama 35203. Phon e (205) 250·8400. C. Kno~ .\lci.aney. til announces that T. Eric Po nder. formerly of Will iams. Hammon &. Hardegree. has become as.socialw with the firm. Offic •• remain at 622 S. Hull Slr •• t. Montgome ry. Alabama 36103. Phone (205) 265-1282. Capell. Howard. Knabe &: Cobb. announces that Clemtnt Clay Tort.ert. 111 has become an aSlociat. with the firm. o mces are located at 57 Ad.ms

He will practice in the Mobile office. located at 401 Church Street. ~Iobile. Alabama 36633. Phone (205) 432 -3700. BUIT" Forman announces that John T. Moorl'lmilh has joined the firm. fie previously II'rved ilS general counll'l for the Medical Association of the State of Alabama. M.rtin. Dr umm o nd. \lioo , ley &: Palm.r announce. that II .E. Raw. on. Jr. has joined the firm. and that the firm hilS relOC.lted to 22M Lakeshore Driw:. Suite 130. Lakeshore Park Plaza . Birmingham. Alabama 35209. Phone (205) 802·]]00. Brya n l. Black. h er &: l uter announco. that \Ii. Eugene lIoward, 111 hilS joined the form. Offices are 10000ted al Riverview Piau. Office T"",·u. 63 S. RO)IaJ SI,..,t. Suite 1107. Mobile. Alaba ma 366()2. Phone (205) 432-4671. Robtrt B. C..... mpton. Jr .. Tltomu C. McGregor. h mu E. Davi •. J r . and John T. Alit)'. J r. announce the formalion of C..... mpton. McGregor. O.,·il " Alit)'. with officn located at Interstate Park Cenler. 2000 Inte"tate Park Ori"",. Su ite 100. Montgomery. Alabama 36109. The maili ng address i. P.O. 60. 231208. ~I ontgomery 36123· 1208. Phone (205) 270·3176. Willi a ml &: Ledbetter announces the relocatio n of its ollices to 2 140 Eleventh Avenue, South. Suite 410, The Park Bu ilding, Birmingham. Alabama 35205. Golden &: Golden announces the relo· cation of it. offices to 3 17 20th Street. North . Bi rmingham , Alabama 35203.

""te.

Alltnue. Montgomery. Alabama 361044M5. Phone (205) 241-8000. William A. Catoe. Jr. announc •• the assoei . tion of Vera Smith Ho ll ing •• worth . wit h officts at 21 1 Lee Str.et. N,F. _. Su it. B. Dwotur. Alabama 35601. Phone (205) 351 -0777. Berkowitz. LclkO\·;ts. 110m &: KU l hn· er announces that Thoma. O. Kolb hilS become . member. Office. are located at 1600 SouthTru.t Tower. Birming ham. Alabama 35203. Phone (2051 328·

''"'

Barnett, Noble &. lI .n.. announcu that Frederick M. Carfield has btCOmt a member. Offices are 10000led at 1600 City Fede",1 Building, Birmingham. Alabama 35203. Phone (205) 322 -0471. Balch &. Bingham announces that C. Paige Wl lli~m. has become associaled with the firm. in the Birm ingham office. She is a graduate of Vand e rbilt University an d Georgetown University Law Center. Sandra K. Mudo ... . an d Alice M. Mudow. of Meadow. &: Mudow. announce the relOC.llion of thei r offices to 60 S. Concept ion Str •• t . Mobi l•• Alabama 36602. The maili ng address i. P.O. Bo x 985. Mobile 36601 . Ph on e (205) 432 -2808. Hamilton. BUller, Riddick. Tarlton &: S u lIi~an an nouncts that Richa rd E. Corrlg. n has become" member of Ihe form. Office. are located at 10th Floor. First National Bank Bui lding, Mobi l•. Alabama. The mailing .ddreSl i. P.O. Box 1743. Mobilt 36633. Phone (205) 432-7517. •

SERVICE OF PROCESS NOTICE S TAT E O F ALABAMA

ATTENTION ATTORNEYS BASE CHARGE includes 3 attempts. location Fe-e charged ~ address Is 11lCOI'r8d. and subject can be found. Loca!lot1 Fee only S35.OO per hom. minimum $35.00 lirst 11'1 ' ir.dividuallocaled . Special H8ndllng Fe, may apply on rush seMce, or when slI"Ciai instnK:lions a,e ,equested, lor only $ 15.00 extra.

hoo,.

MULTIPLE S ERVI CE OF PROCESS DI SCOU NTS 20% Discount on hase charg6 \or 10 or more paper.; assigned in a given week. 25% Discount on Base Charge \or 25 or more ~pers assigned In a given _k. Office : 2051649'5984 Fu : 2051649·5886 Dlg-P-.gcr : 460-1888 224 /JULY 1993

--m

BASE CHARGE

*2500

24 ·H o ur Process Service

Bac::hus

SERVICE IS GUARANTEED II not served, NO BASE CHARGE Is In\<Oiced. The Location F&e and/or Special Har>dling FOO$ may apply. BILLING can be strUCM ed on ' ' 9131<-'1'. bi-morIthIJI. or mo,,,1I1y basis. Fee Schedule. Bond Documentation alld Resumes available. FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT HARRY W. BAC HUS. JR. 2 0 5/649· 5984

£,

Associa tes

P ROCESS S EJU 'I CB h l NVES'TIG" .T lONS

P.O. Box 180066 Mobil~.

Alabama

36618·0066 TH E ALABAMA LAWYER

YOUNG LAWYERS' SECTION By SIDNEY IV. JACKSON. III, president

SANDESTIN SEMINAR A SUCCESS

Ii il finH\

ht 10nllll YLS S~m;nu on the Culf III S.mdutin wu • IUOUnding 5l1CCQS, ~, 2JO .ltend... enjQ}'l'd on.' of the programs assembled. The attendw

allO included laW)'ers from Tennessee. Gwrg~ ~ PLorida. We "'~rt vtry fortu-

N.U to have perfect wtathtr III thrH days mel tho! Il0l(, tennis. beach lCtivitiu loIId cO(ktllii plrtiu wen '''pub. r"nk Woodsoo. JucIsoo Wells and Gordon Arm· strong d Mobi~. iIong with Bury fbeI· dlie and IW WI:$( 01 8irminghim, pull tmntrdowi lImotIni of work. effort lind fXpu\i5t into this "minar. Watch upcoming i,uUl$ of Th£ AJabmmll,ou,'gfIT

precipitated incalculable mental and ~ nonnaI ~ healthy individuals ..."he ~.e ntVtr <rUled to handle suth unrelenting demands and pressures. In too many ilUtances. ind",iduals havt iOUiht refuge and ntaPl' from then opprusive and consuming pressufts II)' oYtrindulgma in alcoholic Mveragu or the more dutructive alternative of drugs." phyJioIogiai JtIUl on

for dl.uill on next year', seminar. Sp""" bar aclmluion.

c_v

mony held M"y 25. Allornt}' Cenenl Jimm)' r.VltIS ilddrustd thr IIUtndtu II the luncheon. One hundred r.fly·seven persons wet'll admined \0 practice.

0..1.... with sino... I oroct hurd ~ SUk I»r ollkial upWn stlUl.follow>: "The conctptS of ino:ndibll: numbers of hours of WOI"kwttk after worirNHk, profit cen ter productivity. ~nd intuuing demand 10. ucellence in wo.k proouce and producing a ruult ~t ~ny tOJt hu THE: AI.ABA.\\A u\WVER

al'ter a more o:tended time period. IeUte pn::.bl.nu devtlop. The$e include inappropriate dress. failure to keep appOin\ffitnts Or rtturn phone calls, and IltnK of isob. lion from other t-yers ~ Pftrs.. \low do you deal with stress wilhout crawllns Into a bottle Or doin, druill One ""y that has been su"ested is 10 dtvtlop a rtgu~r e,..rciK program. Studitl show that a regu.Iu t:Xtn:iw progrlJ1l will help rtdlJct strm Jnd help a person cope ""ith the dfeclS of Slreu. Some law firms Givt thtir ~rs memo berships in hulth clubs or provide work. out ~rns. Other firms promote 10d,,1 ewnu which inYoM physical e:xtn:i:st for thtir~

Ar4y Birth(ltld d Montgomtfy wu in cIwg. 01 the Sprinl M ~ otl'f-

"Sink the . ." ..~n party p ....... d July 15, 1993 Tht YLS .... ill co-sponsor" "Sink tilt &Uluhip' "",rly on the USS A~bf,~ )l,Ily 15 durini the .llIte bu'. annual muting in Mobile. The p.irly willlut from 8 p.m. until midnight. Tickns I.t SIO uth loIId ",,-y be pun:"-d thlll'4h the SUtt boIr regiSlr3tion or at the door. Refreshments ""ill be included in the price 01 admiloiion. "Th~ Tip To!,,- will PI"OY;M musical entertainment. compli· ments of Jxkson. Taylor & Martino.

non-;;oping behlo.-ior, soch lOS t.;r.rdi ...Sl, frequent or IIIY'IP"""''''' obItr><ti. or wide mood ",ingJ. owr a period of time. Thm.

Sldn. , W. J."hon, lit

Obviously. strus and ils demands on )'lWlg ~ do not hIvt to lead to Alc0hol or drug ibuK.ln mlity. tilt st."Ilistics indic30te that mort IIId mort L;r..)'tfS Itt. in fact. ht.>ding in thIot dirtdion. According to Aml:rican Bar J\.wxb!ion SLllistics. 20 percent of the lawyers in this country are lifecttd in some manner and to lOme degr« by Jubslance abult. If thtK figum aft accurate (they Itt proba. bly lowl. then lhe individuals who Irt lllimed and tilt public 10 whom they owe tIlti. ItMru must <Ita! mort dl'ect ....1y "i!h tht Sims. Those .... ho stud)1lhe nuUer ~ thlot """ins problems do not mlInif••1 !h~m· Itlves ",,"miGht. In facl. the ",,"r-extend· edlawyer beGins to exhibit smlIlisisns of

AI • m«ting I ,,!tended in I'IorMb. I learoed ol.sevtral programs thlot ha~ appured nalionwide to help the prof..'ional deal with stress. On. program is knO"·n u LAP, L..a~r Assistance Programs. Traditionally. law firrrl$ haot bten reluctant to ~I into the human rttourcts Uta. Once an attorney start.d off the deep end, the normal proadure wu to C(;Nfr up the p",blelTll, pul him in a cor· nu .. nd hope he would quil . This ill chin8ing t~ lAf' Pf'lCrams.. Another proSram is tho LC L or l..iwyers· Concern ror l..iwyers. This group is C(lrTIJl(IIStd entireiJI of L;r..)ltrs in alcohol or drug t'eC<lvtry. It is similar to AA which suppondly works btcause nobody can help ~ alcoholic like another alcoholic who hIS Men then. Apply;n, thi , to Iawym. who would better uncImtand tht proble"" of an impaired ~r bumtd out and under SIms than ~r ~r ..."he his been through the samt thing? Concerned I.. wyen .. nd la .... firms should get involvtd "i!h promoting proSr3rr1$ 'uch as those discUSltd MooYe. for the bttttnnenl of OUr prof~~ion. •

JUI.VI993/ 225

Cumberland School of Law The Cumberland School of law of Samford University is indd1ted 10 the many Alabama attorneys iU>d judges who contribulCd their lime and elCpc:nlse 10 pbnnin, and speUin, . 1 our continuing legal /<.IIdn:w C. Allen K. Itiok AI.i. David B. At>denom Z. AnIold D. Leo ........ ford Lee E. Bai ... , ! •. J.... L. _ley LceR. _ .

"fill

T. Br:od 8id>op 0I1i< L. 1IIaII, Jr, 0...,.. B. Blair

MOod F. BoIdo KaroooO. _

WiO .... M. Bowao, Jr.

Ma..J .... - - . Rabat C. 8oy<>o W. M ......... Bnk.r..w Albert P. BteWef Arthur B. Brisl<", •• Itiolwd J. Broek mOll I. R. Brook., Jr. losepb M. Brow<>, Jr.

S. 0"1

B",,~

Fnonk O. Ilu"". Ir. wmiam O. Ilu!ler. III Brodie)' R. Bynoe AI .. C. cau.. lad; O. Cart CIIarld F. car.. Dovio Carr ~ T . Ciui.

BirmlnJhr.m

Slnnlnall...

Bi"",."' .... Mo.'_ery

D. Toylor FIowcn

lIinoiqb..uo

....,.......

Birml,M• . . . - , M o.., - , .

Bin:nioJhr.m Mobi'"

Birmi.p....

HO"lIvm. Mobile

II."",,,,,,,",,,

1I.....1...1wn Bi .... i"' ...... Mobik 8Orml..pa.

80""....... 8Orml ....... Mobik Mobil. Bi",,~

B.rm'."'.... B''''''0Jlwo 1I""lSvillo B."" •• "'.... Bim.Dlh ..... Binnlnlho"

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BirmlllJlwo Mobik Mobil. BirmiDJham Mobil.

._...,

Birm i".twa Bi""i.,.h.om

~Bi""i..p..m

So.aIIOd II . FnWdi.

a;,.; ......

8i"";~,,,-,

Binni"liwo Bina i",1wa

I..... P. E...... HI

Bin:ni.p....

Cor!'.

A_C. Dodd Susaa D. Do4IablOG I . David DreI.ber M kh ..1 L, E<Iwu<Io MotI: It. EIovll£ Iku<:e P. Ely

Billllia,pu.

William N. CJarII:

PoIrioia CI<>tf.I«< Fnod L. o>frey.lr. a..pm •• O. Cob •• Cborteo O. Cole loh. I . COlem • •• III Lori S. C;lIier Bruy Palmer C;1li .. Waller M . Coot. Ir. R.Uie CopeIud. Ir. o.a...: K. - . . T. 0>..,;"' ...... . Jr. P>ay I)al::e CIo~ K. Oovio ~ M . Deil><ll W_O.o. ..........

226 IJULY 1993

Bir"llll..pam Bil"llli".twa 8i .....I"""'"

iii"" ••"'"'" Birmi ll l h om

,......-

1. 1'........ O>at\oo w. Gamble

n-'oyc. a.... , _ s. ()orfta

Bin:n~

Bi ....;"paa.

o."';"p a.. II. Gnwi.

Lloyd W .

Bin-inpam

'oil.

Bin:n"'JIwo, M~

D. Godbold Conaio t.. GIa$o

II..-. illo

Terry W. OIoor C. Robtrt OouH.b, 'r, Patri,k II . 0 ....... , Jr.

Moo D. G.... _ Paul W. 0 ....... Dwilb, M . Orou. k W. McCollum Halcomb 1 _ O. lialey Will .... L Ibnbuy V.'ill.... K. 11_ 1'....... II. I ~ . Ir. Lyu Ecberid,e llano - . . . H. Ibrrio LJ1IWI II. Ibtrio l ook II. 11arri... U",,", W. H. Ik ...... _ Ikilt)' T. IIooIuI Roben M. 11m. Jr. Rklard L. 1101.. 01 AI • • L. lIollS(ord. Jr. ' '''k B. 1100<1 Koyo K. 1I000oor 1. 00".,.,. 1I0'u... . Jr. Robe" A, lIuff.... ' ~_W . I_i

K......... 1'. 1"'..... AklW . I ~

Hi""i.Jhr.m M<>bile Huouvill. Birmi"&bom Huntsv ille AodaIu,ia B.....i"'h.." Birmi",,,,",,,

"'-

Binai..pu. Binai..pu.

Bil1lli..po. ~

BinaiBIUm

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Binoio,pam

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MOD',omery MODl,omery Dirm i.,Um Birmi"....", MODt,Omery MO.lID....,. BirmiDJham Mo .."'",." Mo ..IOOOOfJ Birmio ......

)'I!>IqO...y

CIIarld R. 1_ . III

"""'"

Laird R. 10...

PrarlY~k

RklwdL~

BirmioJlwo

80naiqUm

Birmi. . . .

r . lul;""

THE ALABAMA lAWYER

Continuing Legal Education education seminars durin, the 1992-93...oc1llk year. We ,nleJully aclmDwledcc the ronuibvtioou or the rollowins individuals 10 the suc:ow of oor CLE JII'O&rams. ~H . K

... _

Potric:ia K.

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JUlYI99J/2 27

BUILDING ALABAMA's

COURTHOUSES MOBilE COUNTY COURTHOUSE BII SAMUEL A. RUMORE. JR.

The following con/blUes a history of A.labama's cDun/1l rourthouses-their origins and some of Ihe people !1-'hQ contributed 10 lheir growth. Th~ A/alulmll LOU'IIU pions 10 run one county's slory in each issue of rhe mag. azine. If!lOU hoVi' allY photographs of ""rill rn presml rourlhou_. pleas.? fOTward them /0: Samuel A. Rumore, Jr.. Mil/Honica & Rumore. 123() Brown Marx Tower, Birmingham. Alabama

III

MOBILE COUNTY

he hislo!), of ~lobj\e County is the rich~st of any county in Alabama. predating Ihe

u islence of the state b}' at least 300 years . The first documented explore .. , the Spanish sailo .. under Alonso AI,'.rez Pineda. visittd the .rea in 1519, more IMn 100 years before the Pilgrims lande<! at PIYm<.>Uth Rock. legend suggest. that a Welsh pr ince. Nadoc. may have entered Nobile Bay as early as the 12th Cenlu!)'. Since ~1adoc may be only I mylh. most hislorians credit the Spanish as the first Europeans 10 explore Ihe are ... Pineda and his men did not allempl a settlement. but only visiled Indian vii路 lages and mapped out Ihe coastline. Other Spanish upeditions arrived over Ihe years. In 1528, Panfilo d. Nar'au sought gold. In 154(1. DeSoto', army marched through Alabama and probably came wilhin 15 mi les of Nobile. In ]558, Guido de Las Baza res explored Mobile Bay and historians ~I i e"" that another conquistador, Tristan de Luna, 228 1JULY 1993

sailed into the bay in 1559. Despite the early Spanish uplo路 rat ions, Ihe firsl permanenl stnlemenl al Nobi le was f rench. The Culf Coast was opened to French colonizat ion b}' the .xploits of LaSalle. who claimed the .l1ississippi River and the surrounding terrilo!), for france in 1682. The firsl French governors were the teMoyne brothers, Pierre, known as Iberville, and Jean Bapti.te, known a. Bienville. They established their first capital at Fort Maurepas in Old Biloxi. present4ay O<:ean Springs, Mississippi. in 1699. Later, in 1702, they moved th. capita t of French touis iana to Fort Louis de la Mobile, on lhe west bank of Ihe Mobile River. appro.imately 27 mi les north of the river's mouth. This location is kROl<lltoday as 27 Mile Bluff.

The fort was namci in honor of King Louis XIV of franco . The ,it. was near the territory of the ~'obile Indians. Due to flooding and poor defenses. the french abandoned the site of Old Mobile in 17]] and removed the fort to what is now the location of pre",nl-<lay Mobile, Today's Nobile County Courtl1ouse sits on the el<act sit. of that rtlocated fort. The fort remained the French capita l until 1719 when it ",as transferred back to Bilo~i and then three years later moved to New Orleans. In 1763, following the Puco Treaty of Paris, which ended the French and rndian War, Nobile came under British rule. On October 20, 1763. the frern:h surrendered the fort, then called Fort Conde, to the British ",110 renamed it fort Charlotte in honor of their }IOUng qu芦n , THEALABAMA

~WVER

The BritiJh OCtupation wu ,'try brid. Durinll the Amffinn Revolution. a Spani$h force aUied to the Colonials captured Fort C~rlotte on M.1oreh 14. 1780. In the PeKe Truty of Paris of 1783. Spain reni\'td all British linds us! at the Miuislippi Ri".r and $OUth at the 31st parallel of I.I.titulk. ineluding Mobil •. n.w. the home «)Untl)' at lhe fi rst nploren in the Uta now held SO'o'tnillnty. At first. the Spanish encouraged American immig ration. Americans moved in to the Spanish ler ritol)' in inc..,asin8 numbe". Soon.llowe\'tr. the Spanish r«OIIniud the American th..,at to Mobite and IOUIIhl to timit American incunioM. In 1800. Splln ",u fo.ced by Napoleon to recon".y the Province 0( Louis;'" to FrIntf. In t803. N~1ton sold LouisWv. to tIM: United SliItU. Following the l.ooisWv. Pu.chiK, a qutstion lTOW oYtr title to the Culf Cout te .. itorin. Spain contended tha t Louisiana "'as only the territory west of the Mississippi Ri\'tr. The U.S. insisted that the t radit iona l duignation of Louisiana extended to the Perdido Hi".r, tht pre$tnt-da,y boundary between Bald.... in County. Alabama and florida. The tefTTIJ at convtyJ.nce we.., VagUf SO lhe U.S. did not formally prw tilt iwat at thit time. By ISI~, the U.S. was agiin it Wir with Brilain_ The Spanish allowed tho: Briloo 10 use their gulf porU in txptdi110m apinst the Amtrians. On Dt«mber IS. 181~, the MiUissippi Territorial Lrgislatun c..,ated Mobik County rv.n though the lind "'u still cliimed by Spain. In february 1813. President Mad ison ordered Central James Wilki n· son to capture Mobil. and prt,oent the British f.om using it H a port. The city su rrendere d on April 13. t813. and Mobil. tamt under Amtrkan control. At the war's end. Ihe U.S. gained all the gull cwst IInds at prHtnt-day Ml$sis$ippi an.d IIlahloma. tlw only ttrritory it acquiml during tM War of 1812. Mobile if3dually became ill AmeriQn frontier town in the )'tin before sbtthood. and $OOn nefdtd a court hou't and I jail. Early recordi indicatt th.lot a jail WH corutructfd. but no courthouse. CQUrt. "'tN IIlld II variOUS tiTntI at Mr. Childe,', Coff~ Room. the Unitt(( States f1olel.nd the Clobe Th".m. Aterritorial TH E At.UWlA LAWYER

77lInI.-.r,~. lm

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IIw pas.setl in ISIS lulhorUing till conslruction of a nfW jlil iOd courthouse for costs not 10 nceed SiS.OOO. Although pliOs were rNdt. no construclion tooIt pIKe for i number of yeaTS. In tM lI1UIIIimt. courts continued 10 be held in rented locations, wch H lhe hOUifi owned by Ric~rd Tinkusley and Calatina MothlS. II receipt in tht coun ty ar~hiytl Ita ltl that Cala lina Mouus WU paid $260 for use of a house located on Covernment Street for the holding of court during 1821 and 1823. Ultimilely. Mobil. County entered into a contract for iU fint formal court· house f"dlity. The cont.ict price wa.s $13.000. The irchitecllnd builder WH Pdfr lI~rt. This cont~t Ilill ulsU and provides a detiiled des< ription ot the SlructUN. It WH i IWorstory rfctan· gular brick building constructed in the N~tusiell style. The building had I pOrtico lupported by I... ge two-.tol)' columnl. The main floor conuined a central room thit .....H 42 fttllong_Variou, officts flank ed tith .. side of the room. The principal courtroom was located on the second floor. It ..... 58 fetl long. The courthouse was erected on tht southWell corner of !loyal and Co"tmmenl stl'etts. the location of lhe old fort which had betn tom down years befort. Historians IN not certain ot the nac:t completion date for this courthouse. but the building Wli not octupied unl il 1829_II fi~ dtstn)yfd this courthouse in las!. The_flu. tilt court moved ttmpor",il), to the IIlhimb.i HIli. also located on Roy;ll St .. et. II contrKt for the $tcond courthou$e building wH Itt April 16, 1853. James IJames was the builder and William S. Alduson $trvtd as arch itect and superintend.nt of construction. This court· hou$t was built on the lame site H the previous Onto The county ~d to pu rchasr additiorllliland lor the pro;ect and i parcel 60 fHl by 30 fftt WH acquiml lor Sl.810. The total construction cost lor this courtilowt "'as 570,289,(1& The MW courthouse WH i thTH-slory brick Itructure cove red with rough ilucto. It hid dU11c columns and pHastus. Windowl and doors wue trimmed in whilt gr~nite. Capiub and butJ of the columru "'t .. made of blue marble. Thf .ourthou$t contained $tVera1 innovations. Includ ing arch&l ceil-

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JULY 19931 229

ings. groined "oults in the courtroom and v.. tibul .. , and a hot air lurnace with cast iron conductors set in th e double-brick walls. This beautiful and w.lI · built st ructure f~lI victim to the same fate as its predecessor. On Janua')' 31,1864 it .....as d.. trO}'ed by a fir. due to a ddffii"" chimne)' flue. Fortunate· Iy. the county records ~r. saW<!. Btcause of financial problems during the Reconstruction Period alter the Civil War. a third courthouS<' could not be built for many years. In this interim period. the courts ...... re moved to the 1842 Hagan Building locat. d on the north sid. of Conti between RO)"a1 and WattT streets. In March 1869, an additional lot behind the original courthous< p~r· t)' was purchased for future use. And in April 1869. the county approved a contract to ,.mow the remaining rubble from the prope rty whe re the court · house had burned ro"" years previously. In July 1872, advertisements announced that bid.>; would be r.c. i""d for a new courthouse bu il ding. In September, bonds were approved for corutruction. On Octobe r I, 1872, the

columns , It contained a second ·sto,), balcony. On top of its brick·filled pedi · ment sat a .tone .tatu. of Jushc •. All of the windows had rounded tops and stone Sill5. This structure ","", soundly built .nd should ha~ served Mobi le for a long time. Y,1lether due to a lack of funds or as an .dded precaution against fire. no furnace was installed in this building. Ho ...... vtr, it did contain firepl.ces. Unfo rtunately, tra~edy 5truck the Mobile County Courthouse again. Just

ment and Church .treets. behind the courthouse silf. Within 60 days, plans ~r. submitted for another courthous<. On March 26. \ 888. the county signed a contract with architect Rudolph Benz. On Ju ly 2. 1888. contr.ctor Louis Monin won the right to r.-build the courthous< for $6(1,763. Work prog rened rapidly on this fourth officia l courthouse and the bui lding ...... 5 completed July 9, 1889. The structure was built on the .xi,ting foundation. and it retained a basic tem·

county entered into. contr.ct with W.O. Pond for the design and specifica· tions of a new courthouse. Charles Frick ~ receiwd the construction contract lor SIOL()()(I. The contract called for completion of the courthouse by October 1. ]813. The new courthouse was built on the site of its two predece5Sl>rs, and rnanyof the architectural elements in the former courthouses were maintained. The structure W.5 Neoclassical an d measured 81leet b)' 146 f«t. Th~ front portico was 13 f.et deep, and the stlUelure waS .uppo rted by six flut ed Ionic

as in 1851 and 1864, this courthouse burned On Janua')' 20. 1888. Sewn fire compan ies responded to the morning alarm but the namn spread quickly ac~ tht second noor ~iling and won the roof collapsed. The .tatue of Ju.tice crashed onto Government Street. Luck· ily, the first noor records were sawd. but tho law IibTll')' on the second "oor was largely lost. Within a ~ek. county officials met with the ;nsurors. and the loss was set· ti ed. In the meantime. the courts mow<! to the RO}'al Street Hotel on the we.t sid. of ROy.1. betwe~n Govern -

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230 I JULY 1993

01 Hob;~ BaT

-~ pie plan. HO\'I-'e\'tr, the facad. was substant ially changed. Instead of central 5teps. th i5 courthouse had two side 5tairways. The balcony Wa5 removed. The six columns ",.. r...duced to four. The bricked·in pediment now contained a relief sculptur. of two eagles and the coat 0( arms of the State of Alabama. Though the building remained 01 classical d.sign, the roof was clearly Victori.n. Statua')' abounded. Abov. THE AL\BAMA LAWYER

the pediment were th",e allegorical fig. u ..s .. p..sent ing Law , Unit~ and Wisdom. Winged griffins graced either end of the pediment. Other statuti and finials surrounded the roof itself. Cor· ner towers of elaborate Victorian design and a <entral clock tower soared above tilt structure. The small er comer towers were 94 feet high, and th e larger <entral tower climbed to 186 feet above the city street. The hotel to the rear of the fou rth CQurthouse, which itself had been u~ as a temporary CQurthouse , WaS torn down in later )'..... A rear addition on the former s ite of the hott l was attached and extended the courthouse to Church Street on the south. The exterior of the ""large<! courthouse was finished in stone at this time. Benz & Sons. Architects designed the addition and reTlO'l'ation. Then. in Stptember 1906. a l""'"I'rful hurricane st ru ck Mobile. The cou rt· house sUlVi,.. d wind and rain damage. but its rooftop statuary and towers did not. Th. cou rthouse was repai red in 1907. but the roof no longtr had statUt$ and the .. built clock tov,.. r was grutly reduced in size. The smaller CO rner towers were per manently

""""".

The B\'nz-designed courthouse se1W<l Mobile for almost 70 yurs. fn the 1950,. the count~ built a fifth court_ house on the same site. !t was completed in 1959, The architect was Cooper Van Antwerp, and th e contractor WaS Daniel Construction Compall)' of Birm_ ingham and Da llas. The total co,t of the building WaS S4.717.413. Unlike the prior courthouse. most of the signifi_ cant ornamentat ion for this building WaS located on the interior rather than .........1 • •

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the exterior. Courtrooms contain symbolic works of art and the building is replete with mura ls. quotations and sculpture •. In 1977-78. a courthouse annex was added. La raway"" Grider, Archit«t, prepared the plans and supervised cOnstruction while Ray Sumlin Construction Company. Inc. served as builder. Total cost was S1.6 million. It is signifi cant that the annu was built around the historic Ltwrt House at 15 1 Gov· emment Street which today houses the Mobile Bar Association.

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TIlt sixth structure built to 5I!rw as a courthouse ",as authorized in 1971 and completed in 1973. This separate courthouse serves as the Mobil e County Youth Center and Juvenile Court. This faci lity is located at 2315 Costarides Street. The finn of Wood. Phelps & Steber se1W\l as architects..llen M. Radcliff was the contractor. The total cost for this projoct was $3.5 million. Presently. a ne", Mobile County-City govemment complex is under construction. A ceremony marking the start of const ruction On the 585.000-sQuore_ foot Government Plaza took place in December 1991. The location of the courthouse "'ill ~ the s ite of the for _ mer Greyhound Bus terminal, One block ..... Sl of the prestnt CQurthouse on Govt-mment Street. Tht de,ign of the new structure was chosen in a national design competition conducted under AlA standards (American Institute of Architects). There were 195 entries. The JUT}' ronsisted of seven architects from throughout the country. Th e winning design came from Harry Colemon and MariO) Solullo of

Houston. Texas, in association with frederick Woods of Mobile. CO)n,truction manager for the $58 mi ll ion project is the HardinlHaston Joint Venture. This building is one of the most eJccit· ing and futuristic public buildings ever const ructed in the State of Alabama. The designers how. created a po5t-Modemistic 21st Century architedurallt~le. The two government buildings will be CQnnected II}' a ten·stoT}' cascading atrium. Bold geometric shapes will be used. and the mechanical and structural systems "'ill be eJcPO"'d for emphasis. The complex ",as originally planned to contain 22 circuit. district. domestic, municipal. and ceremonial courtrooms. Modification. may change that number. The County of Mobile will be owner and landlord of the ,tructure while the City of Mooil. will be a tenant and pay rent. During the excaWltiOn for the project. several historic sites were uncovered. ,I-]ore than 150.000 artifacts dating from French and even Indian times ....... discovered. Archaeologistl found coins minted in France as early as the 1720s. A permanent museum highlighting the archeological finds wi ll be housed On the I",,'er level of the county building. Security will be one of the key fea _ tures of the complex. There will be private entrances for court and support peroonnel. Prisoners will not be s«n by the public nce pt in the r. spective courtrooms. The CQmple~ is expected to be CQmpleted in the fall of 1m. It should be the subject of an updated artide at that time. The author acknowledges the following printed sources: Mobile-The I.ife and Times of a CTfiQI Soulhem City. II}' Melton Mclaurin and Michael Thomason; From Fori 10 Pori- An Architectural Hislor!l of Mobile. Alabama . 1711-1918, II}' Elizabeth Barrett Could; and "Mobile County Courthouses". by Ralph C. Holbe rg. Jr.. The Alabama l..au!!ler. October 1979, p. 518·26. The author further acknowledges the ;w;ltance of Judge Douglas Johnstone, cO)urlhouse project administrator Clifton Lambert. Mobile fu r Awxiation Executive Director Barbara Rhodes, archrologi.t Greg Spit$. the University of South Alab.ama Archives, and Mobile .ttorney Lionel Williams. •

JULY 1993 / 231

The Alabama Limited Liability Company Act: A New Entity Choice by BRADLEY i. SKLAR

n May 17. 1993. Alabama', \ler·

sion of tht Limited Liabi lity Company Act. Senate Bill No. 549, (hereinafter the "Act") ~d the Alabama Senate and HOU~. ' As of the 5ubmi!.Sion of thi. article, the act was

awaiting the signature of the Governor. Assuming that th~ act is signed into law, it has an dfecti"e date <)1 October 1. 1993. Alabama would become Ih. 271h

51ale to join the growing number of state! authorizing uu of this new type of entity.

resembling a certificale 0( limited partnership. with t he appropr iate slate authority. Under the act, the Article. of Organization art to be filed with the local judge of probal~'s office similarly to Ihe way corporations and limited parlnerships are filed .' The internal Operations 0( an LLC can be governed by an "Opuating Agreement" thai wuuld t}-picatly contain the same Iype ofprO\Oisions as by laws or a partnership agreement. Additionally, Ihe LLC may be managed by duignaled "managers" or by the members.

Introduction

A limited liability company i. a hybrid form of entity that prQ\Iides th. po$Sible combination of Ihe benefic ial tax sbtu.< of a partnership with the limited liability offered by a corporate structure. The entity i. (rUled like a corporation for liability purposes, but. if proptrly structured. Ihe entity will be Iruled •• a partn."h ip for f~deral income lax purposes. Th is means that the "but of both worlds" is pos.sible: pass·through Luation and no liabilit~ exposure to the owners. Passage 0( the act means that Alabama practitioners must become familiar wi th the terminology associaled with this new bUSiness entity. An LLC is owned by "members" instead of shanholders or partners. An LLC is created by filing "arlic ln of organ ization: 232 f JULYI993

History/Backgro .... d The first state permitting organization of an LLC was Wyoming in 1977 in s~· cial interesilegislation for an oil company. ' A similar stalute was enacted in Florida not long therrahr.' fn November 1980. the Internal Revenue Service is.sued a private leuer rul· ing classifying the LLC formed under Ihe Wy<lming Act as a partnership for federal I.. pUrpOSes. Tm, Service , hmo.'e~r. also issued proposed regulatiuns under Section 770] of the Internal Rev· enue Code of 1986. as amended ("IRe" Or ' C<>de") that w(luld ha"" denied part· nership claSSification to any entity in which no member had personal liability for the entity's debl$. After quile a bil 0( negative commontary from practition . ers, the regulations ,,-ere withdrawn and

the IRS institut ed a study proj ect to addres.s the issue. After Ii. years of C(lnsideration. Ihe study project culminat~d in the release of Rev. Rut. 88-76 .' This key ruling held that an entity formed under Wyoming law that had both limited liability and centralized management woold be treat · as a partnership for federal income IaJC purp<>o.ts. Several ITI(Ifltiu later. an LtC formed under the Florida statute received a private leiter ruling 10 the same .lIm.' The significance is that the IRS has and continues 10 rule that meeting only Iwo of the four factors undtr Ihe IRC Section 7701 clas.sificalion r~gulation~ Ictntraliud rnanagement, limited liabiti · 1)'. free traruf~rability of inter·ests. conti · nuil)' of life) will result in partnership IaJC treatment. The Service recenlly issued thr", additional rl'\"tIlue rulings holding that Virginia ,' Colurado' and Nevada' LLes woold be classified as partnerships for felltrallalc jlUrpOSeS.

Recent statutory activity

In I~ as a rewlt of R"". Rul. 88·76, Colorado and Kansas" bec.une the third and fourth states t(l enact Ltc ltgislalion. In 199\. four statts, Utah, " Virginia. " T..a',"and Nevada ", ~nacted statutes, and last year, Arizona," Delawar~. " !IIinois,"lowa, " Louisiana. - Maryland," Minnesota,= Oklahoma," Rhode Island~ and West Virginia'" all enacled stalutes THE AlABAMA LAWYER

all(M;ng the organization of LLCs. Thus far. in 1993. Ar~· Georgia," Idaho," Michigan, " M(mtana,· New M e ~ ico," North Dakota- , and South l)akota~ have passed legislation and two statu, Indi _ ani " and Mississippi, " have .nacted statutes allowing the registration of foreii/11 LLCs. Twenty-eigl1t states p~ntly r.cogn~ the LLC (orm with most of tile other states currently studying enact· ment of u..c legislation. Locally, the Alabama Law Inst itute r'queoted that the Revised Limited Part· nership Act Project Advisory Committee reCOnvene. The group began meeting formally in early 1991 and completed a w<lrking draft (or submission to ALI in Febr uary 1993. Bilb were intr<lduced into the state Senate" and House" on March 18, 1993 and March 25, 1993, respectively, and linal approval was achieved in the House ~tay 17. 1993, the last day of the regular Ifgi.lative session. Basi<: LLC tenninol<l9r

Although there txisl.l a draft form of. protot~ LtC act and a version from the Commission.rs <In Uniform State Laws, each state has adopted it. {IWTl unique statute, many of which differ materi.lly from the model acts. All of the statutes combin. characteristics of partnershipS and corporation •. The acts draw upon the Revised Uniform Limit.d Partner . ship Act with provisions borrowed from the RevI ... d Model Business Corporation Act added to deal with issues that result from the absence of a g.n..al partner. Our act is no different. We ha ... triM to pull th e faV<lrable components from a number Qf .xi.ting and proposed statutes as well as coming up ,",'ith provisions that are unique to Alabama. To have an unde .. tanding of how l.LCs operate, one must first grasp the new terms being used nationwide. The terminology, like the statutory drafting issues, also diff.rs somewhat from state to state. In AJab,ama, we ha ... chosen the more commonly u... d terms in drafting our statute. Some of the bas ic terms and their ddinitions are set forth below: A. Memlwrs An Ll,C is formed by two Or more "members." In some states, the statute permits one-member LLCs, but. because of the detrimental ~fftct On partnership tax statu" our .tatute requires fOnn.ltion

TIlE ALABA"tA l.AIVYt:R

by at least two member. and will not presently permit ont·member UCs,-

Advantages over other entities

B.Arllcles The LLC is formed by r.iing "articles of

organization" with the probate judge's office containing certain basic informa· tion (including, but not limited to, the name of the entity, the period of dura. tion. the purpose. the name. and addTes$l's of the in itial members. and the managers, if any).- Th. analogous part · nership document WO\Jld be the certifi. cat. of limited part .... rship.

C. ()pervting ufPWI1'"'t The members may enter into an ag ..e· men\. referred to as an "operating ag .... ment : which seis forth grealer detail regarding OI"'ration of the lJ.C and the relationship of the members to each other." This t~ of ag"e"",nt il; analo. !/OUS 10 a partnership agreement and can be a ''''ry important component in pro. viding the desir.d flexi bili ty in an LLC fOnn.llion. O. l ntemu

Members haoe "interem" in an LLC. just as partner. have "interesu" in a partnership. Shares of stock are not ordi" narily issued but the new .tatute provides that certificates representing the int....1.1 can be issued. if desired." E. Managnnrnt

The Act provides that the membus can either designate "manage,," or reserve management to themselves." PurptJ$~s arrd powers LLC. may generally be organiud for any lawful purpo,", although most .tatute:;, including ours, provide a li,t o( standard powe .. of the LtC similar to our corporate pov,..,rs prO\lil;iOTl$.~

G. GocermJm:t arrd finam:t An LLC may be organi.ed in ways that permit almost any .conomic and man · .gement relationship that the ""'mbtrs wish. There may be preferred int....1.1 and rights, special allocations Or other forms of participation in the (Mllership of the entity. The.. ite= would be set (orth in an operating agreement." o..pending upon how the entity is structured. either the membtrs or managers elected by the members have the ~r to bind the entity.

A. Mt'l1nt ag<!$ 01UC _ S CorpaNtion

An LLC offers significant advantage, OVEr an S CQrporation. Unlike S corpora· tions that limit the number of shareholders to 35, there is no limit on the number of members of an LLC." Simi_ larly, there is no restriction on the t~ Or character 01 members of an LLC. Nonresident ali ens. CQrporations, partnerships and trusts may all own LLC int.... t'!. This relaxation of ownership crite ria i, probably the single most important diff... nce which causes a preference for LLC. over S corporations and has sparked heavy interest in LLCs for u.e by foreign investors and CQrporate jOint ... nturers. In addition, an LLC can own 100 percent of the stock of another corporation, whereas an 5 CQr· pOration cannot be a member of an affili· ated group." Ownership ofsub·sidiaries by u..cs is particularly useful i( the t..LC will be operating in a state that doe> not currently recognize L1£s. Because LLO! may be treated as part· nerships for tax purposes, the membtrs of an l.LC enjoy a variety <If tax .<lvan· tag .. not available to S corporation sha.. holders, Th. transfer of appreciated assets to the LLC in exchange for an interest in the LLC tan be nontaxable under IRC Section 721 unless liabilities associated with the transferred property e~ basis. In addition, the subsequent gain on the appreciated property con · t ributed, attributable to appreciation befo.. the trarufer, may be allocated back to the transferor. Contrast this treatment with that of an S corporation. Unless the transferor OIIIns SO pen:ent of an S corporation, under IRC Section 351, the gain on the appreciation wil l be .. cogni~td upon transfer and the S corporation will allocate the gain on the subsequent sale of the appreciat.d property proportionately, thus creating a disproportionate allocation of taxable income. A member's basis in his LtC int.r.. t includes a sha.. of the LLCs debts. In contrasl. a sha.. holder in an S CQrporation may not include in stock basis any sha.. of the S CQowration's debt. LLCs. beC/luse they may be t .... t.d as partnershi"" can abo take advantage of the benJULY 1993 1233

efits of an IRC Section 754 election. When an LLC interut is trarufured. the transf",~e may step up the basis of his share of the LLCs property (th ~ iruide basis) to fair market value. Similarly. ",·hen an LLC makts a distribution of property to a member. the LLC may st~p up the adjU.lted basis of itl property by the amount of gain recogniud by the distributn.m~mber. There is no counterpart to Ihe IRC Section 754 election under sulx:hapter S. When the S corporation subuQuently selb or distributes appreciated property. the tramferte S shareholder will recognize his share of the gain and w,1I further incruse his basil; in stock only .. cognizing the lo~ as a capilal loss upOn liquidation. u.cs also can specially alloc.ate items of income, gain, loss, deduction. and credit among itl members provided IIw allocation meets the definition. for ·.u~ stantial tcOnomic elfect" under the IRC Section 704(b) regulatioru. In contrast. if subchapter S corporations attempt provisioru .imilar to special alloc.atioru. the}i may violate the "one class of stock" rule undor IRC Sect ion 1361. Finally, the rules for S corporations have bocome extrllOrdiTl/lrily complex and contain many traps. u.cs present ditntl with an alternative that can give them the same limited liability and now· through

'~IEMORIALS' Paul

W. Brunson MoiJi/~

Admitted: 19J9 Dkd: Cktober 6. 1992

Elizabeth Tacker Edwards Welumpka Admilled: 1962 Died:~larch21 . 1993

AJrTed K. Hagedorn West fuml. Grorgiu Admitted: 1936 Died: March 2. 1993

James A. Johns lon Pensacola, Floridu Admitted: 1964 I)ied: July 6. 1992

234 / JULY 1993

!aMtion. but which will not require the application 01 the S corporation rulu. This will likely create demand for u.c5.

B. MwnA>~1 &I <In UC 0<"'" <I IimilM pi1rlnn"$/rlp Tho kt)l diff.... oce betw.~n partne~i~ and LLCs is that an LLC offers absolute limited liability to its members whereas. in a partnership, ewn a limited part· ne~ip. one partner (the g<~raI partner) has liability txpOSure. Although this can be mitigated ~ wing a corporate ge .... raI partner. i...,., are otwaY' rai>td regarding the net mlrth or capitalization of the gen. eral partnu. the general partner's mini· mum interest in the partnorship. and flOMible loss of pas.·through !aMtion to the tJCtent of the corporate g<neral partners intens!. In oontrut, barring guaran· tees or other sl'«ial arrangem~nts. no member of an LLC has personal liability for the debts of the entity. Because it provides limited liability to all ownors, an LLC that is classified all a partnership can also offer more desirable basis alloc.ations than a limited partnership. In a limited partner.hip. all liabilities are allCKated entirel~ to the general pa rtners e~c.pt (a) those for wh ich the limited partners are at ri,k due to a personal guaranty and (b) those that under state lawailow recourse only to partnership pro· perty. since general partner~ alone are per~onally liable. Contrast thit with LLCs in which all members have limited liability and so all liabilities not pe rsonal ly guaranteed can b. allocated to all the members. thus mOre effect ively spreading the allo · cation for pUJ"pOSeS of basis. In addition. 1l.C members can partici. pate in management of Ihe LLC without ris king their limited liability stalus. A limited partner participating in the day· to·day management of the P/lrlnership who may lo.e his stalus a..o; a limited partner. This may also mean that LLC members can participate in management for pur· po,u of the material P/lrticipation tesls of Ihe pa..o;.:;i ..... loss rules wilhout losing their liability protection. Taxpayl'rs ;ore ~Iill seeking clarity on this issue because IRC Section 469Ih)(2) Slates thaI. "mept all provided in ,..gulations. limited part· ners do not materially participate." The general belief is that it is inappropriate to

apply the li mited partner "per 50" rul. to LLC members. because LLCs are designed to permit active involvement ~ members in the management of the busi· ness and any assumption that u.c memo bers are likely to b. merely passive in,·estors is incorrect. If IRC Section 469(h)(2) is based on an assumption that those having limited liability do not participate in the management of the bw;i ne~. it would clearly bt a mistake to apply this same rationale to LLC5.

Tall issues relating to LLC c lassification as partnership The definitions of the terms "corpora· tion" and "partnership" are contained in IRC Section 7701. The term "corpora. tion" is defined to includ~ associations, jOint stock companies. and insurance rompanies. In rontrast. the term "partnership" is large ly defined in terms of what it is not. IRC Section 7701(.)(2) ,tates that a partnership inclll<l~. a 'yn. dicat e. group. pool. joint venture or other unincorporated venture which is not. for purposes of the Code. a trust. eSlate or corporation. Because the definilioru in IRC Section 7701 are too brOlld to be of use to practi_ tioners, the Tua..o;ury Regulations undor IRC Section 7701 provide the main tests for classification of an enlity." The regulations list si. characteristics ordinarily found in pure corporations. \'.0."0 of which (associate. and an obj.ctive to cUT)' on bw;ine~ and divide the gains therefrom) are common to both corporations and partnerships and are ignored for purpos· es of the LLC a""lY'i5. The classir.cation of an entity a..o; a COr· poration depends on the presence or abuna> of the four corporate character· istics of (a) limited liability. (b> continuo ity of life, (c) free transferability of interests. and (d) centralization of man· ag~m.nt. In Rev. Rul. 88·76. the IRS ruled that an entity organized under the Wyoming Act wou ld be classified as a partnership lor ta:t pUJ"p()U. because the entity possemd: 1) limited liability and 2) centrali~ed management,

but illocked: II continuity of lif. and 2) frei! traruferability 0( interests. (Continued on pag< 2361

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The Alabama Limited Liabilitv Company Act: A New Entity Choice IContinued from "'itt 234) Because of the nece.., ity of maintain. ing partnership treatment for tax purpose5, the cla.s.sificalioo i..,ue is the most importan t conlideration in forming LLC•. Thertfort. tax practitioners drafting ills should focU5 on the issues coocerning each of these characteristics as foil".,...

at least One member. such as a C<.Irporate member. if two of the other corporate characte ri ltics are considered more essential to the enterprise but federal tax classification as a partnership is stitt d.,i .. d. It is uncle., whether the IRS witt take the view that ouch a penonal "",,umption causes the LLC to lack limitod tiabitity. If the service were to view penonal a$.5umptions this way. practitioners w<luld have greater flexibility in structuring an LLC to qualify as a partnership.

8. Continuity of/ire A_ Umiltd U"bi/ity ]. Gen eTlllly Lacking- Because of the natu", of the LLC statutes . which limit each memhor's liability for tho LLC's debts to the amount of the member's contribution to the illcapilal, it is generatty "",,umed that an LLC witt PQlRSS the cOrpOrat. ch.,actoristic of limited liabit ity. 2. Eff«t of I'el'$(\n~ t Auumplion of Liability.l n some instancol it might he preferable to pro"ide general tiability for

I. A""""",d Proo,·ilion.· Rev. Rul. 8816 held that an LLC formed under the Wy<lming .tatute lacbd continuity of life boeause the sutute provided that the ill w<luld be di!SOived upon the OCCurrence of any of the following events: (a) when the period fixed for the duration of the company ""pi red. (h) by the unanimous wrilten conrent of all the members. or (c) by the death. retirement. resignallon. expulsion. i)ankruptC}'. dis_ solution of a mtmiler, Or the OCCurrence

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2. Burden some Naturt-This type of prOVision has been fol lov... d in most of the ill sbtutel enacted subsequent to Wyoming·s. Practically speaking. it imp<>Ses a Significant burden upon LLCs. If or "'-hen any of the enumtfltted events occur. a unanimous vote of the remaining mem bers is ne, ..sat")' to continue the LLC. In LLCs with ITI/Iny members, the likelihood of the event's occurrence and the difficulty of obtaining unani I1"IC)m C<.I"..nt to continue exiltence may nol be acceptable . In comparison with limited partnerships. only the evenn occurrence with respect to the Int remaining general partner will trigger a di!SOlution. 3. T" Oi n oiution to One Membtr-, StatU I-As a planning alt.""'ti ..... it nlIty be possible for an LI,c to lack continuity of life even if only One of the listed events will caUH a dissolution and even if the occurrence of such event is tied to only a .pecified on. of the membe ... This wou ld dramatically reduce the instances in wh ich an agreement to continue is necessat")'. The.e issue. are curuntly bting discussed with the lRS. and it is expected that a Revenue Procedure similar to Rev. Proc. S912, which address« similar il$uel in the partnership area. will be forthcoming. 4 . Illajority Co nu nt to ContinueAnother way to potentially reduce the burden of this rutriction would be 10 Iov.... r the coment requirement for con· tinual ion from unanimity 10 majority. By comparison. with limilfd partnnships. majority consent to the election of a new general partner is accepted.

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of any other event that terminate. the continued membership of a membtr. unle" the busine" of the company was continued by the consent of all the remaining members_ The contingency for continuation was great enough such that the entity was found to lack continuity of life.

5_ Pn_Agnement 10 Continue-The Florida .Utute conUins a provision that would permit the members to "prtagree" to continue upon the occurrence of ~n event of di!SOlution. The IRS·.,jew seems to be that such pre -~greement would C/luse an LtC still to possess continuity of life. 6. Fixe d Ttrm Provision s- The Wyom ing, Flori da and Colofltdo statutes limit the life of alll,~ to 30 years. No THE ALABAMA LAWYER

ruling hu addrU$(d whdhu such a provision is II ntCU1.Ory ~I~menl of II SWul~ in order lOr u.cs fonntd uoder il 10 IlIdc conlinuity of life. IllS r.-p.--nQ. livu hllve informlllly indiuled Ihlll lIJthough In LLC $Uotu~ Mould follow II LJLPA in reQuiring I"'t one ~nt 0( diuo1ution will be the npifJ.lion of" dtfintd lenn 0( )'Urs. the t~nn nmi not be limitt<! to thirty yun. Moot of the rtcently trlOl(ted statutes do not include fi~td term provisions and ntither dou the Alabama Statute.-

C. Frw mmsftr"tibllilll I. Standard ProvItlon· ~ IRS reguloo· tiom proYidt tN.t ilrl orpniution pOS_ ses..t$ the corporate ctw..cttriWc of fl"ft tnnskrability if 1I member is ibk to oubItilute lnothtr ptl"JOll for Ihemst1wI '"without the cooumt 01. othtr mt~rs.~ ~ rtgutatlora pn:Mdt that in ordt-r for the ~ 01. ""bstilution to nist in the corporate strue. the mtmbers must be ablt. without the (onstnt of the other memberl. to confer upOn a substitute member all of the attribut~1 of his inter· est in the orpniution. tn Rev. Rul. 88· 76. the IRS hetd that the Wyoming LLC tacked the corpOrate Characleristic nf free transfUlIbility btcaUst the Constlll of ill members Wil required for In mignH or an intertll to btcooM: 1I oubstitute mtmbtr in tho: u..c. 2. Fluibillty·Unanimous coruent of ill m~mbers 10 substitution of new

members is "nothtr rntriclion which could be burdensome 10 111 but very clOstty·held LLCs. Some stale s!atutn give LLCs the right to reduce this requirement by II provision in tl\(> arti· du of organiution or tht ope rating ",greemen\. 3. ~rily ConHnt·Similar to conti. nuily of life. one .. ay to make this "'Quiremenl Iu.s burdtnsome would be to proYidt lOr a mtrt ~ty 10 cooumt to substilute I new member. [t is undear .. hether the tRS ...."lid con· sid .. this level of consent sufficient to Qust the LLC to ~k frte trlllllferinterm. Howtwr. precedent ibility .. ith rupeel to cerllin other Iypts of mtitin isencou"';n, For oamplt. tho: requirement or constnt of the generi! panner 10 substitution oIa new limited partner 1\1$ bun cONidtred a sufficient reslrktion to caw.e tramferabitity to be lacking ror limited partnerships.

THE ALABAMA I.A\\'YER

4. TIt SlIbltitution 10 One Member'. Conun t·Another .. ay to make Ihe restri(tion leu burdtruome would be to p.-.:Mdt ~t transfer is subject to the constnt 011 p.IIrticu~r member. r3ther than a ~t)' or In 0( the other memo bers. This would be similar to the typical limitt<! partnership in .. hich the general partner mUJI approve tr.Iruftrs.

D. CentNllm mQMgtr'ltt1l1 1. Re,ulltory Tut·The classification regutations hold that an organiulion h.u unlr3liud management if any per.;oo or group h.u continuing. actlUM authori· ty to ma.kt ~mmt decisions.· 2. Appllcltlon to LLC •• tn Rev. Rul. 88-76. the Wyomin, LLC ",lIS held to " - the corpor31e m."ldtrUiic 01 ctntraliztd ~mmt bec.o .... only thrft out 01 2$ members ~re designated is ~rs. Whert mlI\agtmI:nt has bton reseMd to III the members. the IllS hal held thlt the LLC lacked centrlltized management." Apul from thele t .. o t~lreme situations. the proper analy>is and rel u lt of other management situatiON is unclear. In the limited partnership contul. the tRS Illkes the view that ma:~ment is cmtr3liud if the gener31 partner hal Ius than I 20 ptreent inter· m in the V'II'Ilturt."

B. 1'ro«d_I/uNn m.ttd /0 thluifit:flU",. I . "",,11otlon 0( Rev. Proc.. 89-12·1n IIf\'. Prot. 89· 12. the IRS stt forth i\.s slirllbrds for issu:mcc 0( 1I ruting thatll limitt<! partnership ..iIl be treated as I partnership for rederal incorrw tax pur· pOses. It il cu rrently unclear whether thest rulinS standards art being applied to LlCI. Many or the standards art difficult or inappropriate to apply to LLCs. After rtCtnt COIlV'Ii'rsations with the IRS. it is upeaed that the Service will is.- a par31kl rtYmut procedu", awliClIblt to

u.c..

2. ~ 8ulktproor Stotutu.~ \\'yarn. ing SI.ltule is rdtrml to is a bulletproof" slltute beCllU$( il did not permit the members 10 wry by iIll"ftmmt from the rutrictlons on trlllSferabitity of intertsU and continuity of life. Thus. Iny LLC formed under Wyoming la....ill lack thut characttrlstia and will definitely be treated as I putntr5hip f(lr federat

income tu

ptJT)XIst$.

3. " tul blt St.lw tu · More recently enacted itltultS in othtr l\;Itn iIlPIY tho: Simt re$lridlons to "unless pr0vided othe .... ise in Ihe Artictes 01. Organization or the Operating Aereo· menl." In these Sli t .... practitioners .. too wry from the genefJ.1 or "dtflult" rule. will usume the ris.k thaI their wriation will not CaUst the LLC to Ian on the wrong side 01: the classification tes\. In view of tRS movement on s(lme rults. the Alabama Dr~fting Commi tt .. opItd for /I iOI"ntI¥hat Auibtt approach. &. Frw Trfll1lffnfbilitll·Sec\ion 3J.(1) of Ihe le t provides the follo .. ing language: "U«pI as oIherwist prcMded in writing in III optr3Ung "IIr.. mm!.111 usigntf: olin internt in an LLC may become I member only if the ot her memben ulWlirnously consent. •

u.c...

b. Conl;"ult, of Uk-Std.ion 37 0( tho: lid provides the following lInguilft:"An

LLC is dissolwd ... upon ... in tV'II'nt of dissodition of 1I member unl ........ lhe tegal uisttnct and business of the LLC is continued by the writlen constnl 01: all the remaining members within 90 days aIler the tV'II'nt or dissoc ....tion or as otherwise It:oted in the articles 01: organiu· tion .~

Othe r

I SSU .,S

A. Sl"~ tu.tiorf I. Statt Income T..,.·Most sllltn Ire

following the fedeut eumple and are treating U,CI as partntrships for state il\COOTlOt tu puf1lOlistS. Wyoming and Cot. orado" trnt LLCs liS partnership> for sh te income ta x purposes, as do ..

Richard Wilson & Associates Registered Professiona l Court Reporters 17 Mltdred Streec Montgomery. A(~b:lrna 36107

264-6433 JULY 19'}3 / 231

VirAlini.t,·

MiU'yl'iIIld~ ~nd

North ~roli.

m.. SimiLlr Itate tu mullS (no tu II III~ enlily level Ind income panu IlirouAlh loille OWfKTS) an uswolly M Ilbinrd by using a limitf<! ~flnmllip willi a wrpofllte gtMr~1 ~rtner. an S COfJ'IOOIion or a C corpor.iItion (if it ~ ts iIll of its iroo:ome Ihroug/1 \0 its ()IO.TleTS ;as saLlry or otiwr dtdooiblt l"-)'IIM'nts). TII~ exception to the gtnual rule is I'lori~, wllich Irnls LLCs iIS corpo ... · lions for PlIrpostl of ~PJllying 1M Florida c:orporale income t.u. Florida, however. has no state individl.l.ll income tax. 2. Franchise Tu·l f Ih~ analogy to pa rlnenhips applin. no IranchiK tal ohould apply 10 LLC!. AI tho Ii...... 01 thil uticlt, Ih il iuue wu still Ming di.· cuued wilh the A1Wma Otpartmtnt of

RfYtflut.

8. T..llJKlioIt oIlHuittn4 i,. st.la ItOi INti,., 1i",ltnllldllll¥"""I4'" &1.lIIla

The abilil)' of u.cs 10 Inruact btyond their stalt 01 OTiIIliulion is still an open qutltion. While _ral slalults provide that other stalts should rtWgni~e IUs." thore iJ slill urocertainty as to how readily stalU wilhout LLC stalules will recognitt the tntil)'. In 1990. Indiana tnKmi II prtn'ilion requiring fortign LL~ 10 rtgimr wilh the _"'tary 01 Wile prior to l ... nsactinAl bu.intss in the ltate," E~n illhe limibtioru on the 11'........1 liability of the membm lITt established under 1M 1lIw of the stale in which an u.c iJ orpniud. II qutslion "'rnalTI$ as 10iMir liability under the IlIws of SUIts INI do not )fl hao... U.c Itgistalion. A slalt that has not ~dopled an LLC stalult may Irtal an LLC iIS a general part nership, may tTtat il as a loreign incorporaled enlity. or may rtfust 10 rtc ·

ognlu II lIllll. The trulmtnlsdectf<! bl' eKh state will dfltrmine Iht righu 01 1M enlity lind its members. UnfortunaleIy, oourta havt hid II ttndtncy to cIura<_ Itriu uninoorponltd tntilits lIS generill ~rtnmhiPl whtn no otiwr PfOIIision of obIe IrN _mtd aPl>liaob~. P.olo""l onals A. In gmrnlf

Prolusion.l, long have practiced u pannershlp •. partly in order 10 obtain WI benefits.Uupitt the risle 01 individu· al liability (or Ihe fi rms debts. profes· sional. have ,he rilhed Ihe financial reward and IIlIlus ol ..... king partntr. Be ginning in Ihe u rly 1960., in ruponst 10 demands by prolessionals, many tt.llt and rqutatOf)' bodies devtlopt(! rults for Prol"asi(Inal associations and cOrpOrlliOf\i. By 1970. virtually all mlU had adopttd statutes or rults ptr-

milling proftlslon~l ,orporations or a.s<xi.tlions. Allhough they art permitted to prato Ike in proitl$ional corporaliOf\i or associationl, and allhough th ere may be benefits to operaling a 51'",1<. businel$ as I C COIlIQrItion under 1m awr",,';;'I. ciTCU""bl1«l, many prol"el$ionats con· tinue \0 pradict as general partnerships. Ont rtaion is thai list of ~ C corporalion sub;'eI$ the tntity 10 I second Irwl of wwion. and pOItnlwly \0 a hiQhtr tu nte. Ttl!1 problem is not n« •• sarily rnolvcd by p.lIyinAl luge salaries and bonuses. whidl mrou 1M income 01 tho firm \0 UfO btau$<t of iuue:s concern· ing 1M rtasonablentSS of compemalion. The rilk of choosing ~rt""rn.ips has becomt i"'rtuingly clear to proftl$ionall. Thtrt/or. attorneys . accountant. and othtr professionaii have activtly IOIlghl 10 list 1M I.LC form in order to limil Iheir liibili ty for Iht negligence and malfuu.nce 01 OIIleTS in Iht firm whilt lIvoiding lilt tal prIlbltms of C cor-

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Beuuse both lI"ounting lind le~1 prof.llionlll. Ollen have financial arrangements among 1M owners which may not ~ salilfif<! by 1M simplicity 01 an S CCH'p(IrlItion, many ha~ bun con· lirained 10 UK I C COrpo ... lion if tht)' wan led 10 limil ptnonll li~bilily. Ttlis then subjeds Iht tnlily to double laxation. The LLC may allow prolessional.

10 lItllin Ihe limitlllior"" on liabilily. whilt avoiding the III prooleffil 01 C corporalions.

MOil, if nOI lIl1. ollh. r.,enl LLC enaclments. including Arilo~. lowi. lIWl. Kanu.s. TeDJ and ViTllin~ allow prol"nsioNb 10 list lLC£. Although in somt stlln use of l.LCs by professional> apptartd to be difficult on first considerIlion. upon reneclion shorlly afttT enaclmenl . they have r.wrud express prohibilioni on Ihe praclice 01 prolusionals.

B. AlaN"'" stalllle The Alabama stalut. follo ..... d Ih.

same loiIic used when oddrtSling PIXlice as a pro(wional COfj)OT;lilion. If the St.W: conditions the list of II professioNl corporation on ce"...in rtquir.mtnts. then the use of u.cs should be likewise conditioned.- In 1M po.."!rI provisiOf\i in OUr Itllute. lho UC il permitlf<! 10 Tl'ndtr prokllioNl $<tl"Vic:n but the enli. I)' il mad. lubjed 10 Ih. 1.1."", r~.tri,· lions u contlined in Ihe Proltssion~1 Corporallon Act.Co " c lu s lo n

Th. inlorm.t ion conll1ined in Ih;5 II inl.nded to be ""'rtly introductory 10 Ihis new tntily thai, by the Ii...... thiJ aflic~ iJ published. !hould ~ part of the AlaIMrN Code with an .«tet~ date 01 Oo:101:1tr I. 1993. There can be no quut ion IlIat limited liability compan;n IlIlln imporU.nl ~p in 1M Illem-alt businell forms available. To the txtent Ihtse ent iti.s provide Iht nuibi1ity a nd inlegrlltd tau l ion of pa rtneTlhipl, combined wilh Ihe busi. ness bencflu of limiled personal liabili · Iy. they wi ll likely b. useful as a mfl·hod of conducting many forms of busillU$. NtctsSiry 10 tho furlhrr dt\.. I· Opmtnt of u.cs iJ i gentrlll recognition of Iht limiltd liability tOmlllOny lIS II bUlineu ent ily in mort Iialti. whkh will provide mtainty wilh rtsped to 1M liabilily 01 membt ... Wilh cu rrent TtCDgnllion by 29 stain and many mort in viTioUJ Jtign 01 .naelmenl, it il>!>tars likely INt businlWtl throughoul the cou nlry will bt looking wilh increasing in!eml on lhe limit~d liabilily company as a form lor operlliion in Ihe 90s. • artic~

TIlE AIA8AMA U<IVYER

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ADDRESS CHANGES Compk(( the form btlowONLV ifthe~ 1I~ ~ 10 your listing in the currmtAJoba_Bor Dirm"'1j. Duo 10 ~ in the oI.Itut~ ~ming eltdion Ii Iw ~ we now art mluiml to UK membrrs' otro« lddresses. unless r"IOO"K is ...... ilable or a membrr is prohibited from rtUiving stIIte blr IN;I al the otrlCl. Additionally. the ~ &r DirKtfl'/l is compilfd lrom our m.liHng lilt lind it is imporUnt 10 UK businus lIddmses lor that TUSOrI. NOTE: If we do not ~oow 01 an

change. we cannot lN~e \1>1: nKe.."ry changes on our Tttonb. $0 please notify US when)'OUr addrfs,s changes. Mall fonn 10: Ali« 10 lIendrix. 1'.0. lIox 671 , Montgomery, AL 3610 I.

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------------

TIt!: AU,IIA.'1A U,WYER

JULY

19931239

GUT LAW FOR

GUT 11/ ,wdBeall D. Cary, Jr.

ship roxed in any tangible medium of • • pression. now kno...'ll or later developed, from Which they can ~ perceived , reproduced, or otherwi.\.t communicated , eith.. direct· Iy Or with the aid of a machine or de~;ce _ Works of autho"hip include the following categories:

~:;;·::·~m::;:'":";d;'::'~"oOO'.;;';;;;~ the lederal Copyright "C<>pyright AcC).

According to a leading copy r ight scholar, most people. including most laW)-~rs. have a rather concrete ide. nf how copyright law works. although it has li!lle to do with aClUal copyright law, Professor Jusica Litman d..".ibes this popular ideao. myth .. follows:

A creat,,-e person creales some· thing - a book, or a song, or a paint ing. Jf that person is especially prntect;ve of his rights. h. can aciluire 11. COl1>'right. To d<lthis. he sends hil; creation to the COpyright Off,ee in Washington, which examines it to ascertain whether it is gooJ enough. If the people in the Copyright Offte. decide thai il is

sufficient ly imaginative, and not dupiical;1Ie of ....wks that have bee" copyrighted in the pa,t. they will 240 1JULY 1993

of 1976 (Ihe

own

publisher "'ill Once one has

been granted a copyr ight by the fro.ral gQWmment. om: is entitled to put a copyright notice on one's work. and to invoke the law', , pro. t,etion ..gairut plagiarism. Th is pOputar myth is probably derived in part from old copyright statute, and from a fallacious merging of copyright, trademark and patent doctrines. THE SUBoJECT MAnER OF COPYRIGHT Actual cop)'right law is Quite different from the copyright myth Quoted a~. Sect inn 102 nf the Copy r ight Act addresses the subject matter of copyright. and pTO'ltides in pertinent part as (nnaws: (a) Copyright protection sub· sists ... in original works of author-

(I) litrraryworks; (2) musical works. indud ing llO)I accompanying words; (3) dramatic works. including an')' accompanying music; (4) patomime. and choreographic works; (5) pictorial, graphic and seu!p tur.t works; (6) motion pictures and other audiOllisU/iI works; (7) sound recordings ; and (8) architectural works,'

<:0\-"'' '

Since the Copyright Att "original works of aulho .. hip," does this mean that I.tte,.. and memos written by I.,.,.,.. .. are automatically copyrighted? In other words. are Ih. typical attor· ney's me cabinets full of unregistered but valid copyrights? "Of course not: the attorney says, "because my tette.. and memos are not creative lik. books, songs Or paintings." H. remembers reading that facts. ideas. nam .. and litles cannot ~ C<lpyrighled. True, but h~ may nol have heard of cop~ r ight

THE AUl8AMA UlI'IVER

~'s 'sclntil~

rule' (,lItl\ou4h ALaNma ue generally considered nation<II 'J~rts on "not~r ·scintil~ rule-I, OrigiRlllity requiru only a wry small amount - a "scintil~" - of crwMty, EYen a work "'hich consists mti~1y of facts (which af! not copyrighllblt) un be cOpyrighted if the bru af! unnged wi t h a 'scintilla" of crtitivit)', The amount of cuatil'ity f!Quired is 50 small tNt it WIS not until ]99] that the Unit_ ed S~tu Supreme Court in Feist Publications v, RIlI'III T~/ephmlt Service Co.. Inc, fill.llly settled an old Question when 01 it determined that th. facl1 in tho white paQu of ~wyers

book did not

contai;";::;;~~~:~;:

Opinion, tilt defendant in tllit ase was unsuccessful in "utrlCling" raw fllcl1 from the yellow pajIa without also c0pying their selection mel imngtmml

CREATION AND OWNERSHIP OF COPYRIGHT Perhaps mOit surprising to mllny lawyers is how a copy right is now obtained, A COp}'riQht i. autom~tically cruled by federal law when a work is Cf!ated.']1 Is not n«usal)' to register a '."';~'t to preserve it.~ It will cont inf<lr tho author', lif~ the work is notice such 00' - i. no longer for I I.

•

cuit i

Do.m,ll.v

rumnging the white PiQU

, Quali fy the righ tablt opin ion In

il embodied,

~~~~~~~~~~f:oI~~~~~",,~;'~'~'~'

.. hearing en /"m, 17, ]993 buluoftht months after It Cit ion of this article. no ........ opinion had bttn iuued in &//Soolh. The draftIng of a leuer or a mtmO by a IlIW)'tr. ewn if it contains nothing but fKII, nomu.lly invoh'fl <I 'scintil~' of cmtMty and at lust qualifies such i Itt· tn or memo is I copvrighlobk compilolion. Yet. , copy. ighted compilat ion " rtctivu only limited protection .. , , ICiopyright prottell only the elements tllitlJ"'t their origin to t~ wmpil .. lhe selection. C()Ordinalion, andarrangemenl of fKIS. ... As the Suprt1Tlt Court in Ftist uid, - (nlotwilhst~ n d ing a valid copyright, I subuQutnt compiler remains free 10 lISt the bru con~intd in another's publlc<ltion ... w long as the 'om~tinQ work dots not fralure the ume ultction Ind arringement,"' "ITlhe """ bets 1m)' be copied M will." Ntvtrthtltsl. $OfTIC bw)'rrJ 1m)' be surpmed to lum thai il is diff-':ult, if not impossible, to "surgically umove" only the ·nw fiICU' from many compilations withoul al$O cOpyinQ th... Irction ~nd a"",*ment of thQs.e facts. f or txample, according to lilt ~Ied ikllSwlh THE A~BAMA ~II'YER

desirable 10 be the owotr of I copyright in order to haw abwlule USURllCe of control 01 the lISt 01 the worIc. 10 msu .. being able 10 employ it in any medium ......Ich may offer an tcOIlOITIic opportuni· ty in the Mu .., 10 ob\.Ioin QJtAter urt.ain_ Iy u to tht pe riod of dU'<ltion of copyright. ind 10 eliminate III author's statutory right to ttrmon.ate granl1 and lictmtl." Thfc worlt madr for hi .. doc· tri", pn:Mdts that if tho woric is prepa..-d by <In employee f<lr the employer, then in the abKnce of an exprus written agree· ment otherwise the employer will be considered the author for purpose. of copyright OWIlerJhip, and Ihtrdo~ Ihe owner alall t~ righll comprised in a o;Op)'right. M The worIc midt f<lr hif! docI.int un also vest inittal ownership in the em~r """ "tim the woric is Pf!pam! by an indepencit1lt conlnctor, but only under urt.ain circumstan«s invoIIIina: SJl(Cified typa 01 worb- ~ AaoRlir'llIy, it i. often duiTlblt 10 establish an emplOytT-tmployee relationsllip prior to btginnin8 prePiI1ltion iii the woric il it is important to eruure tho empio).'t.'. 1J"'TlM mhipof cOpyright.

o. book art dif-

ALABAMA

i ,

physial ooj«11 dots not automatically transfn owntl'$hip 10 the COpyright ed materials ...... Ich!My contain, Section roll,} althe Copyright Act sta\t:s tllit '~ght mel the wade Pn»I.ct~ undtr Ihillitle veSIJ initg,lIy in the author or authors of the work .' " O... ne1$h;p of copyriQht .mOOdi•• lhe (lWntT$hip of a varitly of separate rights, Section 106 of the Copyright ACI pro· l'idu tlli!. subjecl to varioWl qt.llllifkations. the CO\l)'1'ight owner has uclus.ivt righl110 reprOOU« the woric, to prep;lre oJrrivlolivt workl. to distribute ropin of the work to the public. and to dispby or perionnurt.ain worb publidy.M One of Ihe "crptions to tho Initilll copyright OWI'ItT$hip pn:wisiono Itt forth above C()lIUIIIJ worics midt for hi~ The work midt for hire doctrine fuquently alists in a sitUition where an tmplo)'tr _ks to have prepared and published a book or manual aoout itl procedures, proct55tS or seMea, and wishu 10 own copyrigh t in the work, It is generally

DO~ENT

ASS SO

BLY ARE

$200 each 30 Day Money·Back Guarantee PrOOIlCeS dfllfls in 10-15 minules usi"l 1 $imptt qllC5lion-.and·aM"'~r formal. Edil lhoc documctllS ..ith your word-proa:ssina fOfI. ...-a~ Wilts, T,IIst&. Real £.ute. limited Pannmhips. II-usinez salts I nd I I

......

For InfonNltion call (800) 221-297Z u •. 565 or S03.

~-~ ""

61 Wht" SUe<!. NYC 1001]

JULYI993 / 24 1

PRACTICINQ LAWYER

conjunction with the .d(}ption of the Architectural Works COP)'right Proteclion Act of 1990" (the "]99() Acn is to provide copyright proteclion for tht

Tht .Uorn.~ who is involved in owner-architect contract negotiations will encounter several coP)'.igh1'iosue? ori(inal design elements of threerelating to the Sections of Ih~ C(lllyrigh"-'dime~ionl\ buildings. in addition 10

Act referred to above. 1~c'l uded in 'hr

COl?yrigh' protection for plans, drawings

Copyright Act ', enume\ati0,n of copyand moaels fOT such building •. Th. righl.bl. matters are "picloria1.!graphic. AmeriC3~ Institute of Architects' Stanand sculptural work$"" lwhich are !lOW dard Fo rm of Agreement Bdween driined to include '1w<.>-<l imel'.\ional and Owner and Architect .. Ooels that copythree·dimensional works ~f fin~. g1',\lph. ..right protection veu in the creator of ic. and applied art. photograph ~ architectural plans only. providing only charU. diagrams. models. aM technical that drawings and specifications shall remain the property of the architect, d ra wings. including archi t ectural plans""). along with a recently added although the owner may retain copies subsection covering architectural works. lor information and reference in con· nection with u,"" and occupancy of the Section 102 of the Copyright Act refiecu recent amendment. whose effect. in building. Accordingly. it m<ly t.. h'!pful.

if you represent an architect in negotiat· ing an owner·arch itect agreement . to identify upressly that copyright on building design also shwld .. main the property of the architect." If you repre· sent the owner. you m<ly wish to expand the scope of the license granted with ..spect to use 01 drawing. and specifica· tions, Copyright protection with respect 10 drawings is not limited to build ings: for example. the designer who prepares plans for a golf course owns copyright in I~ plans at the time th3t lhey are created. and many of the ... me is,o;uts with respect to the use of such plans by the ""'ner wou ld apply to construction. additions to or completion of a golf (Continued on page 2441

Notice SUPREME COURT OF ALABAMA Re<:en1ly. 1m. sup,eme court i.wed an opinion in Ex p.Hle Tuck [Ms. 1920134, May 14, 1993J -.so. 2d ___ tA la. 19931, affirming an earlier op inion by the Alabama Court of Civil Appeal. in McKay v. Tuck. (Ms . 291039 4, OClober 16, 19921 _ _ So. 2d _ _ IAla .Civ. App . 19921. Th"", opinion. addres§ed Ihe propriety of facsim ile filings under lhe Alab.Jma Rules of Civil Procedure. The Alabama Supreme Court held thaI ' olher

filing~

attempted by fac. imil e tran,mission in reliance

on the opinion 01 the Court of Civil Appeals will be taken as proper on the same basis through Ihe period ending July 11. 1993. After thaI date we will not ' ecognize facsimile Iransmis.ion. as filing., within the mean ing of ou' rules of court Or the statutes of this state. except as statutes Or rules may speci fi cally authorize 'filing' by facsimile transmission •

Parle Tuck. _ _ So. 2d 31 ___ .

Alter due consideration . the Supreme Court Sta nding Committee On the Ru les of Civil Procedure has ,ecommended to the supreme court thaI th e Rules 01 Civil Procedure not be amended to p<ovide fo, filin8 by facsim ile lransmi .. ioo after July 31, 1991. !loberl G. &dale, clerk Supreme Court of Alabama

242 1JULYI993

THE Ai.".BAMA i.".WYER

Cumberland School of Law Continuing Legal Education Fall, 1993 Seminar Schedule September 10 Se ptember 17 Se ptember 24 Se ptember 24

October 1 October 8 October 15 October 22 October 29 November 5 November 12 November 12

A Seminar on Damages - Birmingham ERISA - Birmingham Depositions: Technique, Strategy and Control with Paul M. Lisnek, J.D., Ph.D . • Binningham A"bum University Bar Association Bench and Bar Conference • Auburn leo-sponso red by Cwnberland School of Lawl Annual Bankl1.lptcy Law Seminar - Binningham Profe.ssional Responsibility: Advertising! Specialization - Birmingham Represe nting Small BU5inesses in Alabama· Birmingham Recent Developments in Criminal Law and Procedure Binningham Alternative Dispute Resol ution - Birmingham

November 19

Annual Worken' Compensation Seminar . Birmingham Elder Law • Binningham Annual BU5iness Torts and Antitrust Law Seminar Birmingham leo-sponsored by the Business To rts and Antitrust Law Sectionl Issues in Employment Law - Birmingham

December 3 December 10 December 10 December 17

Appellate Practice - Birmin gham R ~ent Developments for the Civil Litigator· Mobile Product Liability · Birmingham Recent Developments for the Civil Litigator - Birmingham

Brochures specifically describing the topics to be addressed and speakers for each of the s.eminars will be mailed appro,umately six weeks prior to the s.eminar. IT for any reason you d o not receive a brochure for a particular seminar, wri te Cwnberland CLE at 800 Lakeshore Drive, Birmingham, AL 35229-2275, or call870-2865 in Birmingham or 1-800888-7454. Ad ditional programs and sites may be added to the sched ule.

JULY 1993 / 243

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COIJrwjmt as they would to I building. The lppliubility 01 tho CoIIyright Act ofIm ntmds >rt11 br)ond tho rulmo 01 Iit.r,tu«' , lrchittctur( and tnttrllinmenl II an dirtclly afftct the nraoctic· ing attorney as >rtf!' Take-for oumpl. tho UK of pho~~in civillit~· tion. If COUnKJ t~ In ~nt photogriPlll:f to ~otOflraph IJUtt.u «,!Mont 10 Ijtill3tipn. such as tIit scmo: of an accident or a dd~cti~ product. thou photp'gra~ ar~ $ubj.d to till: Copyright ~ct. and ownership of Ih. (OPyright~iSY in Ihe pholo~rl.· phu at 500 3$ \h( phqtograph$ an taktn. It ;, nec""'Y fort~. npller 10 ngi$f r the cowright In orde to prot(ct the bll.(ldle of righ t. arising undtr cOl'YrightliW. ii;iphotogn. ph.. delivers the pllolograpiJ...to coun· KI upon PllYIll"nt, whiCh conslilutes 1m: grlnt of i licen$e for t hat attorney to use Ihe copiu providtd. Oppo$ing co~n$.1 may also pay for II licens. to ~ COpiH. If. ha>o.~r. opposing cOOnKI dou not wish to incur the .~pe nse of paying for copin, ht mighl attempt to obtain tllem II)' noticing the photog· r&phtr' s deposition and including with the notice II subpoena ducu ttcum cove ring the neiativu lind photo graphs . to be provided for copying. If opposing counsel wer e to oblain the phOtOgflphs in such fashion and then tlke Ih(m for photocopying. however. he could be violating ftd· tflll covtright ~ws. as tho procu,.,menl 01 phoI08fl1phs purstllOntto tho su~ rill ducts ttcum in no way CIUstS the phot08nopher to relinquish his own..• $hip 01 «fY'ighl with mptct to those male ....1$.

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244 1JULY 1993

COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT Copy right infringement OCCu r. by virtu. of th( violation of any of Ihe uduli~ rights ~Ittd in a copyrighl owner. as idtntifitd in Soction 106 of the Copyright Act ." An increasingly common problem. as computers prolif· eralt in taw offk~$ Ihroughoul Alabama. i. the unauthorized use of softw~" programs such as · Word Perfecl,- ·Lot~5and · WindOYo·s-. All such programs are

protected by copyrighl. and thert/ore may not be us.d without /I lic.n ... Terms of the agnement wilh Ihe soft· WU( suppli .. dictat. the utenl of the ~rmilttd .... olln)' PfOllTlm. lYPially, the llIJ'ftmtnt nquim that /I lictns.c be purchutd for neh copy of I program ustd.lnII ~mply copj.ing OIW purchased PfOllTlm to .... on 1m diff.nnt compul· ers-constitutes copyright infri~ment. ~tion of the Copyright Act PI'O' vide=; civil ptrllllties which an incl". a ~rI'S discretion. iWIIrds 01 up to $20 ,009 pH violal ion. and of up to $100,000 lor "'willful" violations. Th ili S«tion ~I lilt COPYright Act abo provides for the lward of «.ISlI Ind IIl1or·

so.

nt)"1 Ita."

Approximately

800

soft,....,., manufx·

tun~ h.J.1\' ptablislwd atradt ~A'

lion ~nOYo'n as tile Software Publishing A$ncy, pne 01 the functions 01 which is to idtntify ond pr(lJtcUle JO/'twar( copy. ritlht infringen. The Softw~«' Publishing Agency has brought many enforcement proceedings. typically in m~lti · count complainls addressing unauthorized ..... of any of th. multilude 01 programs lh.J.t !OO.';t law offoce computers now emplO». As the $COpt 01 tile SoItwi«' Publishing Agency'li enforctmeni effort! elll"'nds, it wm become incnasingly evident th~t us. r. of computer softwar. program$ should avoid unaulhorized duplication 01 programs lhal thry purchase. Most sell· .rs 01 compuler soflwut programs;will ptrmit tho purchaser to copy lhe irutalla. tion disk lnII sto«' ttw: oriIIinal for Ale· keeping. Copyrithl Law allowlthe UH 01 ~kup or archival eopiu. and modiflQ. tionIlo a program to fitln intencitd ...... but ttw: .... 01 additional ropiu lor other compulm will tIjX)W tho UHr to poun· \ial copyright infringement or licenK agrttmmt brudI cWmL" A major W:l'pIion to tht ril/hll grant · ed pursw.ntlo Stction 106 01 the COpyrighl Act, and the«,lo« a &Itns.c 10 I ct.im of infringement , liu in tile doc· trin. of ' fair Ust. - Th. Copyright Act embodies tho conupt that c.riain ..... s of material othorwi$e prot.cttd II}' copy. right ar. to be ptrmiued. ' for purpO$tt 5Uch as uilicism, commen t. newli npOrting, tUching (including multipt. cop its for clalSroom u$e). scholar$hip. or ruurch .... -" S(ction 107 of the Copyright Acl, which sels forth the fai r ust doctrine, .1$0 identifiu four factors

TIlE AUl.IlAMA Ul.WYER

(d) The tfftct of tho UK upon tht

to be considuod in dourmi ni ng whether a u~ conltitutts a fai r uH. Those bet"" ire u follows:

poItntial market lor or value of tho COpyrighted work."

...o"!jTff'~.;,'"",~ of the ~Irine of fair

(I) The purpose and character of

uH is 10 b.:ilance "th. exdusivt rights of copyria!:1 holde~ilh the public', intt relt in diSstminabon of information alreeting ir~ of u",~rNI concern. lutll iIS art, sc;."J and industry ....

tho uu . inel udinQ whethor Juch uses of a comme rcia} nature or I I for nonprofi t educational purposes: (b) The nature 01 tho COpyrighted (e)

""'"

The amount W lub.!t.lntialit>· of the IIOrtion used in relation to 1m: copyrighted work iIS a whole: lind

--•. _..... ----_. ...............11"'- III

........... 8 Sc><lIingll

"'0'_01_ '-""""'"""""" .........

-~siIy~

.H........... _

....-...,n--., . '"

_ " O. Ga.." .Ir.

_[)G.y.Jr . . o,_"'eu.. ....... _ _ w-.go:vo ~

.. --$Ioo.q">.. V...... ' _

•

identified )lTevioully witll relpect 10 Infringe men' of comput er IOftware ptOQraml. damagu are ava ilabl e flU inrripg.m en t under the Co py right Act." St.ltutory damages can 100 include tho i\'O"ard of COlts in<.I ittorntYl ftn." The Copyrigllt A<:t alS() pl"l.lYidu for imp<lundmont lnd deslruct ion of infringing items '" ~II as ;njundi~ relid." Criminil peni l· \ iu are also IVl.iW,l. under Stdion 506 of tho Copy. right Act. ind can range UJI to I lint 01 1250.000 or imprisonmtnt lor 001 mon tllln fivt )'I'al'"l, or both." SU .... ARy

The provisions of eopyright law probably affect most practi t ioners Or tlleir clients mort hqUfntiy tllln they might tI<ptd.. BtaUK 1M II(htme of tho COp)'-ri(IIt Act is ofttn subst.intially differtnt from what most peopl. npect. il i. importanl 10 be "I.rt 10 fundamenul copyright issuel ind to t~ke "re to ~V(lid infringement. •

Endnotes 1 .~ ~.""'5:lll.Nt.L.So<~I9tI ~

1.M.. 0.2I.lIlJ..I..C.ll_ . '-Ill s.a. 1m. III LUloilII09t,j rFflol'"). l.'lH.JoIJI4.t571llIl1Ck 19t1l _ _ ""rJwoolI~III"C" , 9t2,~"1.

" _.III5.C.... llfI,. 7.M_ Ull.o. .. , • . I.M_ ILL 1.0. .. 'M. t.17u.s.c.UII. It.SOr 171lS.C.1_ II Sor II u.s.c.1"'. 1:1. ... 1' n.s.c..1 XiI. I). 17 \U.t. ,!DIWIt. 17 \U.t. 11011. 11. ........ Do.ona.1L. ~-..,., ..... eo. -...,CIou. .... _ _ _ ..

_.....-_ .. _... ............ --

UWl(Mn9t'~

II. 17 IU.C. I allOt. 17 IHUL I III 1I."Ilot _ __

....

......

-..

c.._ ..... _

Ioe ~ .... o...w. 11 ... _ . .,.\U. 7lOI.11JJ.Ct.1'IfO_. 11. 17 u.s-c. I , ~ . I. teo17 LWlL.C. 1 '01 . 11 . lido 111 ......... 1. .... 1'1_ Suo. _(Do<. 1. 1.... .... U _lln!II\. nSor _ _ _

,a.

=.Sor_~

_ _

""""'.~

t..!.17_1J. 611'INl

at. "U.s.c."...

*1."'17 ".$.t. ,,0'. :IO.J.. _ •• '-_~~ •__ Nlb DiM ..¢.t:'"." N r.s-IJ. ' 10-1'. s..-_I9t2.

.. ""_110<... __ 1f77I._._ f7 I7IULIIII7

:II.• '

c.,.. ~ '.JoIt!. "

IJj Cio-.

"s.o;..

00 UJ..IOU. 13tu.,.. . . Sor 11n.s.t.IUIM. 31 SorI1u.s.c."500.J. U.$.C.1I5C1.J.

=.1'

nl'U.$ . c..I~

W.H. Welcher, M.D. J.D. M.S.P., F.C.L.M. Forensic Psychiatry Medical Malpractice · Insanity as a Defense Personal Injury ' Will Competency Wrongful Death ' Workers Compensation

Free Consultation HuntsviiI{J Su~e 104 331.5 Bob Wallace Huntsvillfl. AL 35805

Binningham 6873 5th A.... S. BimWigham. AL

(205) 533-214 1

(205) 833-4878

JULY 1993 1245

.ALABAMA

STATE

BAR

AOMITTEES.

Lawyers in the family

James A. I/a/l. Jr. (1985) and Rulh Ann I/afi (1993) (husband and odm;U<le)

Jani~

Alesio Hilliard (1993) and Ear! F. Hilliard

Michael M. Lipscom/> (1993), Bert /,!psromb (l990) o>1d Albert Lipscomb (1961) (admillU. brother and father)

(1968) (admille<! and fa/her)

246 f JULYI993

Salmon Gilliland (199.1) and Floyd R.

Gilliland (1993) (wife and husband admillees)

THE AU'.IIAMA LAWYER

• A LAB A MAS

TAT E

BAR

0 ~1 1 T TEE S +

Lawyers in the family

Jgmts M, lIilmer (1993) and Undo C. FIifJp() (l990) (odmi/lN Imd sister-in-law)

DimI1lf! Smilhermtm (1993) (1m/ Tom Smilhemum (198()) (odmilll!e and brolhffJ

)olm CI'O«'. /I (1993). John Crow (J!I62) and

Robert T. Cardn<!r (1993) and Wmillm F. Gardner (1959) (iJdmiliH and fallwr)

Wins/on GrOll' (1992) (admillu. falher arid

""hwi

JUlY ]9931 247

.ALABAMA

STATE

BAR

ADMITTEES.

Katharine Lynn Braden

Floyd ~lay Gilliland. Jr.

Decemkr 1992 Admillees

James Darnell Brandl'burg

Janie Salmon Gilliland

Scott Patrick Archer

William 110ward Brode

Larry Edwin Givens

Melvin Lamar Bailey

Ashley Butler Bl)'an

Beth Ann Godfrey

Albert

John Robertson Caldwell

Robert LlO)'ll Corham

Teddi Lane Carte

Therese Hagemann Green

h aC)' Wayne Cary

John Crow, Jr.

William Jackson Freeman

Basil Timothy Case

John Lance Guinn

Sabrie Cracelyn Graves

Cregory Lee Case

Stephen Willis Guthrie

Corrie Patricia Haanschoten

Jennifer

Paula Daugherty Kennon

Phillip Wayne Chancey, Jr.

John Patrick Hagood

Lewis Wardlaw Lamar

Sandra Jeanne Childress

Ruth Ann K. Hall

Billie Boyd Line. Jr.

Timothy Allen Clarke

Carol Lynn Hammond

Wanda Stubblefield McNeil

Donald Quinton Cochran, Jr.

Charles Wayne Hannah

Janet Novatnak

William Eric Colley

Keith Edward Harmon

Gilmer Tucker Simmons

Connie Jo Cooper

David Michael Harrison

Stanley Bernard Stall....,orth

Robert Chandler Davis

Dennis DeWayne Harrison

Emily Napier Walker

Edward Ray Dillard

Bruce Albert Haught

Eliubeth Camilla Wible

Cathy Brown

Ann Lee Witherspoon

Paul Frederic Donsbach

Robert Scott Head

lora Renee Dorin

Lauren McKee Heard

Spring 1993 Admilleu

Clyde Emil Ellis

Deborah Billl Hembree

Deedra Abernethy

I'olly Delilah Enger

Alesia Lynette Hilliard

Nancy Sue Akel

Derrell Otis Fancher

James

Joseph Scott Ammons

Kevin Lee

Vera Smith Hollingsworth

Debra Ann Armstrong-Wright

Kimberly Owen Fehl

Lisa Renee Holmes

Nicholas Basil Bangos

Thomas Richard Fields. 111

Bryan Keith Horsley

Roberta Dunn Bartley

Robin Kilpatrick Fincher

James Cordon House, III

John Edwin Bockman

Timothy ~'elvin Fulmer

Emily Hurst

Robert Terrell Gardner

James Carl Ingram, Jr.

Charles

Orey, III

~lacNeili

Elmer

Warren Albert Flick

248IJULY 1993

~lichaels

Chambliss

Donoh~

Feathe~ton

Jack Danny Hackney

Jerry Wayne Hauser

~Iichael

Hivner

THE ALABAMA LA.WYER

A lAB A MAS TAT E

BAR

A D ~I ITT E E S +

Michtle Carstens O'Brien

Dtbrll Jean Smith

8radley Syfrtlt Odom

James M~uley Smith

James Anthony Jennings. Jr.

Marjorie Elaine Owings

Ouiw. Dianne Smitherman

Charln Everdle Johns, Jr.

~'acKenzie

Tuyel NguYfn Lam

Mi chael Lenard Patterson

Mary Frances Spalola

Benjamin Arthur Land

James Rus.selll'igott

Susan Lee Stanford

Charles Arthur Powell, IV

Kathryn Velma. Stanley

Ed....ard Eugene Prict

Eugene Edgar Sioker

Behrouz Kalkhoran Rahmati

David Sonathan Thies

Reginald Alan Rhodes

Sherry Hoyle ThorTIas

Beverly DtniK Riwrs

Daw Thompson, Jr.

Jon Ethan Lewis

Ltonida.s Leroy Roane, lJJ

Jean Walker Tucker

Laura leigh uwis

James MacDonald Robert50n

Michael Jay Upton

~Iichael ~IcFalll.ipscomb

Norma Maynard Rots.sler

Carl Cibson Vance

Andrew William Lohn

Charles Vin~ Sams, Jr.

Sherrod Judson Wailes. II

Barbara Ruutll Luckett

Philip Joseph Sanchez , N

Larry Allan Ward

~lelinda

Curtis Ray Savage, Jr.

Bruct ~IcCehee Wutbrook

Christopher Earl Malcom

Michal'l JaJTOe$ Schofield

Thomas l.aIo.nnct Whiteside

uigh Ann Mansmann

Carolyn Rankins Shields

Carol Paift Williams

Sandr~

LaUrlIlRlores Shows

Kimberly Ilarper Williamson

l.aunice raul Sills

Stephen Joseph Ziemkowski

Stuart

~'awcttt

An~la

Bishop Jenkins

John

~ldvin

James

LMsiler. Jr.

BarbaJ'ill Ann La ..... ~nce Oa~id

Mark Lawson

Kathy Shelnutt Lecroix David Tyltr

lu ~Iaddox

Gooding Marsh

Cerald Marion Martin

Paul Parris

Dwayne RUSKIl Snyder

[}eborah Ann Mattison Robin lone Mayfield Lloyd Duane

~kCammon

William Wayne ~'cCartney. Jr. Ch ristopher Crady ~IcCary

David An,n McDonald Jenny Lu McLeroy

Maryanne Elizabeth Melko

1Ip""1I1"3 .... 1 . .'" Sgll.tle. 01 Int ....t Numbtr Jitting lor e... m ..................................................................... 222 N"mbtr w'\ified to Alabama Sup",,,"", Court........ . ....................... 137 Certification rato ................................ .. ..... . ...... 62 perc~nt C~rtificat'on ptrctntagts; • Uni'''rsity 01 Alabama ................................................ 79 percent • Cumbtrland Scl1oo1 of I.ow ....................................... 78 percent • Birmingham School of I.ow ...................................... 38 percen!

• Jonu School ofl.aw

.....................................62 perrent • Nilu ColI.~ nil.ow ................................................... 0 ptrcent

Jennifer Ellen Morton

THE Al.ABAMA \.AMOI

JUI.YI993 / 249

OPPORTUNITIES The foilou:iIIg programs have hem appTf.Illt!d by 1M Alabama MtnUkllorg Continuing Ugal Education Commis.sion for CL£ credit. For information fffJOrdingolhD'aooi/abJe approc:ed proyroms, contact Diane 111!/don.

administrative assistant forprograms, 01 (205) 26j· 1515. and Q romp/ele CLE calendar will b4! mailed 10 !JOU. JULY

AUGUST

14W... _ .... '

3T......'

A PAACT1C:AL GULD£ TO ESTATE

ADMINISTRATION IN.oIJ..\Ilil'i.\

Mobi~

"""'

,,-,

1IuIi....... trUlitul •• Inc. CrtGits: 6.5 Coot: SIZ! (7 LS) 1135-8525 1Qt~

RESOUmOS

I.onnatllluli ....... Cent .., Inc. emlit.: 3.5 c.t: IllS

l7lSI &33-39.10 A PRAcrICALCIJID~:TQ ESTATE A01'1INISTAATION IN "'I"'RAMA MO<141om<!), Bullf!Ull .... litut. , In<.

Cmhu: 6.5

Cost; SIU

(7 15183S-a$25

U ..17

....~,,"CAL M££fISC Siou/It. RiYenoirw f'Iwo Hold.

....,

AImno Sial, &r

(205) 26'H515 21W.........'

BOUNDARY LlII' IN AIAJIA.'IA Bi.min&hlm. lIo1~ Inn Rtdn'Io<11

Nat*'>.llIuo.l,.,... IMtitute, lne. e .«Iitt: 6.0 COiII: S12ll (7151835.&525 23

NIoIiONI llufinus 1I'I$IlIul<. Irw:. CmfiU: 6.0 Coot: SI28 (71 5)m.1525 4 W_ •• ".,

AlTERNAffi'E DlSPIJf'E

~tioNl

SUCCESSFllL JUDCMENT COlJ.ECTIOSS IN AlAIWIA

SUCCESSFULJlltI04Em" COLL.ttI10 N$ IN AUIIA.'IA Monillomtrr Notional8usi ..... (Ntitul<.lnc. C,"ill: 6.(1 eo.~ StU (1151 S35-1S25

U TuellCla, FA.'IIL Yl.AW LITIGATION IN ALA8A.\IA Bim'lir'lalllOm Notional Bull..... hutoMe. Irw:. C,",ll: 6.0 Coot: SI28 (715)83$.8$2S

n ·,.

627-65 1 ~

H·"

PERSONNEL tAW UPOA'fl: Rirml"""'"," Radisson 1i<>t.1 C4urw:il on ~ion in >to ..... mmt Cmlill: 11.0 {41519J.1-8lll

.......

U",....... W

REAL ESTATE tAW

AIoblml8.0, InstiMe for CLE Cmliu: 6.0 (800)621-6514 24 FrItIa, DEPOSlTIONS: TECH NIOUE. STRATEGY ... CONTROL Binnil\lN.m C........ ,1and irwilul< .... CLL Crtd;u: 6.0 {!IOO)_7~

......,

AlIhIma 8.0, IrwitlOU lor CI.E Cnditl:6.0 (800)627-6514

Auburn Un......-uty 8ar """"illioro'C........ '1Ind Institul<

"""" .....

SEPTEMBER 10 F.ltlaW DAMAG~S Birmin~m

INSURANCE LAW

Cumborbnd InstiMe for CI.E C,"ill: 6.G

(71SI833~

(800)

FA.'IILY tAW It£TllEAT

rridoo, Binni"","", I.ofmIon a..- (tnt ••• Inc. e.od,II: 5.7 Cool: IllS

DEPOSITIONS Birmingham "lININ ~, (rutilule 1o. eLF. Credits: 6.0

(8001888-7~

5.'IAU ESTAITS Bim" ......... .u.m. Bar Il'IItltuc. for ct.E Cmlill: 6.0 (8001627-1.514

BE...;c11 " BAlI CONfER£."CE

. ,,'

Cmlill: 4.0 {8001888.74501 Rf.Al. £STAll: tAW Binnlnahlm AWl;o"", 8.0, Institute for CI.E Credill: 6.0 (8001627-6514

.....

30Th ....... '

AIJTOJoiOBII.E COUJSlOS CASES

AlIhIma 8.0, INlit\>U .... CLE

Credita: 6.0 (800)627-6514

11 FrItIa, ERISA Binnin~m

Cumbo,\and Insti!u!e for CLE Crediu: 6.0 (800)888·7454 JULY 1993/ 2S I

OPINIONS OF THE GENERAL COUNSEL By ROBERT liZ NORRIS, general counsel

III11 ~~:;~n~riling "

you at the request of James O.

Smith. the acting chief administrati,l' law judge for

the Mobil e offlee of Hearings and

Ap~ab.

Our

office is part of Ihe Social Security Administration. We a,e ,uPOnsible for adjudicating Social S«urity disabili ty. retire· ment and survivors' claims appealed from adwrsi' ddermi",,· tions made b)' I~r level compOnents of the administration. The Administ rative Procedure Act. Social Security Act, the Cod. of Fid, .,,1 RegulatiollS. and formal rulings iloSued by the administration provide the ba..ic legal framework that I/O""I'TIll

how hearings are held and decisions made in OUr office. "We ne.d the state bar'. input to clarify the applic<ob il ity of

Rule 3.3 of the Alabama Rules ofProfwOoriaI Conduct in Social S«urity proceedings al lilt hearing level. Specifically, is ~ hear· ing held by on ~dministrati .... law judge in any of the four OHA offices located in Alabama an 'tx parte proctt<ling' within the tmaning of Rule 3.3(d}? "The i$.lue is quite troubling to the judges and attorneys in Our office . Certain well·recogni~ed Social Security attorneys ha .... lectured at CLE semil\ilrs and even made videotape pre· sentations during the past few ~ars suggesting that they have no duty to submit any eviden«. medical Or nthe""il<, potentially adverl< to their client . H()\O.~r. since the Federal Rules of Evidence do not. per .. , apply in the administrati .... proceed· ings we conduct and becau.. the adjudicat ion proce$.l....., follow i. non·a"""""rial in I\iIture. a real potential ""iSIS for de<:isions being made based on an incomplete record. Therefore, a potential for abUI< is creattd strictly by differing int' rpretations of variow applicable legal principles. It has been my experience that 'Orne advocate. view lhe"""l ..... as more of an officer of the court. while others, as mentioned above, adopt a more zealous approach to representation with respect to disclosure of facts adverso! to their dient. "I think the resolution of this i$.lue i. important. At. I understand iI, Rule 3.3(d} did not extend under lhe Alabama Rults of Profe$.lional Conduct prior 10 bnuary L 1991. Therefore, it represents a new ethical standard of which many attorneys may not "''en be aWare. \\"lth the h~ gro..1h of the workload with· in OHA. the .>arne rule potentially applies to legal repre.. nta· tion in up to 9.000 claims currently in the proce.s of adjudication within the four OHA office, in Alabama (1,500 in Mobile). Just iIS importanl. the above provi.ion is part of the ABA Mode l Rule. of Professional Conduct. At. a result. many other .tates ha.... al", chosen to adopt the same. or a similar. provision. To T1l» knowledge. no formal opinion has ",.. r been issue d by a stal' bar co .... ring the applicabi lity of the .>arne model rule language in Social Security proceedings. "All of the judges and attorneys in our office would greatly appreciate your consideration of this Question (or a formal opinion:

252 1JUlYI993

"'11wis••the opinion of the Disciplinary Commission

that Rule 3.3(d) of the Rules of Professional Con· duct of the Alabama State Bar applies to lawyers part icipating in hearings before a Social Security Administra· tive taw Judge adjudicating Social Security disability. retire· menl and .uovivor claims, The term "tribunal" as used in this rule includes both courll; and admini,trative proceedings. Rul. 3.3 is al>l>licable to adjudicati". hearings whil. Rule 3.9 con· cerns non-adjudicative proceedings. The only difference between Rults 3.3 and 3.9 is that a lawyer representing a cli.nt before a non·adjudiCilti..... dminil;lrali .... proc.oding or a legis_ lature i. not required to inform th.l.gisJati .... Or admini.trati .... t,ibunal of all material facts kno"'n to the la"'~.. r. Rule 3.3 of the Rule. of Professioml Conduct;' a "fairness rul." desigood to prol.ct the int.grity of the d«ision·making ]l1"OCe$.l. Professors Hazard and Hodes. in their handlxlok. The Modem Rules of Profe.s.sionul Qmducl. second wition, section 3.3:101. provide the foll""'ing overview of the rule: -When the a.n'ersary system is o]l<rating smoothly. opposing counsel police each other. They can generally be relied upon to ""]lO$e false and misleading representations made by the other side, and to pwsenl legal argumentation in a sha rp dialectic that will help the court COme toa sound decision. Bulopposing counsel may not always discover the truth Or the law, either through lack of dilig.,nce or be\:ause the truth has been effec· tively concealed. Without rule. il$l;uring that lawyers will polke themsel .... s. Iherefore. courts would occasionally make decisions on the basis of e"';denee that one of the professional participants knows i. fal ... or appl)/Iegal concept. that one of the professional participants knows has al , eady been rejected by a higher court. The situation lre.ttd in Rule 3.3 entails the most ..,.. re ten· sion be\v.""n dutiu to a dient and duties to the tribunal. Ac· cording to this rule, where there is danger that the tribunal will be mislead. a litigating lawyer must forsake his dien!". im· mediate and narrow interests in favor of the interests of the adminiSlration of juslice i!.self. In these .ituations. the concep· tion of lawye, as 'officu of the court" achieve. its maximum force: Rule 3.3(d) expands the lawyer', duties in an "" parle pro· ceeding requiring thela")'l'f to inform the tribul\iIl of all mate· rial facts kn<;M'" to Ihe lawyer which will enabl. the tribul\iIl to make an inform.d decision. whethu or not the fact. are adverse. Professors Hazard and Hodes provide this explanation of .ubsection (d): "Normally, the principal duty of an advocate in any proc«d· ing is to pre.. nt the best possible case for his client. Howe .... r. since Opposing counsel will not be present in ex parte proceed. ings, and will not be available to expo" deficiencies in the proofs or to present counteMiling considerations. the tribunal

THE AI.AIlA."IA UlWVER

m\l$l be prot«ted from making WTOI'IlI dtcisions IIIiI il would not llive rNodt in III ..MBlry pl~ing. In subsKtion (d), t1vrtiOft. the SptCilol duty 0( CoIncior to tilt lribuml (~ tilt public intrust in the int(llrity 01 the prow.$) (If1U again wt~ighs the adv.ln~ 10 III individual elitnt.." By dttiberatd)' u.ing the Imn "tribuNI". tilt rule is appliColbit to Idju di Coltions btfore adminillrative bodin, al wetl ilS cou rts. tn Charles Prl-tff IInd~, Inc. v. Ferkrol Trade Co"'missiotl, 4011'e. 2d 572 and 579, (6th eir. (968). lilt Court he ld IlIit I patent la"'Y"r must pmllnl adverse facts 10 a U.S. Patenl

Office huring officer Mn if tJul mi",1 <aUK tho: palent to be

,,",ie<!. If tIv pro<ftdif1llS a .. non-ad,iudiColtive. tho: Iawytr don not tuw I duty 10 m-ul .all maurial facts but Rule 3.9 ..quim IIIiI lilt Ii>o-yer disclose that he is appuring in a rtplUtnlalio.oe ta~ity ~ ihIol he ilbidt by tho: optcw duties of Q/\dor con· laini'd in Rule 3.311}. (b) and lei. ilS well OIl Ru le 3.~. }'aimess to Opposing Parties and Counsel. and Rule 3.5. Mainla ining 1M Impartilol ityand Decorum ola Tribunal. (RO-9HI6) •

UNIVERSITY OF ALABAMA SCHOOL OF LAW CAREER SERVICES OFFERS HELP FOR EMPLOYERS BI/ Segai/ Friedman

"/ heard it through the grapevine. ,. hai is how Narvin Gayc found out about ,a lost 100'e, 1iowe'otr, the Rra!X"'IIW is also ""Ilt.. mc)5t Alabama .lIome}"" fond OUI aboul job opportunities or job candidattl. .' lost allormJ,'S wQUld sa}' tht}. found out aboul job5 al local bar ~tlngs 0. wlltn conducting business "ith other la""'I'tI"$. While lhat method Iw $tMd lis purpo»f O\.. r lhe }'t'll"$. the Uni,"'· lily of ,\Iab.\ma School of uw offers a se,vice that is much more dncient. The law schoo!"s Career Services Office ""... empl~"I"$ . • Iudents and alumn i as an informali on cl earing ho u.t fo r jo b oppo rtu nitIe s and prosP«l"'t tmplo}"ttS. CSO has a long re cord of sueuSifull)' malch ing the nt\'d$ of empl~.. r.; "iih the . kills and g(l.ll! of nfW and exre.ienced law;.... s tramed at UA. ''We",~ Irying to me.t the problems with the eurrenl hiring situation ~ad on and help our students. OIl w,1I OIl emplo;·.r•. cope with it : sa id Segail Frit<lman. director of CSO. -We'.. ti)';ng to let;>ll the I"'~'tn in 1M sl.1l' of Alabama know thai lhe .. is a Career Sf,,';ces office here at the UA School of 1.3W.- she said. CSO off~rs Ih ... popular se"'ict! to

ntl: Al.ABA.'1A LAWVER

assist a\lOmeys ""It h the hlTing pro· cess: on-aampus inle"i ....ing. .,,,-,ont· for .... arding fo r o ff·c ampus inter'·i ....·ing. and alumni plactmtnt.

On-cIImpus Int.rvlewlng CSO arromg.s on ·campus intervitl<'S

each Sl!mtsler to offer emplo;..", an dfident. com.. n;ent and cost·dfect'''' mtaru 0( inl~rM.... ing students.. -La,.g,:: firms can projea from jur to }"ar 110\0.' man}" emplo;"e\'.S tho:y ntN. SO \ht)" participate in on·campus inte"i ....ing for hiring the follOWing (a ll. - Friedman ",id. R'~

forwarding This pnwidu .mplo;-." who are unable 10 inl. "·i. .... on·campu. a ,'thiele for announcing POSllion ~n · ings. CSO armou nets to sludents. as ..... 11 3 S al um ni. the posilions Ihe empl~.. r is ol/erinR and lhen coiled. rlsum~s of interested applicants and forwards them to the empl~·er. -This Sl!n'iee Seeml to work well for small firms in particular because they nOr· mally don't hire until a real need aris· es." silt e'l'tain«l.

",,',ce

AIiIMInI

pa.c....m

CSO maintams a regiSl ry of alumni seeking reloca\lOn and publi. hts pasi. tion announeement s in regular and special alumni bulletins. · When ) "OU need an upe rienct d al lom,y. CSO offet'S you a lillk to a large network of

pTliclicing professionals; ou r alumnl.Friedman Iolid. AccordinR to Friedman. current IiIw students and graduates participate in these ",,';ces. seeking employment in law r.rms of all sires and all locations. public interw organi~ations. go,.. rn· nltllt 3IIenci~•. corporations. and husi. nessu. and as judicial elerks in federal and state courts. CSO ".;(1 ha,.. an exhibition booth al \lit ALlbamII State B.. Annual ~lttli ng in Jul)' al the Stouffer RiI..."i....· Plna Hot el In Mobile . Int.. wed .mpl~.. rs are encouraged to .top by and talk wllh Friedman and other CSO staff about thtir Sf"' icts. If you are unable to attend the July meeting. write for a CSO broc· hurt at Box 8i038Z. Tuseal oou. Al abam a 35 ~ 8 i ·038Z. or phont (2051 3-18-6-179. •

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JULY 1993 1253

By James G. Slet'ens

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254 /JULV 1993

Or years the Bankrupt"!' Court has been the exclusive domain of creditor and debtor lawyers. These lawyers developed a language that no one on the "out · sillt." rould understand. "Prtpetition", "p05t·petition", "~d"ersa')' proc..ding", 'ir~.h stlr!" and other phrasu kept them protroed from inVil$ion from other lawyers. However, in the last ten years or so the Bankruptcy Court has been i!waded by an "outsider". The environmental 1a"'YI'r from the I/O"I'rnment has ~ the uninvited guest to the party, Thi. article i~ about the blurring of the lines of the traditional concept~ of the bankruptcy laws as they come in COOt.lct with the mvi ronmentallaws, The fundamental idea of a bankruptcy is that bygones should not prewnt the best current deploymt'nt of assets_Sunk coots and thei r as50Ciated prom i.e. to credi· tors create problems of allocation when the debtor cannot pay its debts as they come due. But as"'t. that cannot generate enough revtnue to pay all claims may still prodoce nd profits from current operatioru;. So bankruptcy ciuws the debtor in two. The existing claims mw;t be sat· isfi ed uelusively from existing <Wets, while the "new debtor" creat· ed os of the date that the petition is filed carries on to the extent cu rrent revenueS allow. However, having been a debtor in bankruptC)' dots not authorize the debtor to operate a nuisance today or otherwise l'XcUS( it from complying with laws 0( !!I'neral application. The fundamental idea of environmental law is that a violation of an environmental statute is in the nature of a tort and is usually one of strict liability, whereas. the traditional concept of ~ claim is one that !!I'nerally arises I!Ut of a breach 01 contract. It would make no sense under either the BankruptC}l Code Or environmental laws to say that as long as a property remains in the hands of either the debtor or a future third party that either may discharge toxic or hazardow; material without possibility of redress. but that as -'Oon os they ""II or transfer the property to a new ov...,<T, the new ov..... r is saddlid with the clean·up obligations. Bankruptcy is designed to sever the link btlween debts for bygones and current OI)erations. Just as a security interest or oUler lien l'iW"S through a bankruptcy unaffected and sticks with the assets on transfer to any new bU)"'r. SO a statuto,), obligation attached to current awnersilip of the ~ survives bankruptcy. ~ralenvironmentallaws that art the subjro of most bankruptcy cases and an overview of them ;s provided, The Compreheru;ive Environmental Response Compensation and Liability Act 42 U.S.C. §%OI el seq .. (CERCLA). known as ' Superfund", involves cleanup liability for reteases of hazardous substances at "facilities". Liability is strict. retro.>ctivt and joint and several. CERCLA places liability on current "OI'>'tlers and operators" nf a facility as well as those who owned Or operated the prOl)erty at the time of dispClSal Or who arranged for the dispClSal of hazardous substances (known as 'potentially responsible parties" IPHP'sj). CERCLA contains limited uemptions for secured parties and "innocent purcha",rs and under Wme circumstana's pays for cleanups_The U.S. Environmental Protection Agency I"EPA") ha. jurisdiction over CERCLA administ rative actions that may impose liability for "response c~l!;" on PRPs. 19607. Soclion 9606 a1lOl'>" EPA to act or order an owner/opera· tor to take action where the cootaminalion P'W's immin. nt hazard.:; to public health or the

environment. Both sections figure in claims by EPA in banhuptcy settings. The Resource Conservation and Recowry Act (RCRA), 42 U.S.C, ;6901 e/ seq. ~gulates the disposal, t~atment. storage and transportation of IwArdous w",te. RCRA . lso contairu the subtitle D landfill rules and cove~ underground storage tanks [UST!. The Alabama Department of Envi ronmental Management ("ADEW) admin i ste~ a federally approved IwArdous waste program and Ihe UST program. RCM is a cradle·t()-graw stalute design to work hand in hand with CERCIA The Clean Wat .. Act (33 U.S.C. §12S1 d seq.[CWAi regulat .. discharges of pol lutants into navigable waters of the United Stat... CWA regulatos National Pollutant Diocharge Elimination System [NPDESi ""nnits and it provides for citizen suits for vio· lation of ""nnit requirements. In Alabama, ADEN is authorized a fetlerally approved state program in lieu of the fttleral pro-gram. The Clean Air Act (42 U.S.C. §74(}1 el seq.[CM[ was amendttl in 1990 r"gulatos air poll ut ion and includes emission standards for such hanrdous air pollutants as asbtstos and ben~ene, ADEM is author ized to administer a fedually appro .... d ,tate air quality program in lieu of the federal pro-gram in Alabama. INTRODUCTION

Gener.lty. a diocharge of debts obtained in bankruptcy in both a Chapter 7 and a Chapter II case e~ tinguishes pre-pdition debts of Ihe debtor which are allowed as valid claims against the debtor in the bankruptcy proc« ding. There are several e~cep" tiorn to this general statement,.orne of which will be discusstd in thi, article. A discharge voids any judgment to the extent that it relates to an allowed claim in the bankruptcy case. A discharge also operates as an injunction against the commencement or continua_ tion 01 any act to collect, recover or ~t any such debt. §S24(a) ("Code" & "§S24" refer to the Bankrupl,), Code). In a Chapter 7~, a discharge is grantetl by the Court only under certain conditions, including: the debtor is an indi"idual: the debtor has not defrauded a creditor or the bankrupt')' .. tate by the tmnsferral: dutruction or concealment of any property 01 the estate; the debtor has not falsified Or d..troyed any 01 the financial records; the debtor has 1101 refused to obey any lawful order oIthe Court. §727(a). Under §523 of the Code, a discharge in either a Chapter 7 case or a Chapter II ca.e dots 1101 discharge the debtor from certain prepetilion ta..es owing to governmental bodies; debts relating 10 money or prope,,~ obtainttl by false ~presentation or actual fraud; debts that are neither listed nor scheduled in the debtor's schedule of assets and liabilities; debts relating to fraud or defalcation ",hi le acting in a fiduciary capacity: debts for alimony and support of a former spouse and child of the debtor; debts for a fone or Pl'nalty payable to the benefit of a gowrnmental unit that is not oomPl'nsahon for actual pecuniary loss: and debts relating to dt.llh or personal injury caused by the Debtor's OIli'mtion of a motor whicle while intoxicated from alcohol, drugs, Or other substances. §523(a). The confirmation of a plan discharges the debtor from any debt that arose prepetition, excl uding. an individual debtor from THE ALAWIA LAWYER

any debt e~ceptetl from discharge under §523 0/ the Code: a debtor if the plan provides for liquidation of all or substantially all of the property of the debtor's .,tate and the debtor dots not engage in business alltr consummation of the plan and the Debtor would be denied a discharge under §727(i ) of the Code. §I141(d). In the twnl the Chapter II plan is not consummated and the case is either dismissed or conwrtttl to • Chapter 7 case, the Court upon request of a party in interest can revoke the order of confirmation and revoke the discharge of the Debtor of Ihe vari· ous debts treated under Ihe plan. n 144. CorpOrations are 1101 discharged and the drafters of the Code apparently felt that it was not necessary for a diocharge 10 be gi>-en to the debts of. corporation. While these debts may forever "remain uncollectible". they nevertheless are not discharged under the Code. AUTOMATIC STAY PROVISION

The filing of a bankrupt')' Pl'tition dots not OIli'rate as a stay of Ihe commencement or continuation of an action Or prOCffi!· ing by a governmental unit to enforce such governmental unit', police or regulatory power. §362(b)(4) The filing of a bankrupt')' petition does not OIli'rate as a slay of the enforcernent of a judgment (other than a money judgment) obtained in an action Or proceeding by a governmental unit to enforce such gowrnmen. tal uni!"s police or regulatory power. §362(bl(5). Code $('ctiOf"l$ 362(b}(4J.(S) concerning the exceptions to till .utomatic stay provision. of the Code p.... nt the issue of whether the Stale is violating tht "stay' proviSions when attempting 10 enforce environmentalla"". The issue is whether or not Ihe State is operating under Ihe aegis of its palice .nd regulatory pCI'o.'er or seeking to oollect a money judgment. St.:tion 362(bH5) allows for the enforcement of a judgment as long as the enforcement i. not for the collection of "mon. y judgrnent". This t. nn i, not defined in the Code. The case of Penn Terra Lid. v. Deparlmenl ofErwi"l'()Olmenlai Resources. 733 F.2d 267 (3d Cir. 1984) held that an action to compel a d~btor COrpOration to comply with"" ag...,ment to cI~an up hazardo,,", wast •• was exempt from the ",Uy". The Perm Tf!mJ court ..ublished a lest to define "money judgment". The "commonly accepted usage" test has two prongs: (II an identification of the parties for and against whom the judgment i. enter~d and 12) a defini te and certain designation of the

AWARD W INNING

TUtDocLOSEReal Eslate aosing Soflware Offldally EIIIlNMd alld

R«onrm~IIdM

Allomeys' TIlle Guaraoly Fund , tnc.

JULY 19931255

amount which i$ owtd to Uv plaintiff by tilt 6tf~""""'I. TIlt f ifth Circuil Court 0( Appeals igrftd with the Ptnm Tmu ratioNte in /" IV Com_III! Oil Refmirlg Co., 805 " .2d IITS (50th Circuit 1986) whm an action to mfortt (On'IpIiano;e with RCRA "'lIS nOI m lyed beause the Klion wu not an attempt 10 rnforu I "mont)' judgmmt~ "notwilhst.inding tilt fact tNt the debtor will be "'IUd \0 npmd funds in onItr 10

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Ohio ... KOI'OCI, 469 U.S. 274 (l98S) pments conlra rondu· $ion. 1ht KOIva oourt lumtd ill; rati<.>nalt on tilt fact thaI tilt Stale of Ohio hid taken powssion 0( KIMeS' Prwtrty prior 10 tilt filing of ban kruplcy. and. thereforr. tilt state was seeKing to enforce a monty judgment. In U"i/ed Slal~s u. /I'icolel. Inc .. 857 F2d 202 (3~ Ci"uit 1988) lilt Third Circuil igain addressed tilt it.!ut ruting thai tilt iutamatic lillY did not awly 10 tilt EPA ewn though lhe llClion $OUghl rnont)' judgmtnt for prrpttition costs. TIlt court noted thiot Uv merr miry 011 rno:.>rWY judgment is not il'frcttd

by Uv ~ pt(M$ions. The litest tlK \0 dtiI with tilt SUy pn:Msion is T1w Cil¥ 01' York U. £U0tl CorporuliOtl, 932 F2d 1020 (2d Circuil 1991). This _ I CiSI: 01 fint i~ in tho 5Kond Circuit ind tilt £aon court held: The quulion 0( "'htther jfOYmImental $uils lor T«O\Itry 0(

"IN!

of environ· mtnlil $lilutH fall umltr lhe pGlice ~r eumptiGn to tilt aulamatic stay Is new 10 this circuit In addmsing il. we find tilt IfgislatiVf- history 10 lhe autOffi/ltic stay provision 10 clearly $UP. port the view thaI C(>nj/rus meant 10 ""c~pt ~malle ilICtion for completed violations of environmentallaW$ from tilt ilICtioo 0( tilt $liy. Paragraph (41 exceptS commencement or continualion

CO$ls inrurrtd in rupooding tl) romplned vioQtion$

. ,

llClion lnd pnxwlingo by tilt ~mmtnl to tnlom' poll« or rtjUlitory pOWers.. ~ when: i ~mmmt unil il $\ling i debtor to pre".,nt or $top violltion of fr.Iud. environmental pro!tCtion. COOSUmtT pr(lkCtiQn. sakty, or $imillr poll« or ~1Itory Iiws. or itltmpting 10 ~ Ior~ 0($Udl i~. tilt ¥lion or pnXftding II not st.l.yed under tilt automatic Itay. It il inlemting 10 note that tilt £aon court did not rr/y on illY 01 the ~ CUt.$ in i~ opinion and ",lied ooly on the It!I. IIlaliVf- inltnl of Congress in deciding tilt ClOSe. In "1 .. C<lmm.m:e Oil C<l.. 847 l'.2d 291 (6th Cir, 1988) tilt T~nllft.lee stat~ ~ nvironmental agency was not staytd from pro<:«dingo 10 ~t.! finn and penalties for water qualily vio~l ions igai!l$l. a debtor who filtd a Chapter II pet ition W r lilt st.l.tt igency initialed enforcemenl action. Punllhing wrongdoers. deterring illegal ¥lmt)'. ind r«O'.l:ring ",medial cow of dam· age to tM environmenl ,re all exercises of stilt .egulatory

e",

.......NDONMENT OF

CONT ... MIN ...TED PROPERTY BY DE.TO.. S Section S504(i) of lilt Code providH tNl after noti« and I htiring. tilt trustee may ibandon iIfllI Prwtrty 01 tilt Htite that i$ burderwml' to the "tate or thai ;$ of inconHquential Vllue and Ixntfit 10 lhe Utale, Arguably, when the cm~ 01 cleaning up contamination excw.! 256 IJULY 1993

tilt valUl' 01 Uv Prwtrty. then the property iI 01 inconHquential value and bent/it 10 tilt Htitt. Prior to 1986. debtors ind trusl«1 f.tquently iIlIued tNl under the circurnst.l.ncG H set Iorth~. tilt debtor's Htilt sheJuld not Ix rtqUirtd tl) clein up ill)' con4imil\lltion and tilt Court sheJuld allow ibindonment In 1986. tho Uniltd Stales Suprrmt Court (in i frve·b).IOu. decision) IItId in Mid/antic /lotiotlal &mk~. New krsev [)qJm1• mett 01' £rwirr:JrlmmtiJI Prvt«tion. 106 5.Ct. 7$5 (1986). \hal. i trustee may not obmdon prwtrty in contriVf-ntion of I $lale 5talute or rrgulation lhiot !J rusonably dnigntd to prottct tilt public ht.llth or safety from iden@edhuards. The deblor in Midl(Jl1lk procet.le<l waste oil al two locations, one in N_ York and one in New Jersty. and had violattd i~ operaling pennil by accepting more contaminated wastt oil than it could handle. ~ debtor roIrd I voluntary Chapter 11 petition, and tilt roul day tilt New Jerwy Depil.rlmtnl 01 E"";ronmenW Prottction iIwtd an administntiYt order n:quirinll the dtbtor 10 clean up the WHIt 011 sitts. SoMral months liltr. tilt debtor ~rttd iu Chipkr II Ci5e \0 i Chiopter 7 liquida· tion ast'_ A trust« was Ippoinltd in tM Chiopttr 7 ast' and quickly """"" for an ~ of both $itts. The mcortgagH on tilt dtbtor's sitts aCftded tilt Prwtr\y value and tho estimated cost of disposing 0( the "'alte pbinly c:t~ the Prwtrty 10 Ix I burden 10 Uv Htilt. The Stalt Oeparlrnenl 0( E",iron· mtnlil Protection irgucd. hQwtver. lhat abandonment of the sites wGUld threaten the public', health and safety and would violat~ not only state envi room~ntal law. bul federal environ· mentli law as well. The bankruptcy court appr(Jlled tilt abandoomenl as rrquest· td by the TNSle~. Tlltl'l'after. tilt U.S. Oi$lrict Court and lhe U,S. Court of Appeil$ lor lilt Third Circuil iffinned. The U.S . Supreme Court, howtvn, """rKII. The ration.o.lf: of the U.S. Suprr .... Court in rl:\'fuing tilt ~r court opinion _ tNt whm Coro.irw mfldtd iSS4 of tilt Code. the majGrity o(!hI: Justica felt thattherr WOK well rtOJII· niud mlriaions on i bustee'l abandonment pOWe' . Abo . .-..i· tho. the Us. Suprnnt Court nor tilt Us. Congress ' - granttd I lrustee in bankruptcy powers that would lend support II) I righl to ibandon property in cootfa'>'enlion 0( st.l.t~ or locIlliw$ duisned to protrct lhe public Iltalth and lolIfety. TY.'tnty-tighl U.s.C.1959(b) CCMTlJTIands tilt INSt~ tl) managund operate the PTOIX'rty in the lrustu's jXlt.let.!ion according 10 Ihe requir~. IIlI'n~ of th~ valid laws 01 lilt $tatt. Accordingly. Ihe majority of t he Jusl ic~, f~llthal this n~tion pr ovi ded ~vidtnct that Congress did not intend for the bankruptcy code 10 preempt all Stilt I.aws. Additional evidtnc~ that Congrnl did not inlend for Ih~ abIndon .... nt lX"''fr to mtrict 'trUin st.l.tt and Ioc.oI Iiw$ is found in the ~rnplwil 0( tilt U.S. Congms 10 prottct tilt mvironment igainst toaic poIlulion. for tQmpl~, Congrus mfId· ed the Ruoora, Conse.""tion and R«oYtry Act, 42t U.S.C.t 16901-6987. 10 rtgulite tilt I. Ulmtnl. storigt lind dispClSil 0( huardous WHIt. Also. Congress mfldtd tilt Comprrh.ensM Environmental Response. Comperulllion, and Liability Act 10 n tabli$h a time to fininCe the clunup of $Orne $itn and 10 r~quire ctrUin rnponsiblt ~rtit$ 10 reimbune eilhrr the ft deral tIOVf-mmenl or the party 10 Pl)' for thl clunup. Th~ majority poinl~d GUt thaI the w:tption \0 the abandonTHE ALABAMA u\\'lYE R

ment power does not. hov.\'\\'r. encompass ~ speculative or inde· terminate futul'l' violation ol environmental laws tllat may stem from abandonm~nt. and that tht ilbandonment power is not to be diminisOed by laws Or I'I'gulations not l'I'asonably calculated to protect the public health or safety from eminent or identifiable IliIrm. The four dissenting Just ices expressed their dilSatisfaction with tOe majority opinion by I'I'I;ing upon tOe legislative histol'}' thM don not suggest that Congress intended to limit the truste.·s authority to ab~ndon burdensome property whe .. abandonment might be ~ by those chargtd with the .xercise olstate pol iet Or regulatory llO'o>\'r. Since it was not disputed that the properties in question ,,\'re burdensome and ol il\C~uential value to the estate, forcing tht trust"' to spend .stat • ....ts to clean up the sit"" was plain· ly conlral'}' to the purposes of the Code. By barring abandonment and forcing" cleanup. Midlanlic eff<:ctively places the environment and the public ahead ()f the claims ()f other cmlito ..... nd CongUS$ did not intend that ~554 abandonment !>tari ng. should be used to estab lish the priori ty of particular claims in bankruptcy.

PRIORITY OF ENVIRONMENTAL CLAIMS IN BANKRUPTCY

C<Jtp(JraliOTl. 944 F.2d 997 (2d Cir. 1991), th~ United States Court of ApJli'als for the Second Circuit held that . 11 deanup co.t. ...-essed po$t ·petition as a result of • prepetition r.l~... or threatened release of hazardous substances are entitled to adm inistrati .... priority in the Chapter] ] reorganization of the debtor. The Chaleau{l<lll court also dealt with the more compelling issue that of " injUnctive remedi.s as ·claims·". A "claim" includ"" " (B) right to an ~Quitabl. remedy for th~ breach of per· formance if such breach gives right to a right of payment. whether or I>Ot such right to an equitable I'I'mtdy i.o; l"Nuced to judgment. fixed. contingent. matured. unmatur.d , disputed. undisputed. secured. or unsecuml .. ." Code i 101 (4)(8 ). Thus. an order to rel"l"lO\\' wast. that is not currently causing pollution and the stat. incu rred tht cost of Rmov.l and then sued for those costs.. such order is a ' claim" under the Code and as such would be dischargeable. On the other hand. if the order requires action to ameliorate current pollution. such order is not a "cI.i m". The Qutstion arises-"Wllat if the order i. both?" If the order has the dual objectiws of rel1lO\'al ()f waste ami the amelioration of current pollution. th.n such ord.r is not a "claim" and is therefor. I>Ot dischargeable. "",DLAHT,C

The legal contentions concerning the trust •• ', right to aban. don contaminated property pUl'$uant to section 554 of the Code· frequently includ. s (whether or not st.ted) the deb.te as to whether the debtor's estate must bear the expense ol clean·uP. and if so. whelher such expense should be classified as a prepeti · tion unsecured cI~im or a po$t.pelition administrati .... ""pense (which is ~iven • flut priori ty status a. .n administrative expense pursuant to §507(a)0l of the Codel or a mixture of pr'petition unsecured claim and a po$t·petition administrati .... expense , Or a super·priority which tranoeends .11 cI.ims, both secured and unsecured am! which tw no statutory basis. for e)lample. if a debtor must comply with a court order requiri ng the debtor's estate to spend 1"l"I01l(')' to clean up contamination. both secured and unsecuml cmlito ... olthe d.btor·s estate may be .d"• ...,ly affected by such requiremenl Under Code section 1129(a)(9). all po$t·petition administra· Ii.... claims under §507(a)(1) must be paid in full and in cash upon the dlreti .... date of the plan. Accordingiy. tht holder of an all~ po$t'petition administrati .... claim has the power to .... to an~ such plan proposed by the debtor if the requirement of section 1129(. )(9) is I>Ot met. The environmental law conapt that ownership of contaminated property constitutes an ongoing violation ()f the law conflicts with th~ Cod~'s design of distingu ishing betw •• n prepetition and post' petition cI~ims , and also raises se,'er.1 question:!. Art I"epelition dean·up CQ;St. entitled to administrati .... expense status? [See. Code H507Ia)0) and 503(b)l. Are post·petition acts that cause new contamination or irritate preptlition contamination entitled to po$t'petition administrati .... priority? [See: /n '" ComrmmlJX!i1/th OillMining temp<mll. 805 F.2d 1I75 (5th Cir. 1986)[. [cerl. denied at 483 U.S. 1005 (987)1. Are post'petition CQ;St. incurred in order to dean up a pr.petition environmental problem entitled to pO.It-pelilion adminislrati .... priority stalus? In the case of /n '" Chateaugay

TH!c: ALABAMA LAWY!c:R

Support for allowing as an administrati'''' priority the cost of JIO't ·petition cleanup may be drawn from Midllmlic. If property on which hazardous materials p05e a significant hazard to the public health cannot be abandoned, il must follow that expens· es to I'I'ITIO\'\' the threat p05ed by such hazardous substa"'t'S are nee .... ry to pre.."",.n estate in bankruptcy. To some extent /(OWC5 and Chateaugay present the same dilemma in deter· mining wllat aspects of an environmental injunction gi .... rise to the right of payment. The order in /(/)I/aC$ enjoined the defendants from causing further pollution of the air and public waters and requiml the defendants to remo>.... specified waste from the property_ MOlt .nvironmental decre.s contained -a negati"" order to c.... polluting" and "an am"""ti .... order to dean up the site." In /(ooacs. the Court was spaRd the n.ed to delennine precisely which obligations of the order could be said to cOOItitute " ~ cl~im" because of the State ()f Ohio's actions. ("the clean up order had been con.... rted into an obligation to pay money:) It is important to note that. as in /(ooacs. a person or fi nn in POlSelSion of a site with environmental degradation may not maintain a nuisance Or pollute the environment of the state Or refuse to remo>.... the source ()f such pollution. This is true in Alabama because the environmental statutes make it a nui,"nc~ per se to inject . pollutant into the environ"",nl without the appropriate permit. (St. In Re: OfC HrortlamJ Partners 35 ERC 10(11.) It is COOlist.nt with Mid/antic and /(ooaa; to place all injunc· tions tllat seek to remedy the ongoing poll ution on the non"claim" side. It is difficult to understand how any injunction directing ~ property O>I"'er to r.medy ongoing pollution could be conceiVl'd as ~ dischargeable claim if the owner may not maintain a nuisance in violat ion of environmental laws. In addition. it is consiSlent with M;dlanlic~ holding that the

JULY 1993/ 257

binkruptcy code dots not entitle the deblOl'i\rustH to ~ property in viobtion 01 an ",,;n:onrroenW rqjulWon INt is ro· .IOf>ab/y dosignrd to prOtKI!he public from identified hiRrds. "TT»nlO:'i: MAaAMA LAWYERS

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for oonest mistakn in busin~~ judgment. Howewr. a tnllte. can bt held pe r~l\lIlly liwlt for miJCOr\dlKt which is willful or intentional and for negligent misconduct.;and for !he ~ 101' wch misconduct. [s.... MosNr tJ. DtJmIf<o. 341 US 267 {l95 IJ);Abo. in In,., ChiwgoPrxifit: Corporation. m F.2d 9O'J (7lh Cir. 1985). the U.s. Court of AwuIs held tNt I trustH be held peOON11y lQ,ble only for willfut Iklibtrale violations of his foduc;"ry dutieo and Ford /IIoI()If' c-Jit eoo,. fW"V It. Weavu. 680 r .2d 451 !6th Cir. 1982) where the U.S. Court of Appeals for 1M Si~th Circuit held tlilot i trustH is per· SOII.lIIy liable only for willfut detibtrate a.cts in viotation 01 his rodlK;"ry dulin. n.. courts h.tw held th.ttltrustH is personally liable for the nrgligmt vioLltions of dutle$ imposed upon him by Iiw. [SH.ln n C«:h~ College Pur/(. Inc. 703 r.2d 1339 !9th Cir. 1983); IknneIt c. Williams. r .2d 822 !9th Cir. 1989): and hi ,., Conki. 766 r.2d 72J (2d Cir. 1985)[. NrgligmoI: was defined 10 H the measun: of tin: and diligen« tNt an oniiNirity prudenl pe!'$OO woutd UfrciH under simi"'r cirrumsiMl«$. SH. In '" Codrist! Cqill'gt Prrrlr. Inc.• "'pra.. In addition. a trustee il required to manage and oper~te the property in his pon~ssion according to the requiremtnts oJ 1M vatid li.ws 01 the lOote in which such property is lituated and in the ume manner that the owner would be bound to do if 1M owner wen: in poIswion of the property. 1959!b)l. The U.S. Court of Apptlls for the Eighth Circuit in Stot~ of Missouri II. U.s. &mJmiptq Court fOr lhe ENsItfT! OOIrid cI Artansas. 6t7 r.2d 768 (8th Cir. 19811. held that atthoo..Ch the bankruptcy tourt hid ju ri sdic ti on over the debtor'. proll"rt~. the trullu neV'tftheless was required to ope rate certain grain wan:housu in KCOTdance with slat~ li.w )l\Il'SlWIt to 28 U.S.C. §959!b). At so. in Wisronsin v. &11..,- 8ril~ PlQt~ Inc.. Wi•. Ct. App. No.90·02SO. a trustee wH held perlOr'latty Ii>ble by the trial court for failing to ob\.l.in a lOote tice".., to stort huIordous Wlslt upon 1M debtor's prI.lIlUI)'. and for costs irwo!vtd in rm'IOYing wch wasu. On appulto the ""oconsin Appellllte Court. the trill court's ruting was ~rxd ;and the cue TtlTIiOded for further harings to del(nnine whether !he tru5t«'s oonduct WH ..il1ful or intmtioNl.

may

CONCLUSION

Traffic Accident Reconstruction

Environmentallawsare cotlidingw;th the Bankruptcy Code aI ewr·incrrasing ral( and the tor\!itqumct oJ ,U(h a rolliJion may fonvtr cIw!ge the role of the binkruptcy court. GoYtm· mall Iliwyen an: being laced ..ith the cJecision oI ..t.ether or IlOt 10 file !he iO"tmmmt'1 "claim" in the bankruptcy «rUrt or tiUpte its ·clllim" in another forum. The tonnkli hetwun bankruptcy Iow$ and tnviroruroentallllws an: compounding the miny compl" issues dult with in the bankruptcy court and thereby placinS an additional level or expertiK on the lawytl'S practicing in that court. •

ALBERT MEDINA 'IrujfiL !kciJkN I CCftSJIIUI I~C01lSIr..uitmisl ~O . IO«_

258 I JULYI993

OOOHTOOUER'I'. ........ "'. :11.2< (2OSJffl·1WI

THE AI.A6AMA I.AWYER

DISCIPLINARY REPORT Suspension s

• Birmingham attorney Cheder L. Brown has been suspended from the practice o/Iaw by the Oisciplinary Commission of the Alabama State Bar, pursuant to Rule 25(.~. Rul •• 01 l)isciplinary Pr""",dure (Interim). This suspension is . ... utl of reciprocal discipline set by the California State Bar. being

retroacti,"( \(1 November 17. 1988. for a period of w;en years. 'U$peruion being stayed on the condition that the '",pond.,,1

..,rw fi"o

years actual suspension. The respondent must also

make restitution and retake the ethiC! portion of the California Slate Bar and the Alabama State Bar examinations. [Rule 25(a] Pet. M-041

• The Supreme Court of Alabama. dfective April 19. 1993. suspended Robl'rt W. Cralllom from the practice of law in the courts of the State of Alabama. Graham', suspension "'Il$ based on an ordor of the Disciplinary Commi.. ion of the Alabama State Bar. suspending Craham from the practice of law. [Rule 20(a) Pet. 1193·01 [ • The Supreme Court of Alabatn/l. eff~ctiw April 9. 1993. suspended Jamu Edmund Odum. Jr. from the practice of law in til. court> <If the State of Al abama. Odum's suspenSion was ~ on an order of the Disciplinary Commission of the Alaba· tn/I State Bar suspending him from the practice of law. [Rule 20(a) Pd. *93.(12J • The Supreme Court of Alabatn/l. in an order dated A/lriI17. 1993. suspended Talladega attorney Jack E. Swinford from the practice of law in tile state of Alabama. The suspension i. to!)( for a pi'riod bfginning A/lri127. 1993 ,md ending 90 days fol· lowing Swinford's release from incarceration he is presently serving for criminal convictions of criminally negligent homi· dde while in violation of Code of Alabama. 1975. 132·5A. 191(2). and ilS$iIult in the third deg .... Swinford'. su>pens ion is ~d upon an order of the Disciplinary CommiSSion of the Alabama State Bar suspending him for said convictions. pursuant to Rul. 22(aH2). Alabama Rules of Disciplinary Procedure Iinterim). IRul. 22(a)(2) Pet. *93·021 Public Reprimand. • On March 26. 1993. Alabatn/l lawyer Edward Lewi. lIohn Wi> publidy reprimanded. in absentia, by the Alabama State Bar. Said reprimand was administered pursuant to Rule 25Ia). Alabama Rules of Disciplinary Procedure (Interim), which provide. r~ i procal discipline for Alabama lawyers disciplined in other jurisdictions. By order of the Supreme Court of Arirona , dat.d July 15. 1992. Hohn Wi> publicly censured by tilat body for violating certain disciplinary rules. The violations arose out (}I Hohn's wrongfully filing a lis pendens and I<nd ing a daim leUer to an Alaskan insurance title company in a wrongful attempt to freeze assets of another party. [Rule 251al Pet. 1192·031 • C3dsden attorney John S. Morgan Wi> publicly .. primand· ed May 21. 1993 for violation of Rule 8.4ld) of the Ruin of Professional Conduct which provid~' that it i, proleuional THE ALABAMA LAWYER

misconduct lor a lawyer to commit a criminal act that reOects ad",rsely on hi' fitn .., to practic. law, and Rulf 8.4(g) which provides that it is prof.",ional mi.conduct lor a lawyer to engage in conduct that adwrs.ely rtnects on his fitn .., to prac· tice law. On August 5. 1992. Morgan entered a plea of gu il ty in the circuit cou" of Etowah County to unla"-ful possession of marijuana in tile second d.gru and as.I>Iult in the third degree. [ASB No. 92·263) • On May 21. 1993, Dothan a\torney Chart.. B. Adamo recti",d a public .. primand in two conwlidated casts. Adams wi> appointed to "present two ind ividual> in conjunction with their criminal aPllfals. Adams failed to file briefs in those cases ewn though the court of criminal appeals advil<d him that thi' failure constituted presumpt iw ineffective assistance of counl<l undOT Alabama cast law. On. appeal end.d up !)(ing dismissed and new counsel was appointed in the other cast. In one instance. Adams cited his wife's illne", and trial prepara· tion in other cases. lie offem! no excul< in the I<cond cast. The DiSCipli nary Commi5sion l(}Und that Adams had violated Ruin 1.1. 1.2 and 1.3 of the Rules of Professional Conduct. lASS NO$. 91-391 and 92·529) • Sinningham attorney Mark O. McKnight wi> publicly rep· rimanded May 21. 1993 on hi. plea of guilty of violating the Rules of Professional Conduct in three I<parate cast •. In ASB No, 90-400. a client deposited $32.500 in McKnight". tru,t account which was to ~ ul<d to satisfy a lien on the dient"s ...i<ltn",. On the date of dosing. another attorney in McKnight's office discovered that McKnighl"s tru.o;t account did not contain $32.500. but. in fact. contained less than S3.200. Despite this lact. McKnight pTOComied with the cast and deliv· ered tn the financial institution a check drawn on hi, trust account in the amnunt of $32.500. Thi. chock Wi> ,ubl<quent. Iy returned for insufficient funds . Thereafter, McKnight bor· rowed money in order to make this check good. The Disciplinary Board det~rmined tilat McKnight"s conduct violat · .d DR 9·102(B)(4) which proviMs that a lawyer shall not mis· apPl'OJlriate the funds of his cl ient. In ASH No. 90·933(A), McKnight was contacted by the Crievance CommiU~e 01 the Birmingham Bar Auociation in connection with its inwstigation of possible misuse of trust funds by McKn ight. After repeated requests from the Crievance Committee. McKnight ultimately produced hi, tru.o;t account rKonls which sh"".. d negati'" balances for the mnnths of Jan· uary. February and March 1990. The Disciplinary Board deter· mined that McKnight's conduct violated DR 9· 102181131 which provide. that a lawy<>r shall maintain complete rKOnls 01 all funds. securities and othOT propertie, of adient. )n ASS No. 91·189(,\). McKnight was employed to rtpre.. nt cli.nts in an uncontested divorce proceeding. He prep.lred the necessary pape" which the client•• igned but he lailed to file the papers with the court. Thereafter. McKnight represtnted to his clients that the divorce papers had !)(en fLIed and that they wert legally divorced. Subsequently. th~ client. " .. nt to the JULYI993 f 259

Christian Legal Society The Alab<lma Chapte r of the Ch ristia n Legal

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,._ ".,.~d,....,.

260 IJULY 1993

"~d.

9]·189(,1.)1

• Montgome!), attorney J.mu R. COOJ"'1". Jr. was pub li cly reprimanded May 21. 1993. COIlpOr had represented a female dient in a child custody proceeding against her fI .. t husband. Very shortly thereafter. he "ithdrew from further representa· tion of her and later sued he' for divorce on behalf of her sec· ond husband. When the parties came to Cooper saying they wanted to reconcile. he had the wife sign an affidavit holding him harmless from "any and all causes of action oon«ivdble" and furth .. stating that she felt ther. was no conmct of inter· est in his filing the divorce action. Cooper entered a guilty plea to violating Rule 1.8(h) which proscribes a la"";"" '5 prospec· tiwly limiting his liability to a client. IASB No. 92-2681 • Montgo"",!), attorney J. Rk~rd Piel waS giwn a puhlic reprimand May 21. 1993. Piel was found to h3ve willfully neglected a legal matter and. in so doing, also failed to communicate with his clients. Piel handled a rea l estate closing and recorded the documents in the wrong county. The clients' copies of the closing documents were sent to an incorrect addren and. thus. were newr receiwd by them. It took the clients nine month. to straighlen out the situation. This occurred only after the clients hired another lawyer to assist them. Piel defended himself on the grounds that his secretaries neYer made him aware of the pr(lblem. Also. Rule 5.3 makes a lawyer responsible for supervised employe,, ' conduct if it would be unethical if committed by the lawyer. IASB No. 92-

3851

With >ccess to th. S"le uw Library and W.,U.",. ,'''e

Farnell

courthouse and discovered that the di\I<J"e had ntver been filed and they were not di\I<Jrced from each other. The Disciptina!)' Board determilled that McKn ight's conduct constituted a violation of DR 6-101 which provides that a la"yw Shalt not willfully neglect a legal matter entrwted to him. tn addition to the public reprimand. the Disciplinary Board further detmnined that McKnight shoutd be pta«d on proba· tion for a period of two years. beginning January I. 1993. During the probationary period. McKnight is to submit monthly reports from hi' accountant. his psychiatrist and his Alco· holic's Anonymous sponsor. IASB Nos. 90-400. 90·933(,1.1 &

__ "'oe.,..b,jiikl

.,..b"iiklw_~

• On May 21. 1993 Birmingham allorney G,..,g",)' D. Jonu was publicly reprimanded by the Alab.llTlll State Bar for willfully

neglecting a legal mati .. entrusted to him. for failing to carry out a contract of employment entered into with a dient for professional services. and Jor prejud icing Or damaging his client during the course of the professi(\f\/ll ,..,Iationship. Jones agreed to repr. .. nt a client in a personal injury mat· ter. He ,,'as advanced a r.ting fee to proc. ss the lawsuit on behalf of the client. HOWt\'er. Jones allcl'l',ed the .tatut. of limi tations to run on any claim that the clienl had for negligence. The clienl then med a complaint against Jones . During the investigation of this maU ... it Was discovered that Jones was not aware that the statute of limitations for a wantonness claim on behalf of the client had not expired. but he had still failed to pursue a civil lawsuit On behalf of the clien!. The investigation further disclosed that Jones attempted to have the client .ign a releas<e releasing Jone5 from any and ali liabil· ity concerning his repre.. ntation of the client. in considera· tion of Sl. The Discipli nary Commission orde'ed that Jones reeei,,,, a public reprimand without generall>Ublication. IASB NO. 92-4571 • THE ALABAMA LAWYER

PRODUCTS LIABILITY AND CONTRIBUTORY NEGLIGENCE In the Wake of Williams v. Delta International Machinery Corp.

n M~rch of thi' year, the AI,hlml Supreme Court rtlcUfd tilt Iong-lIlticipat. cd dc ci5ion in WilUams II. /RIta inlemaliooal Machin~ (Hp.. No. CV-88G4573. slip op. ~ />b.n:h 12. 19931. WiII,."". t..d p~1y been ",!used. withdrawn MOd the court h.ad ill but announ«d thaI it ""lUld adopt JOITIf form of romporali,.., Mgli~nu, It did not. n.. (,,,,,1 dec,· lion. with no gT()IJOOs wigned, declined to adopt compantive negligence and rdaintd conlributol')' negligence under

Alab/l"", products liability llw. The deci .ion not 10 chinge contributo]), negli ·

genee also

avoi~.d

the nHusity of

IoddrusiOJl 1M quulion of joint rnd ONtrJJ liability. While the decision not to adopt compor,tive oegligenu Qptu<fd the hadlinu, the most ilTlpOf1Mlt ;oddi-

I;OMI iuue decided by Ih court in Williams ....u the rtlffi~tioo of the ddon$t of contributoTY negligence in

producu lidlility

QK$

under

A~"",

subSUntM 11.....

Tht conf~ JllItw 01 Alabama's law on contributory negligence u a proper defen", arOI( as l rnull of language TH E AlJI6AMA lJIWYt:R

UKd in 1'- wurt's 1991 dtci.!ion of Dm-

nis v. AmoYiom 11cnda. 585 So. 2d 1336 tAla. 1991). In [)moiJ. 1M court held that it wu trl'Of 10 chal# w jury on conlributory ntlllijjom« oil pblntiff in W UK 01_ prOduct tl Vlr'l\iha rootor· cycle) while a .~l'it( product (motor· cycle helmet beina wom ~ W pI;ointift) wu the prO!.Iuct alitltd 10 be d.rftctM. The court oYertumed I ckf(nK YeTd'.:! on bthal( of Honda. choosing 10 release that opinion e~n thoulh lho cue had

previously bttn seUled. AJ. a result of the Dmllis decision. two yean of apparent confusion occurred with both the lxn>:h and the bar. The pl;.intiff't Nr arQued "cont ributory neg· lii!tnc:<= in producu IWlility is dead" and immediatdy rnoYed to ~rikt tht dde"", of contributory ntaliatna in many products liability asu. The unalUinty eruted by Dmnit wu relltcted by Justice Houston. writina for the coort in ItiIlJilms. "'-tltn he slllN' •... [B[talUH thou appuf"I to be some confusion as to the p. . .r interpretation of DmniJ v. ~ Handa Molor Ca .• WI! dir«t the allention of the Ileneh and Bar to the ~cific holding In Dmnls...."

"The reports of my death are greatly exaggerated" -Mark lWain

By D. Alan Thomas and Nancy S. Ake! JUI.VI99J / 261

Williams, ,lip op. at 4. Justice Houston went on to ~.ptain the factual situation of the accident made the basis of that case. that the plaintiff was alleged to haw negligently used a Yamaha motor· cycle while the products liability claim concerned a Honda helmet hi: was wear· ing at the time of the accident. The oourt sLlted: "If the con t r ibutory negligence instruction had been limited to th e plaintiffs failure to e:<e"ise reasonable care in his wearing of the helmet (i.e., could have been related to an aUeged product misuse). then such an irutruc' tion would have bttn proper under this Court 's previOUS interpreLltions of the AEMLD: !d. at 5. Justice Houston pointed out that: 'The trial error in Dennis was in not limiting the contribulor!l negligence charge to the plaintiffs use of thl: htl· met as opposed to the plaintiffs alleged negligent Operation of hi:; motorcycle: Although contributory ~gligence has been ~cognized generally as a defense

to AEMLD actions. in Atkins v. Ameri· can Molors, 335 So.2d 134 (Ala, 1976).

this Court .seemed to indicate that the defense is available only under certain defensive theories, e,g., 'plaintiffs mis· use of produc\': /d. (citations omilled) (emphasis added) In this language, t he Alabama Supreme Court has reaffirmed the existence of contributory negligenct in products cases stemming back to the adoption of the Alabama Extended Man· ufacturer's Liability Doctrine. Hlatorica. background

In 1976. the Alabama Supreme Court decided the twin casts of ilIkins v. American Molors Q,rp.. J35 So.Zd 134 IAla. 1976). and Casrell o. Allee fndws· Iries, Inc.. 335 So.2d 128 (Al a. 19761. The supreme court at that time had been urged to adopt 'strict li~bility" under 1U:srAT'F.!otENT (5£C()~D) 0' TOII"TS §. 402A (1964). In deciding those case •. the court d«lined to adopt strict liabili· ty due to long-5tanding Alabama history

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of the "Iault concept " ingrained in Alabama substantive law and in Alabama products liability law prior to 1976. In fashioning what was t""md the Alaba· ma Extended Manufacturer's Liabi lity Doctrine ("AE MLD"I. the court .peelli· cally retained this "fault concept" as a prere~uisite for the finding of liability on the part of a defendant manufactur· n. While the court stated that fault or "scienter" wou ld be supplied as a matter of law if a product ",as sold in a <kf~ti"" condition/unreasonably dangerous and if that def~tiw condition was a proxi· mate result of the plaint iffs injuries. allowing Alab~ma to retain the fault· based affirmative defensu. includ ing contributory negligerlCe. From Casrell and Alkiru, this concept of fault permeated the Alabama deci· sion> which foIlQ'ol."ed, The basic premise was that a plaintiff who contributed to hi5lher own injury (fault) could not recover damages even if the def~n<lant wal also at fault. "Th e injury may be imputed as much to the negligence of the plaintiff. as of the defendant: and. if $0. the defendant was not liable. and so should the law have bt.n stated to the jury: 8elhiia v. Taylor. 3 Stew. 482 (Ala. 1831). Alabama cases decided sub· sequent to the adoption of the AEMLD consistently htld the concept 01 fault (negligence) of the plaintiff to be latal to a plaintiffs product liabili ty case, follow· ing 10ng'ltanding Alabama law. E,g.. Johnson v. Niogro MIlCh. & Tool Works. 555 So.2d 88 (Ala. 1989) (" ITlh~ con· duct of the plaintiff in certain cases may be I(> lacking in reasonable care for his Own ""fety that reasonable mind!; may not differ on the issue of the plaintiff's own negligence"): Harlev-Davi<hon. Inc. v. Toomey, 521 So.2d 971. 974·75 (Ala. 1988) ("Upon railing the affirmative defense of con t ributory negligence. defendant has the burd~n of proving that (I) plaintiff fail ed to use due care for hiJ; own, or ... his property's ",,{tty• and (21 that such a failure was a pro~i· mate cause of the inju ry: Quoting Americ:an Furniture Galleries. Inc. ". Mc!illne. Inc.. 477 So2d 369. 372 (Ala. 1985)1: General MOlors Corp. v. £dU'ards. 482 So.2d 1176. 1192 (Ala.

1985) (Alabama Supreme Court specifi· cally reLlined contributory negligence as an affirmative defense in automobil. "crashworthiness" cases.): Caterpillar THE ALAB,v,\A LAWY£1l

Tractor Co. v. Ford, 406 So.2d 854. 856 (Ala. 19811 (" In addition to the general denial defense. the defendant may also am"""tively raise the negligent conduct of tilt pl>intiff in using the product ...... ). See also Fen/ell v. Rau.<elle CO'1'.• 531 So. 2d 304 (Ala. 1988); &an. RoeIJuck& Co. v. lIuten 1I;lIs Form. Inc., 395 So. 2d !lSI (Ala. 19811. Cf. 11'01l1lCf' v. ~. 484 So.2d 404 (Ala. 1986) (plain t iff found to be contributorily negligent afier failing to tum off the pcM~r supply. 10 a fish $/OW before attempting to dean it). In addition , contributor}' negli gence usually was accompanied b)' tenninology regarding the plaintiffs · usage of the product· . As Just ice Houston pointed out in Williams. the C<JSrnll decision dis· cussed contributory negl igence in the context of the plaintiffs use of 1m prod· uct. This terminology was adopted in the Alabama rattern Jur}' Charge syn· onymously using the terms contributory negligence and misuse in the products liability conte~1. APJJ 32.19 Contributory Negligence Deferne The defendant charges that the (user)(consumer) (was contributorily negligent in the use of the product) (misused the product). The notes regarding the jury ch.rge additi(mally state that mi,use has not been specif,ca lly defintd in Alabama and th.t the AI.b.ma Supreme Cou rt had not made a distinction belwffn "intend· ed use" and "misuse" Or whether there was any difference belwffn "mUu.se" and "contri butory neglige~". Misuse was also aWocated in the small number of products li.b ility cases brought sokly under implied warranty theorie, where trad itional "f. ult-based" defense •• uch as contributor}' negligence would not be available. This obviously blurred the distinction between the con· tract-based warranty actions and negli gence-b<lstd AEMLD actions. The court's "misuse" versus "contribu· tory negli gence" distinction ~ppa .. ntly exi.ted in narm only. Semantics aside , the standardlburden of proof for the defendant "'M ploinliff. foilu.. to er<!1"'

rise

re(15()nobie care for his

QUm

safe/II ,

whether called contributor)l negligence or misuse. That stand. rd. outlined in the Atabama Pattern JUr)llnst ructions. THE ALABA/>\A t.\WYER

was universally accepted and applied based on the fundamental concept that. plaintiff could not m:over for an injury which he ~ither caused or contributed 10 cau.t. Throughout the decisions released from CaSTel/to Dmnis. tilt con· tributory negligence defense was "con· tributory negligeneo in the U5t of the product· . dn inescapabl e COmmOn thread.

Dennl. v. A",.r/c _" Homt. In Dermis. a sotely unique f.ct .itu.· tion existed. The trial jury was charged as to contributory negligence. The only contributory negligence alleged by the defend. nt was the plaintiff, use of the Yamaha motorcy<:le. The problem was that the Yamaha rnotorcy<:le was not the product allegtd to be defective. There WM no claim made that the pl>intiff was negligent in hi. use of the Honda hel · met. although assumption of the ris k wos • viab l. and affirmatively pled def.,..... In reversing American Honda's ,~rdict against the brain-<larnaged plaintiff, the court di.tinguuhed be"".. en contributory negligence in the use of the product and contributory negligence not associated with plaintiffs use of the product alleged to be defectiw. The court's hold ing was not a chang. from the prior 14 }'\!ars of AE MLD decisions on contributory negligence. but rather a limit ed dis· tinction m.de in that unique factual . ituation. The cou rt. ho,.-ever. did cite from a number of "strict liability" jurU· dictions in it. discussion of proouct "misuse- versuS ordinary contributory negligence. while assumingty ignoring the "fault "·ba'ed coneopt. ingrained through<lut the history of Alabama prod· uct liabilitj> law. Justice Maddox dearly pointed out the confusion in his dissent inDmnis. The language used in Dermis regard· ing the plaintiffs negligence in the "cau · sation- of the accident. unexpectedly prowd to be somewhat unfortunate. set· ting off a plethora of motions in the trial courts to strike the defe,.... of contribu· tory negligence in produch liability ca .... Th • • pparent confusion wh ich resulted was limited to the local bench and bar. but did not rise to the appellate court 1("Vet. Deci.ions released after Dennis dearly

held that contributory negligence of the pl>i ntiff in /"" use of the prrxiuct was a valid defense to products liability actions. ~'or example; In Corn v. Ford Mo/or Co.. 601 So.2d 953 (Ala. 1992). the plaintiff decedent was not ,.~.ring hi. seatbelt and died when hi. ~hicl. W"-\ involvtd in a one-car accident. rolled and landed on its roof. In defense of plaintiffs crashworthiness claim. the defendant userted pl>in\lffs contributory negli gence in faili ng to w.ar a seatbelt . Although the only issue On .ppeal was whether the State of Alabama should abandon contributory ne gligence in favor of comparative ne gligence, the ddense verdict was affirmed and in doing so. the court. in dicta, acknowl· edged that the plaintiffs failure to wear his seatbelt i. properly considered in the contributory neSl i~nce defe,..... This issue. the contributory negli · gence defe,..... was preirow;ly considered by the Elevtnth Circuit in Ferguson v. B"JIu ische MotoTen Werke. A.G ..

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1'2d 360 (1 1th Ci r. 1989), The plaintiff recei~d pe rsonal inju ri es in • one-,:.u accident and brought.uit under AE MLD alleging that tilt vehicle was not "crash· worthy". One of the defenses asserted WM that plaintiff was contributorily neg· ligent in her failure to use the safety restraint system provided in the vehicle under Alabama law. The Eleventh Circuit iUformtd the jury verdict in f",'O r Qf the defendant. and thus affirmed the DiSlrict Court's jury charge on contributory negligence which included discus .ion Qf the plaintiffs failure to wear her seatbelt. Stt also Culledge v. Broun & Root. Inc.. 598 So.2d 1325 (Ala. 1992) (Cou rt defined contributor)' negligence as plaintiffs "faillurelto e, erci,. ordi · nary care to diseovtr and avoid the dan· ge r .nd the injury·. Id. at 1327. (Citation and emphasis omi tted)). MISUSE, AND INOT INSTEAD OF) CONTRIBUTORY NEGLIGENCE IN THE USE OF A PRODUCT

Unfortunately. after Dermis. a pattem jury charge was adopted which employed (. pparently with no .pecific case author· ity) a different definition and burden of proof for th e defen .. of ·product misuse". APJ I 32.19 (Revised) and 32.19.1. Product misuse was defi ned in that jury

JULY 1993 / 263

d~~ as a 11M' tl>l.t ""lIS T/OI foJ'ltS«<lble IJf 1M dde7td<m1 manufaclurer. WhH~

_ .. d e ctive pIGduct which. un,~le. unsafe condition. injured pLiintiff or damagrd his property wtlm such property. substan· t ilily unlltered . wu put 10 ils mlmdftl!lSot. AlkinJ. 33S So.2d at 139. Thi, concept of l se~flle ddenK of "mi$uK" was 11.$0 nottd in the 1992 C* of IMlg D. M. Trigg £nl~ Inc.• 605 So.2d 1185 (AI ... 1992 ). In KetlJl. the court .tlted thlll it WllS affi rming the prindPioI tN.t misuse i, a det"enK under the AEMLIl citing Ban",r 1Il!11krs. Inc. ~. Knighton. 425 So.2d 441 (Ala. 1982). A. the authority for this derenn the cou rt did not dte from any prtviou. A~rT\IIlJ«ision . but I"lItlltr from a l.iw tWiN lrt icle which . latt<!: "Iwlhen lI$Krtinll misuse lIS .. deft .... under AEMLO. the ddendant must tstablish thit the piaintiff used the prod. uct in _ 1IWIIIt. dilkrtnt from that intendtd by the n"IlnufacluR'. Suted differently. pLiintill's misuse of the product must not hive bttn ·rtaSOOably fore· _.>ble by the Rlltr or manufactu~r'"_ Edward C. Martin . Alabama Extended

bt...o\lS<:' of ill

bdo~. the IIistinction IItt"'"ffn misuK MId conlribulO<y nti!~e in tho \IS<:' of lhe product wu primarily Kmantic. lho "ntW'" ddinition ienoffii tho long. helll definition of contributory negligmct ~ upon lhe relatM fault of tho J)l.rtiu. The ttiditionool standard of con· IributOf)' nti!illellCf' was tholt lhe plain · tiff fai led 10 extrdK rta.o;mabl( tare in disrtgard for his """ safely which ""lIS a proximate cauu (even if not the only tauw) of his injury. If the product misuK definition is in fact Ala~ma law. then there is now i new ddtnsr. product misust. The tul of "product misuse" is the manufxtur· ,,', subjutiw (ores'tQb/e UK of the product U oPfM)ud to the N!tlWnQble rare of the p/Qinliff in his lISt or thlll product. This is in addition to tho pWntiffs burden to pnM thllt tilt product was being ~ for ill "intmded \IS<:'" at the time of the KCml. ... ITlhe I/I"lI ..... rnen of tilt action i.tl>l.t the defendant rT\IInufaclured or &signed

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Jack Mc Carn Mickie Mc Carn Edwards r.

R«llty Inswonce Agency. Inc ' 0 !lOX ~ 17 S 1lo".. ,gI... , .. ~

264 JJULY 1993

1().10 (1990).

The Alibiml Supreme Court noted in 19n thit m~ rould lit a defense to ;an AEMW xtion in the QK of ,'fCCtlIttb ... Madtq Point MI(I. Co.. Inc. • 343 So.2d Sit (Ala. 19771. The court noted that the plaintiff in McCaleb had used the product invo lved in a manner not intended by t he manufactu rer. The inslnuatioo was that while misuse could lit considered as a defenK. ill; origin was in the original elements of the plaintiffs prirT\ll facie cue under the AEMLD. If the . tandard by which mi,uK is to lit: judged is the Intended 11M' contemplated by the rT\IIIIul"acturu. it iIClPUrs there ~re now two different deft ....... misuse md cootributory nti!l&tnce. with two t(llaliy sepil"llte suncbrds of proof. M'SUSE VERSUS

CONTfUeUTORY NEGLIGENCE Many factual situations involve both contributOf)' ntlllillt"IICf' (failure to enrcise reuonable care ;n the use of the

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product in question) ilnd misuse (an unintended use). For example, our plaintiff-to-be is "Bubba Joe: the driver of a tractor·trail~r truck on the ill.fated day of his accident. Prior to the acci· dent. he ronsumed a fifth of Jack Daniels which mayor may not have been th~ reason Ilubba Joe faited to connect the air brakes to the traitor he was using. In the ensuing actidtnt Bubba Joe was in · jured. Bubba Joe's alcoholic consumption while atte mpting to opuate a 80.000 pound truck and trailu clurly may have been one of the proximate causes of his injury. In a product liabili· ty "ction against the truck ITIiInufactur· er. Bubba may have been contributorily negligent when he was unable to stop the truck at a "T" intersect ion while traveling 85 MPH (failure to exereise reasonable care for his own safety ;n the US(' of the trock). Ilubba's actioru may ha,.. also been a product misuse (very few tTUtor·trailer ITIiInufacturers intend to have their producl.\ operated at speeds greatly txcteding the legal jX)Sted limits by an intoxicattd person. They certainly do oot intern! to have the trock operated with the air brakes dis«lnnerttd.) In most situations. both contributory ""gli~nce and misuse may be present. However. many accidents occur when the plaintiff is using a product in a ITIiIn· ner intendtd by the manufacturer. but in his or her use of the product the plaintiff fails to exercise reasonable car. and ;s injured. For exIImple. our fictitious Ilubba Joe recoverS from his trod·

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TIlE Al.AIlA"tA LAWYER

trailer ac~ident and goes to W(lrk as an operator of a table ~w with a dado cutting bl~de. On the day of the accidentto-~. Bubba Joe is cuuing woodstock with the table ~w la use intended by the saw manufacturer). Unfortunately. Bubba Joe is prroccupied in discussing "n upcoming wrestling match with another worker and while his head i. turned, Ilubba Joe suffers ~n injury to his dominant bowling hand. While Ilubba Joe lTIiIy not have been misusing the table ~w. he clearly failed to exer· cise reasonable care in the use of the saw and was contributorily negligent. Can a product be misused (thereby supplying a defenst to a product manuf~cturer) without the plaintiff being contributorily negligent? loe!"s iWume our fictitious Ilubba Joe com~. home from work and "Uempts to trim his hedge with his Yazoo la"'l1moweT. In this familiar example of stupidity. Bubba Joe not only is injured. but ;s guilty of negligence and a misuse of the product. But le\"s assume that instead of Bubba Joe dropping the Yazoo lawn· ITIOWtr on himself. he dropped it on his lovely wife. Sallie Jo. who WaS sun· bathing on the other side of the hed~. Sallie Jo was compl~tely innocent of any negligence on her part (other than ITIiIrrying Bubba). How."er. there is still a misuse of the product. While the result ITIiIY uem wmewhat harsh. the misuse of the lawnmow.. would prevent Sallie Jo from ,"covering in a Cast against the manufocturer. The critical te.t of ' product misuse" is nOI necessarily the conduct of the plaintiff. The test. whether couched in terms of the plaintiffs burden of proof Or as the defendan!"s affirmative defense. is the reasonablv intended use of the product.

The Alabama Supreme Court .. cently affirmed that type anall"is in the Kellv case. In Kelli/ a products liability claim was adllanced against the ITIiInufactu",r of an air freshener which was being US('d as an inhalant II}' the driver of an automobile. That vehicle was then involved in an acddent with the plaintiffs automobile. In that cast. the alleged misuse of the air freshenerl inhalant was not II}' the plaintiff but rather by ~ third party. The court held ·1.llthough under the present circumstances. the alleged mis· use of the Iproduct l was by one other

than the plaintiffs. the above principles ['when asserting misuse as a defense unde r AEMLD. the defendant must establish that the plaintiff used the product in some ITIiInner diff.. ~nt from that intended by the manufacturer'[ are equally applicable." Kelli/. 605 So.2d at 1192.

Theoretically. it might be pOsSible to ha"e misuse without contributory negligence when the user of the prod· uct is also the plaintiff. There a", not any reported Alilbama cases on the sub· ject. As a practical ITIiItter, h(lWt"\.. r. a plaintiffs use of the product in an unintended manner probab ly also would carry with it by implication a failure to nereise due care in the use of that product. THE WILLIAMS CASE

The AlabalTlil Supreme Court in that unanimous portion of Williams v. Della tnlemational ""IlChineTJI Q,rp. specifically put to rest the ~pparent confusion ~reated by De,mis. Justice Houston writing for the court clarified precisely the very limited holding of "the role of Dennis". As Justice Houston wrote, the trial court emd in Dennis by failing to limit the contributory negligence charge to the use of the product alleged to be defective. Clearly. had a contributory negligence charge been related to the US(' of the Honda helmet. it would have also b.en prope .. On the other hand, had th~ plain t iffs case been against the manufacturer of the motorcycle he negligently operated. a contrib· utory negligenc. charge rtga.ding the operation of the motorcycle (specifically having to do with the causation of the accident) would have been proper. This would be the case in the vast majority of the products liability htiglttioo pending in Alilbama. For the purposes of distinguishing bet".. en misuse and contributory negligence in products casts. the language of Williarm is clear (discussing the Dennis case):

11 the contribu t ory negligenc. instructions had been limited to the plaintiffs failure to exen:i.s4 reasonabk catV in his wearing of the hol""'t. (i.e. if it had related to an alleged product mis· use). then such instroction would haw bttn proper under this court's previous intefJlretation of the AEMLD. JULY 19931 265

Williunu. slip Op. ~t 5, (~mphasis;added) 1'wo imp(lrUnl iMua m'

Williams ilRlf. The specific question in that CiH wu I'lOl whether thr table uw ind dado blade wen being u..,d in thr manner lor which ~11i Machin· ery inltnded. Thtl't wu abwluttly no ;s.sue rii ..d thlot the pliinti/f used the tablt saw in an uninttnded manner. Tht Jo/e quution was wh ether Ihe plaintiff t xtrciStd due (l.re for hi. own safety whilt U$ing tM saw. In l'ti1liamJ, th. plaintiffs' conduct which wU t~ basis lor t~ ruffiflTlation of contribu· tory nqlligng WM Jl)fCiroc;o]ly I'tiat.-d to the ciuu.t ion of th. accident, not ""'"' t~"pt of improptr use 01 thr prOd. uct. TIlit is the ttlt of contributory negligence under Alabama product lia· bility law, Tht campaign insiJtinllthat contrib· utory nelfligtnce "'1$ ~lttUted by Om· nis c. America lfonda has Il«n 51.rong. A ulWlimous toUr! in 11,11"""" has pul thoso rumors 10 rHI. One hundred and silty-two yon of Alabama law r.prd·

ill

I~ court's Wl~. !'in!, il is Pl'OPtr to cNl'\lt .. jury ~rdillll coolribuloq nt(IligmOl! in Iht u .. of th~ prod uti In~g~d 10 be ddecti"", Second, the proptr sandard for contributory ntgH. senct in I Alabama products liabilily cue II whether the plain/iff 1!X~rt;jsed r t<lJanable Care in his Or her use Or opention of the product. Tht standard fo r cont ributory ntgligtnct is not .... htther the product wu u ..d in the INIIM' inttnlk<:! by the INnUIKtuu. Imi$\lSt) or whdher Iht user knew, understood 'nd loppreciattd I danger IUlumption of the risk), but . athtr i tut of the plaintiffs conduct, I»Kd on his faul t Or negligence, which deter· minn hil Ibility to reco~er under A1ab/Il1\iIlaw, Tht mo)5t obvious tumplt of «Intributory nrgli~nct in thr prOducl.llilbili . ty contnt il found in the lieU of

ing contributory negligence. includina;

_nt"" yon with contributory neg·

lig.nce in products liibility usn Is I Jtronll foundation for the ddtn" of contributory neg!;gtoc •. The deftn" of contributory negligence should not bt dismisud $0 tlsily, IS I rnult of confusi nll language foun~ in one unique (I.SI!. Contributory negli~nct is wry much 11M under the AEMLO, 1$ is the MPiI' ntt ~ distinct ~~tM dd.nst 01 product misUSl:. AJabama continues to KIIin i "flult·butd concept" oIli.l.bility in product liability clii ...... The baso:line prOPOSition underlying A!WI1\II'S con· cept 01 "fault" is found.-d upon the con· Ctpt Ihlot any party, ..... hether defenllant 0 ' plaintiff. should be rtJpOnsible for his 0' her own ictions and ;my result· ing constqlltnce5. [wn today. rnpon. libility lor one's own lIdions naItn not only good, jooici.l.l but ~mon

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r-----------------------------------------------, ADDRESS CHANGES Complete the form brlow ONLY if thru an: c~ to your listing in the cumnlA/abamQ 1Jqr Dirft:t1Ny. Out to changts in the JIltutt gowmil\ll eltalon of bI. commissiontrs. we now I~ required 10-Ust memben' oKlCf iddressoes. Wlltss r"IOIV is ~lablot or a rntmbtr is prohibited from rtetiving 5II1~ blr nllil it the o/flCf. Additionally, the AIi>lxJmq Bar DiJ'tCI"" is compiled from our m&iling list and it is irnportlnt 10 \lit buJinw a<.\drQltS lor tNt rt»OI'I. NOTE: If we do not know ot 11\ iddrw d"wl,ge. we cannot mlke the I1«tsSary c""*" on our nconb, $0 plaot notify U$ when your iddrw chmgu. Mlil form 10: A!i« Jo H.ndri.t, P,O. Box 611, Montgomery, AL 36 10 1. _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ Memb.. h.lentitlClOtion (Socill St<:urityl Number

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THE A1.A8AMA LAWYER

REG ISTER TODAYl .... "....... .. ... _ _ _ _ _ _ _ t.,V,.j _ _ __ __ _ (

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Aloboma Sta le Bar Expo '93 Thursday. July 15. 1993: 8:00 o ,m.-o:OO p ,m. Friday. July 16. 1993 : 8:00 o ,m .-5:00 p .m. Saturdav.July 17. 1993: 8:00o,m .--Noon

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LEXIS', THE AlABAMA LAWYER

...... 11111 FORMS OF LAW

~ Merrill Lynch JULY 19931 267

RECENT DECISIONS By DAVID 8. BYRNE;, JR. and WILBUR G. SILBERMAN

SUPREME COURT OF ALABAMA Right to o:oun •• 1 and proof of

walv., thereto Iix parle RUSO!. 27 ABR 2072 (March 19. 19931. Reese pleaded guilty to pOs,e.. ion 01 marijuana "for his penOlul use on ly afte r having been previously convicted of unla,,1ul pOSStssion of marijuana for his personal use only", a viola· tion of §l3A-1 2-21S. Code of Alabama (19751. At, e\>i<!enee 0( Re ... ·• prior con· viction, the State introduced a certified record of Reue's conviction in I)othan ~l unici pal Court. The docket ,h •• t bore

a stamped notation indicating that Reese had wai""d his right to cQunsel prior 10 pleading guilty. On appeal, Ruse cha ll enged the use of his prior conviction for enhancement purp<»l'$, contending that the Stat. had failod to p"""" thai hi, prior guilty plea WaS 001 obtained in violation of his right to counsel. The court of criminat

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apPl'ais affirmed his conviction b)' memo orandum opinion. Th e supreme court disagreed and reversed Reese's conviction. tn doing so. the court followed the general rule that unless it i•• h<;M"fl that the accused was represented b)' counsel. or waived counsel, at the time of the prior conviction. the conviction is not availabte for conside ration under the Habituat Fetony Offender Act. The court then acknowl . edged the application of this ru l. in Reue·. ca.e by .tating, -Nor is an uncounseled conviction available Jor consideration under §l3A·12·2l3-. The court disagreed with the Slate's argu· ment that the .tamped notation on the docket sheet was sufficient evidence that Rrese mad. a "alid "'aiver of his right to counsel. holding that: The record of Reese's prmoll.> conviction. though not completely silent. doe. not sufficiently show that Reese was offered ",unsel and that he knowingly and intelligently rejected that offer. -A defendant may wa ive his or her right to counsel in writing Or on the record. uner tite rourtitas ascertained titat the defemim>t imaIJ}ing/g. intelli· gent/g. and llOIuntari{glksiN!s to fo"'!/O that rigltt.- Rule 6.l(bJ. AKCrim.P. There is no evidence Ihat the judge in the municipal ",urt engaged in the colloquy necessary to ascertain that R""se knowingly. intelligently, and voluntarily desired to forego hi. right to ",unsel.

State'. failure to produce e.culpatory evidence Ex parle Williams, 27 ABR 2421 (April 16, 1993). William. was convicted of first degree robbery. arising out of an incident whe,..,in Joe Tolbert was robbed oul$ide his pla" of employment b)' four men . At trial. the victim testif.. d that one of the men "'"(Ire a white shi rt and j~allll. and that this man placed a gun to his head and demanded the vict im's money . He stated that another man wearing a black ra inC01lt and black hat placed a knife at his throat. At trial. the victim identified this man as Will iams.

Another man stood in the background and brandished a briel, or cinder bloek. After the men had taken his wallet and run away. the victim summoned the pOlice. A young man identified b)' the victim as the brick ~Ider was captur~ near the scene. The victim's supelVisor also recovered a black hat and turn~ it over to the pOlice. This hat had the name "Joe Btan" ", ritten inside it. This was the street name of Derrick Williams. brother of the defendant. Barry Williams. For thi. ,..,ason. Derrick Williams' photograph was indud ed in a photographic li neup shown to the victim. At the photo line· uP. the victim identified I)errick Williams as one of the individuals who robbed him. Derrick Williams was arrested. Thereafter. Eva Mae Willi ams. the mother of Derrick and Barry. came to the pOlice station and informed pOl ice that it was Barry. and not Derrick. who taken part in the robbery. Barry William. was then arrested and charged with first degree robbery. Prior to trial. defense ",un",1 med a motion ~ek ing disdosure of exculpatory and other material evidence. The court ente red a mandatory disco"ery order. When defense counsel w",,1 to the police station to view the evidence. he was shown a black raincoat that had been recove,..,d from Williams. He "'as also sho\<-"fl some photographs. but not the ones used in the lineup. Defense ",uns was not shO\<-"fl the black hat, nor was he provided with. copy of the vic· tim's stalement made shortly after the robbery. wherein the victim described the man with the knife as wearing -cam' oufiage" coveralb and mIIde no mention of a black raincoat. At trial. Williams mo,'ed to exdude the black hat and certain other State n hibits that had nol been produced pursuant to the diS(owry order. and this motion was initially granled. The black hat. however , was admitted into evidenct after defense counsel que.tion~ a witness about it. Counsel also sought THE ALAIlAMA LAWYER

on Disc

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lilt pr'Odo.Klion tilt photographic li",,up to sl\ow ti'lt physiul disp.rily ~twttn himwll ~nd his b. olht •• This U""up was productd only .t\.u def(ow couowl hid crou·e:umiMd t.ht victim relPrding his misidentifoution ~t tht lineup. In rewning Williuns' convictioo. t.ht sup reme court diug reed with Iht Sllolt·s at1lument tmt Wiltillms ...as not llarrne<l by i\.l viol)tioo of lilt di>c ...... ry order because Williams kn~ prigr to trilll llIat 1'111 brother had ~en amsted: accordingly. he ... nol prejudiced by the delayed disclosure of Ihe pho· tograpiu. Ihe blllck llat and Ihe stale· ment. CitingBmdv u. MIlTJIland, 373 U.S. 83 (963). the cou.1 s tlted tllat tIN: suppm.sion by tilt proHCUlioo of evidma flvor~bte 10 an KCuud upon rtqut.t

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due pr(l(t$S who~ the evidtnce is materilll tilher to guill or 10 punish· ment. irrnpectivt of the good faith of the prosecul ion. In order to show II iJrod¥ vioLitioo. JOInt p~judi« 10 the defendint m",t haw ~.ulled from t.ht nondis<:losun! pOttnli.a.l1y tttulPilIOfy evidenct. In £.1 po rI. Ktrmrdll. 472 So.2d 1106 (Ala.). art. rkrtitd. Ut U.S. 975 (1985). the proPtr tnt for determining whet htr Ihe SUIt'S conduct conslitut.d revtrsibl. trror was set out; The defendant mu.t demon.trate that (I) Ihe Statt supprtssed tht evidenc.; t2} tl\. l'Iidenc. suppressed was favor· able to tilt deftndant o. was txculp.lIory: lu,d (3) lhe evidenct was mattri~L The court dettnniMd tllat tho materiality lilt photogntths MId blKk hat was ~)'Ond qunlion lind 11'1111 the Sllote·, failun! to disc:1oM: Ihis tvidtnct toL;otly

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deftrl$t couowl from prtpar· ing portions of the ddtn .. , elPtcilllly wilh rUptct to Iht inconsisttnci .. ~lWHn t.ht victim·, Slaltmtnt ~ his trilll tutimony. -COU ....1 should not be forced to improvise It trill simply b«.aUH Iht Stllte has failed to comply with II mllndilory court ordtr.· The court spec:;fieatly rejected tho ugument that "I defendant who lias tngaged in ·Ihorough lind sifting" cToss·naminl · tion with nlptct to ittrru not di>closed has suffered no pnjud ict." FIHh A ...."d..,.nt_ight to ~ .... in s il.nt req ....t to, coun. .1 I. m.ode

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EJ: parllt JohnJOtn. 27 1.8R 2643 \April 23 . 1993). Johnson WIS convicted of burglary in tht fout dtgret with lhe intent 10 raPt. Prior 10 his IIrnst. Johnson WIIS ql.lutiorw:d by Ihe police as a suspect in the burgLary. Tht ques· liooing oc:currtd after 0... of tilt investi· glting offictrs hlld givtn Johnson II Itilndudiud Nirllndo .... arning. AI tri.al, the officer Itstifitd llbout his ques· tioning of Johnson: " I asked him about tht burglary- I asked him if he knew iI1lything about it. Htlllid that he llad heard about tilt bur. gLary Krou from the church ..·he~ he INN. And lit gid tlul lit hid heard tlut from Iht news .. .! asked him aboul-I ~ him a pictun! of t.ht \mift tlut hid betn I'tIXHtrtd from tilt scmc and asktd him if that was his knift. And lit would not tdl .... if it ..·as his knift. I asked him to !til me-" Allhi, point. deftow couowl objtcttd iItHl moved for a millrial on tilt grounds tllat iI1lY eommlnt on Johnson·, 'iltn« wu a violation of his consti t utional right 10 remain lilent. Counse!"s request for a mistrial was denitd. Thereafter. tht officer continutd his tnt imony as fol.

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"I .ulced him to ttll me it wasn·t his \mi/i,. MId lit wouldn·t tell me it wasn·t tillltr. I Ilolktd to him a littlt bit afttr Ilia\. r Wktd to him .bout thr incident .gain and tried to get him 10 L;olk to me about lhe incident. Ue wouldn't ulk about the incident. and he taler aslced if he could llavt Ifllli htlp, 1 conlidtnd that him asking for an attornt)'o and no furth .. qu<\tioning was done at that time." No objection will made to this testi· THE A1ABA.'1A LAWYER

mony. On ap~al, the C(lUlt of climinal '1'1"'311 affirmed lQhnron's convicti(ln, holding that "{.{ny improper CQmment on the apl"'l1ani'. ext rciu of hil Miron· do right to remain silent in reference to his failure t(l answer. Question about the Imife wiIS cured wh.n the offic..r testified without objection that .ubsequently the appellant 'wouldn't talk .bout t he incident, and ...• sked if he could haw l.gal help:" The supreme CQurt disagreed and rewr..,d J(lhnlon'. convicti(ln. holding that it is fundamentally unfair and in violation of due procus of law to infonn a I"'rron under arrest that he hilS a right to re main .ilent and then permit an inference of guilt from that silence. The court went on to hold that "virt .... lly any ducription (If • defendant's silence fol. lowing arreSI and a Miranda warning" i.5 sufficienl to c(lnstitute a violation of Dollle~. Ohio, 426 U.S. 610 (1976). Fourth Amendments uppressi on of evlde_e obtained as .. sutt of uncorroborated anon»,mous tip Ex parle&lmelle, 27 AIlR 2643 (April 23, 1993). Barnette WIIS arrested for pos.u.ion of cocain •. He moved to .up· press the evidence against him, alleging that his stop by the police WilS improl"'r because a "re.sonable suspicion" of criminal activity oould nOI be based on

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what he termed an ·u ncorroborattd anonymous tip". The trial court denied Barnette's motion, .nd he WaS subsequently oo""icted. The oourt of crimiMI apl"'ais affirmed wilhout opinion. Barnelte I"'ti!ioned for certiorari. citing Alabama v, While. 496 U.S. 325 (l99()), al authority for his claim that "the stop violattd th~ Con.titution and the motion to suppress should have been granted: b«ause the "anonymOus tip .. .Iacked significant details that could be independently corroborated by police to provide 'sufficient indica of reliability to justify the investigatory stop.'" The supreme court agreed , and reversed liar... Ue'. oonviclion. The COlIrt based il> dtci.ion on Alal>oma v. 1+1,,1e, stating that just as wraci!y. reliability and basis of knowledge are rel~vanl in the probable cause cont.xt, these critical factors are also relevanl in the rusonable suspicion context. .Ithough allowance must be mad. in applying them for the I~sser showing required to meet the reasonable suspi' cion standard. Nonetheless. the cour! held, "an anonymous tip can provide the reasonable .uspicion n"".ary for .n in1ltStigatory stop. if the tip is suffiCiently corroborated by indel"'ndent police im'u tigation." In this o:au. however. the court held that the anonymous tip contained merely • range of det.ils relating to usily obtained facts and conditions existing at the lime of the tip, i.e .. Ihal IWO black malu d..... d in • particular manner were al a sl"'cific location. Anyo ... oould haw predicted the location (If the black males, their ractc and a general description of their dothe., because that ""lIS a condition presumably txist in~ al the time of the call . The anonymOUS tip did not contain facl. which are ordinarily not ea.ily predicled, bul which would have demonstrated a familiarity with Barnette's behavior. Additionally, when the offi« .. SIOlll"'d Barnett., they had not oorroborated the tip by indel"'ndent investigation sufficient to furnish reasonable suspicion that Barnet te Was engaged in criminal activity. One di sc riminatory strik • s ufficient to e.tabllsh Sat.on violation Ex parle Bankhead, Z7 ABII 2571 (April 16, 1993), E. parte Carter, 27 ABR

2597 (April 23, 1993). In two ''''''" with varying results , the supreme court once again acknowledged a single instance of racial discrimination, i.e., the prosecution's u ... of one I"'remptory strike in I racially discriminatory mann .., is sufficient to establish a &11.00 violation. In &mkhead, the court held that the pro5tcutor', removal of a black ju ror based on an "uno.pla1Mbl. gut reaction that h. wal bad" wal n(lt sufficiently race neutral so iIS to rebut Bankhead', prima facie showing of racially discriminatory jury slrikes and ordered th.t Bankhead'. C<lpital murder convict ion and death sentence be revn.ed. The caurt acknowledged that a trial court's ruling.; with reg.rd to Batson violations were entitled to great deferenc... but in this instance, the trial court's detennination that no Bats(ln vi(llation occurred was "dearly . r1OOI'OUS". In Carler, the court noted tha t although the lrial judge had erroneously concluded that a single instance of racial discrimiMtion WIIS insuffid.nt to establish a Ba/son violation. the trial court's finding that the proseculor had not engaged in any ·purposeful discrimination" WIIS not cl.arly efrone(luS and upheld Carter's conviction. fo r firsl degree rohbery and attempted murder.

BANKRUPTCY Sup...... Court rule. on "excusable r\e$lect" with ..f" e .._e to late flied claim. Pioneer InW5lmenl !kn'ic/!j Company v. Bruns,,)!ck Associales Lid. Parinership, 61 U.S.LW. 4263 (1993 W.L. 79640- S.Ct.). March 24. 1993. Although this case has .Irudy been rtport.d exlensiwly in bankruplcy pub . licalions, il may be very u.tful to the non-bankruptcy pract itioner who may fail tQ file a claim prior 10 the claims bar dat e (or by analQIl>' mi .... any other deadline established by the Bankruptcy Code Qr Rules). In Pioneer. an eJlperienc~d bankrupt· cy lawyer overlooked the bar dale for fil ing a proof of claim for a substantial c,...dil(lr. The attorney WIIS moving from one finn to another, and misud noting the bar date which was set Qut on the nolk. of the §341 creditors meeting.

JULY 1993 / 271

Altltough IIlonkruptcy Rute 9006(b)(31 limill tM ~roptcy court's authority to btend the cloli .... bor dat. and predudtd Iny ntension in this caK. the allornt)' aUempttd I I;.t. filing on tM theory oI"ucusable .... glect· ... prov;dtd in IIlonkroptcy Rute 9006(bl( I). The case "'tnt through tM v:orious steps 01 the court Iystem from the bankruptcy court to the dislrict court 101M Sixlh Circuit. The Sixth Circuil hetd that in determining whether to granl an exten· sion of time 10 allow a claim filed late. cutain guidelinu or factoYl must be C()flsidtred, 10 wil: J'rejudi« to 1M debtor: An im~ 00 efficimt court admin;s·

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Good faith by tht creditor; and lhlot the failu re mulled from .... gHgen«. indifferen«. or culpable conduct eitht r from tM counstl to the creditor or the credilor itltlf. The Supreme Cou rt lIlopted the first four, but said that the last was not acceptabl e u creditors are accountable for the aCl lons of Ihei r attorneys. The COUTt ruled thlll the proper focus is upon whether the neglect was excus· able. The Cou rt examined the notic. which wu unt to III creditors and decided thai il ....... f;wlty sin« tht bar Ibte had ,,"n pllCtd In " peculiar and inconspicuous place in tht notice, ;and tht wordill8 did 001 indicale the signifi· cance of the bor date. TI>e Cou" lIlso found that no prejudice had btm caustd to the debtor lInd thaI the crtdilor had not lCted in bad faith. Thus. in a five· four decilion. the Court held that the neglect was excusable. TI>e disaent from Justice O'Coonor was quite strong. She stated that the issue of ucuNble neglect depends upon caUK and fault, tNt if the failure is not bLJ.rneless the COI"I$tqum«:$ an: ilTl'lrvanl In footnote lour of tht m;ojority opin_ ion. tht Court St.Itu that the ~Ie neglect stllndard of Bankruptcy Rule 9006(b)(I ) conc:erns Chapt.. II casu ooly. This ucape WM dots not apply to Chapter 7 casu. and probably nOI 10 casu under Chapter ]2 or ]3. Although this cut will allow much litigation for a court to determine excusable neglect, the law has not greatl~ changed. 272 f JULY 1993

Un-..:: u~ c: ..dlto •• commit_ t _ clrc:umventl pricwlty c~lto •• If! ~ SP,II /'IQnu(acluriflg Cory.. 984

F.2d ]305 {fil"$t Cir. ]993). The credi· tors' committee. repreKntin, cro>er 15 million of unncured debt. made an agrument with the primary secured crtditor whereby such crtditor and the tOmmittH could Wtt action to replace the CEO of Ihe debtor. jointly agree upon I plan of reorganiUltion. and work together to reach ~Qreemtnll; on other detail, of the plan. In return. the secured lender would allow the unse· cured credilors class ceruin percenlagu olltJ rte<Mry. to-"'il: 10 percent on the first $3 million. 21) percmt on the nut S3 million. 30 percent on the ....~t $3 million. 40 percent 00 the nut $3 million, and 100 percmt 00 anything lIIid.i. tional. The ljrH ..... nt primtd thl: IRS and potenli,,1 in,ider creditors. Miff COfl\'trsion of the Chapter II caK. the Chapter 7 trwtH sought to set aside the propond distribution. The bankruptcy judge held in fa""r 01 the trustft. sut· ing that the partin could not agree on. distribution contrary to the priority sec· tion 01 the bankruptcy code. and the dis· trict court affirmed. On further appal, the Fir,t Circuit rtvl:rsed. sUting that lhe secured creditor could dol with the procuds I I it wished since Ihey klonged 10 it lInd. thus. W!'~ not sub· ject to the cont rol of tho bankruptcy coort. TI>e circuit coort a]so stated ih.1ot lhe cl"tditon' commillft is not I fidu· cilory for the entire ..Uto but only for the unsecurtd creditors. In res{lOllK to lhe ugument that the .grument ktlO/ttn the rommittH iUld the c!"ciitor was in C()flnict with general bonkruptcy law and policy. the Court ru led that a committn must act in good faith and without ulterior moti .... s. such as aiding competing bu'inos.... acting out of ..... Iic •. and forcing hiQher payments from lhe nute. The Court upheld the ljrttmmt in this Imtance btaUK the commitlH _ only ob\,)lning a shan 01 .......1 otherwise "'.as ltOi", to tht stC\lred pirty II1d did not hurt anyoor el ...

U,S, S up •• m . Cou.t . 1I0w. count.rc:I.lm In hlght unct.rc: ....... . ult. Reilu v. Cooper, 113 S.ct. ]2]3 (1993). For attorneys who have been

victims of the trullus of bankrupt freight comp"nles suing for under· chargu. if )'011 piid without a fight )'011 sl'lould be lOrry. The Supreme Court now hIS fuled thll in such IIction bl'Olliht by tht trustee. the ohipprr may file a coonten:l;.lm on the Nsis lhat the c!au 00 file with tht FCC "'U not ru· sonable. Prior cuts.princ:ipally Moislin Industriu v. Primary Sltel. 497 U.S. ]]6 (1990), had held that a ship·per could not claim a defense 01 "an unreasonable practice' in an action bued u""n the freight undercharge. The Interstate Commuce Act requiros th~l c~rriers publish lind file tariff ntos with the Commi$$ion. After the deregulation of tho industry. it beea ..... rommon prac· tiee fOf the Clrriers to negoti~te with the shippers. Ihen upon the carrier bonkroptill8. tht trusiH Or dtbtor-inpolStSSioo under Chap·ler I] filtd for tht differera IldWftn tho actual charge and the tSUblishtd ... te. In the insunt clISe. the shipper clloi ..... d not that the practict ....as unrelson.ble. but .... tller. that tht f,led tariff rates were unreasonable. The Inter· st.lle Commerce Act requires that such r~tes be reasonable. and it .lIows shippus a Cluse of action for repara-tion damages of the diffe ren ces between what is filed and wh~t Is rtason~ble. Here, the Fourlh Circuit, fol1owin2 Maislin. held that the -filed rate' doctrine miliUted ~irut this shipper _king relit{ for rePiration damages in tM "'..... action as a claim "gaimt the shipper on the freight undtr-<:harge. This ruling wu reyersed by the Supreme COurt whith allOIO'td the rePi' rations claim as a counten:laim to the trullee's freight undtrcharge claim. ft a lso said that Rule 541b) F.R.C.P .. as to l stparate judgme nt, wn within the di$cretion 01 the Court, iUld would bo appropriate for a solvent carrier but not for lin inso]von t one. or one in binkruptcy. The Court stated lhat tho doctrine rtlatl~ to the filed rate embodies the princ:iple lhat a shipper is not Ioble to avoid Piymtnt 01 lhe uriff rate. by uling tho common law defenses of priof ag reement is to l different rate, or estoppel, but that such doctrine dot. not prohibit using the statutory reparation, claimu an affirmative defense Or counterclaim.

•

THE ALAIlA.~1A LAWYER

LEGISLATIVE

WRAP-Up

By ROBERT L. McCURLEY, JR. The Alabama !.fgi. lalu re adjourned

May 17. ]993 after paMing Law Institute bills to amend the Mm inistrati .... Proce-

dure Act. revise the Probate Procedure Law and enact a ntw Limited Liability

<ct. Failing to reaive final ",,5sag. Wfre reapportionment of the Legislature 'lIld tort rdorm bil l•. Dying in the Senate

were bills to set the ~rcentage of con· tingency fees attorneys can receive: limiting punitive damages to five time.

compensatory damages. not \0 exceed $250.000; limi t ing contributions to judg.. : limiting a manufacturer'. extended liability; and limiting time period. for .uits against architects and

sentative will usually have to fi l. an inventory within two months and execute a bond or give collateral generally equal to the amount under the personal representative's control. less the value of property that only Can be .old Or con_ "(')Ied with court authority. Even though the bond is waived in a will. it may. !leVerthei..s. be .. qui red under limited d rcumstanees. such as the likelihood of waste occurring otherwise. The act parall els the conservatorship law in that it enumerates actions that the personal repr•• ontati," may take

engineers.

IH.9311Act 93-627) The a<t .ff~ti .... Ju ly I. 1993. amends

§§41-ZZ·S, 41·22·6. 41·22·12. 41 -2Z-20.

Probate Procedu.. (H. 193j (Act 93-722) Thi.l act is .ffecti"" January I. 1993. It codifies the present law that UJlOll d.ath the deceased perron's real property passes to the heirs while personal property passes to the personal representative to be di'tribute<! to the heirs. Un less a will provides otherwise. the personal .. pre_

THE AUl.BAMA LAWYER

Limited Liability Company Act (5-549 ) (Act 93-724) The Limited Liability Company Act will become effective October I. 1993. It is a hybrid mtity that comhines the beneficial tax status of a partnership with the li mited li ability afforded by corpO· rate .tructu.... Under the current federal taxing structure. a limit.d liabil ity company can be treated as a partnership rather than as a corporation. Thus. the douhle taxation of members of a limited liahility company i. avoided. A limited liability company is formed "'hen or more persons file articles of organization. Article. of organ ization a .. vel)' similar to artietes of incorpOration that are med unde r the Alabama Busi ...... COrpOration Act. Filing of documents is very similar to that of the business COrpOration act in that they are initially filed wi th the local probate judge'. office. Cenerally. the managtment of a limit_ ed liability company is vested in it. members. i!W'I'ver, the art icles of organization may ve.t management of the company in one or more ma~r5 who then have the power to manage the bUSiness of the company. Similar to a husiness corporation , the liability of a member of a limited liability company is limited to his or her contribution. H~'I'r. if the LiC involve. performing professional services. the individual who performs the servicts will still be liable for any negligence or Wrongful act Or omission in the same manner as if that individual rendered tho services as a .ole practitioner. The bill furthe r provides that loreign limited liability companies may be regil;te .. d in Alabama provided they pay certain fees and m«t certain requirements. Furthermore. the bill prO'Jide. that a limited liability company may muge or con50lidate with other limited liability companies Or othu business entitie •.

"'"0

Admlnl . lr.tlv. Procedure Act

and 4]·22·22 The clarifying amendm<nts relate to the comment period for pro!>Osed rules , completion of notice and effective date of r uin, judicial review, and time lor taking appeat... New provisions were included to allow lor mbpoonas , di5Covery and protect ive orders. Furth ... new proposed ru les must be accompanied b}' a fiscal note. a note on the dleet the regulation will have on competition. and the ellect the regulation ",ill have on the environrmnt and public health This bill was 'POlI5Ored by Representative Jim Campbell 01 Anniston and Senators Fran k Ellis 01 Columbiana. Ryan deC raffended, Jr. of Tuscaloosa, John Amari of Birmingham and Walter Owens of Centerville.

Anniston, Senator Doug Chee of Anni.l· ton. Senator Don Hale of Cullman. and Senator Michael Figuff;l; of Mobile.

without prior court approval unless the will or court specifically otherwise ..striets the action. It further enumerates action that may only be taken with prior court approval when not expressly authorized in the will. There is a specific requirement for the court to appro,", the sale of rul estate. Another major change by this act is to provide that a personal ",presentative is entitled to a reaMlnable compensation for services. The court must approvt fees using specified factors similar to those enumuated by the Alabama Supreme Court b)' Rules of Professional Conduct. Rule 1.5 for reasonable attor_ n(')l's f«'S. The probate bill was sponsored by Representative Marcel Black of Tus<:umbia, Representative Jim Campbell of

JULY 1993 / 273

ALABAMA DIVORCE, ALIMONY AND CHILD CUSTODY HORNBOOK Thi rd Edition, 700 pages, hardbo und TABL£OF CO~

REQRGA1..tZED FOR CO~"VENIE!'.T QUICK REFERENCE A1aboma Oiooota: • ........,." and CbiId a...1Ody Hornbook, Third Editioll, io the ""'" c:omp~"""';'" boak OCI AlIbi .... cI;¥cn:e law _iLoblt. h hu be.n ~~d .110 '2 chap"''''' tlkin, , .... practitioner lhrO\lJh .."b .. op of lhe d[", ... pmo:e ... 0"" l7S paro' of ..mple (emil

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274 1JULYI 993

lA"Of'I'\Ca raAcT1Q !l'PP'WlO'" _ _ .. "" ... (S6UII """.,. . . . _

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TIlE ALABAMA lAWYER

Th is bill was sponsored by Senator Steve Windom of Mobile and R.prt~nta. tivt= Hugh Holladay of Pell City. Court s Tht ugislaturt p.J.I.Sed two acts affect·

ing the appellate courts. Senate Bill 303 (Act 93·346) created two addi t ional judg.ships on the court of civi] appeal. and pTO\'ide. the first judge. to fill the judgeships be elected. The second bill, S· 304 (Act 93 · 345). amends UZ-2-7 to aulhori .. the .upreme court to transfer to the court of civil appeals certain civil cases appealed to the supreme court. Child support

Hou"" bill 280 (Act 93·321) amends §30·3·61 relating to income withholding order for chi ld support. Hou~ bill 419 (Act 93·325) makes the willful violation of any pTO\'i,;on of a tempora')' or per· manent protection order or restraining order involving domestic relations Or family violence will be a Class A Misde· meanor with additional mandato,), mini· mum penalti ...

100 IAct 93·6761 provides thilt a person who i. guilty of shoplifting mu.o;t pay the full retail value of the merchilndi.., if it is not recov~r"d in il$ lull retail mer· chantable condition, pay additional darn· age, to the retailtr of $200, and pay an attomey's fee. Parents of shoplifting children are civilly liab le for their children's • hoplifting UP to $750. Senate bill 219 (Act 93·&06) provid.. for a new off.~ of sexual torture and malles the offenst a Class A Felony_Set\llte bill 422 (Act 93· 677) r""i~s the pruent bail system for bail bondsmen. Senate bill 503 (Act 93· 203) amends §8·1 9·5 relating to tht de",ptive trade pr.>etice law. Annu.' meeting The Alabama Law Institut. ', annual meeting will be held at 4 p.m., Thursday, July 15. 1993, at the Stouffer Riverview

Plaza Hotel in Mobile during the state bar's annual meeting. For mOrt information, contact Bob McCurley, director. Alabama Law Insti. tute, P.O. 80. 1425. TUSClloos.a , Alabama 35486. Phone (2051 348·7411.

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RIDING THE CIRCUITS Walker County Bar Auociation

Cri .... bills

House bill 3 (Act 93-3271 and Houu bill 4 (Act 93·7]9) provides new crimes for offen.." relating to animals u~ in ruearch and unlawful killing of live· stock. House bill 14 (Act 93-7l(l1 requires motorist5 to lISt lights on motor vehicl.s when windshield wipers are in u.o;e as a result of rain. sleet or snow. House bill 508 (Act 93-352) provide$ for the suspen· sion of the driver's license 01 anyone coovicted of violating drug crimes . Hou.., bill 322 (Act 93-3231 impo.." an addi. tional SIOO assessment on persoru coovicted of driving under the influence to be deposited ;n the Impaired Drivers' Trust Fund. Senate bill 94 (Act 93-672) requires parents to insure that a child enrolls in and attends school. Senate bill

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-.... _fIoom....-... .... dlrO<ll> .....

The folfou'ing attorneys wereelecled officers for 1993:

Pllllident:

S<!aelary: MARGARET DABBS Jasper

JANES C. KING

J_,

Vice·plllsident:

Tr1!a$UIllr: TO~I

HEN RYC. WILEY, JR. Ja5per

Jasper

BAR DIRECTORIES 1992-93 EDITION A1abama Bar Members: $25 each Non-members: $40 each

s... _ . .. - . ..... "" Alabama Bar Directory

... ,....11-.....

P.O. Box 4156

..... u.-~d

"'""" TIlE AI.ABA.'1A LAWYI-:R

NICHOLSON

Montgomery, Alabama 36101 JULYI993/ 275

Notice

ELEVENTH CIRCUIT APPOINTS DISCIPLINARY COMMITTEE MEMBERS Rules GoV9r"""'O A"omey Discipline in the Unlled Slatel

Court 01 Appeals lor u..

E~nth C in::u~

IAddendum Eighlj

look -'feci Oc1ober 1. 1992. following public IIOIQ and opporIIJnity f<>r commoot purwarlt to 28 U.S .C. @207 1(b) . Pur_m to Rule 2...... of the ru ...... the nine poer$ON narMd !*ow have DMn IlP\lOWIted to the Commlnee on Lawyer Qualifi路 aoliont...., Conducl. On mlerral by tile CI'Iie! Judge. IhII comn'IiIIH IrMtstigatel alleged niI<:ond\;c1 by membe< s 01 the t tit.

CiraJiI bI< lind rfI<:OmIIlIKlds 10 the CourI8IlIlOOPOial' disdpIinaty action to ~ takeo. Membl<shIp on this commiIIee

will d'll"~ !rom Iimot 10 limit.

Committee on Lawyer Qualifications and Conduct James C. Barton Jo/In$t<)f'l,

Barton.

F'roctot. SwOOJaw &. NaH

MichMi S. P... no lvd<"",,.~, $pMc:Ief. Tsy10r & E.lnl

AmSootl\lHatbOO Plaza 1901 Sixlh Avenue, North Birmingham, Alabama 35203

201 S. Biscayne Boulevard

Ginny S. GllInade

Alan C. Sundberg Cartton. FlekIt, Ward, EmrnatIIItI, Smo1h & Cutler P .O . Bo. 1$0 T~. FlDricIa 32302

Chie/, Criminal 0iviIi0n

U.S. AIIomey'I 0IIic:e

s...

169 OaupIWI Street. 200 MobiIot, - . . . . 36602

ROland Nachmlm, Jr. Balch & 6i'>gham P.O. 80. 18

Montgomery. Alabamll 361 01

Suil'iOO MIami. Fk:>ricIIo 33131

Frank W. seller & tlJ'l'f P .O . Bo. 2139

~, WiIIiamI;

Savannah, G80fgia 31498

Marvin E. Barllin

Cubbedge Snow, Jr.

T' ftOam , Simmons, Kemker. Schart, Barkin, F".. & O'Neil P.O. Bo. 1102 Tampa. FIoricIa 33601

Martil'l. Snow, G,alll &. Napier

P.O. 60x 1606 M;w;on. ~ 31202

urry O. Thompson

Kroo & $pII1dWIv 191~SUWI

~. ~!JIlI

30303

Intom\llllon I nII copios 01 Addotndum Eighl mly be obtIlned j.om 1he Offlol 01 1M C'-'1I, U.S. Cour1 at AppHl. lor 1M EIe~nlh CIrculI, 56 Forsl'1h $1..... N.W., AU-nt.. Georgia 30303. Phone (404) 331.fi187.

276 / JU1.Y 1993

THE ALl.BAMA LAWYER

ALABAMA STATE BAR SECTION MEMBERSHIP APPLICATION To join one or morl! secliOnl, complete thi s form and anach ""flame checks payable 10 each sectio n you wi sh to jOin.

N,. . _______________________________________________________________________ Firm or Agency ________________________________________________________________ OffKI!~~

CHr.cl!loc al ~

_____________________________________________________

_________________________________________________________________

Office Telephooe Numbeo- _________________________________________________________

Section

"'n"lUl D""'i

8a nkruplcy and Commercia l Law ..................................................................................................... .$ 20

8usines1 Tom and Ant itrW l aw ....................................................................................................... .$ t S Communinlions l3w ........................................................................................................................$ 15 Corporate Cou~ ................................................................................................................. ,...... ,... _130 COfpo.-ation. 8anking ~nd 8usirwss h w ............................................................................................1 10 Cfimin.1 h w ................................................................................................................... ,.................1 10 Environmenlal Law ............................................................................................................................ $20 r.mily taw ........................................................................................................................................ $30 Hullh L;ow ......... _ ......................... " ....... "..... ".... " .......... _____ .. _............................. "..................... $ I5 Labor and Employment Law ............1 10 if p<aClicing less than 5 yea". UO If po-;l(:ti<;ing 5 Of more yea" Ll1iSJlion . .. ..... .. ...... " ........... " .... "..... ....... .. ... " ..... ........ .. .... ... $ 15 Oil . Gas and Mine.a l Law............................................................................. ,..... "...................... $ IS Real f'foperty. Probale and Trust law........................ ............................ ............................. $ 10 T a~.t ion ........................................................................................... ,........... . .. ............................ 1 15 W Oflte(s Compensation L;ow ............... ,,, .... ,...... ,,, ... ,.... ._. ______ .,_ ......................... ,,, .....................120 f ounS hWf"f" .....................................................................................................................................0

TOTAl Remembef : Auxh. sepa.ate check fa< each seclion. Mail to: Sections. Alabama State 8 ••• P.O. Box &7 1. MOn~ .... L 361 0 1

nit: AI.AIiA.'1A LAWVER

JULY 1993 1277

CLASSIFIED NOTICES RATES, M • ..,be..., 2 free listings of SO words 0( less per bar member per ca lendar year EXCEPT for ' position wanted" o r 'po$~ion offered" listings - 535 per insertIOn of 50 words or less, 5.50 per additional word: Nonme mbe... : 535 per insertion of 50 words or less, $.50 per additional word . Classified copy and payment must be received accord ing to

tha following publishing schedule: .JuiV '93 Issue-deadline May 28. 1993; Septembe. '93 Issue - deadline Ju ly 30, 1993: no deadline e)(\oosions wi ll be made.

Send classified copy and payment, payable \0 TIle Alabama La..,..er, \0: Alabama Lawyer Class ifieds, c/o Margaret Murphy. P.O. Box 4156, Montgomery. Alabama 36101,

FOR SALE • LAWBOOKS: The Lawbook Exchange.

Ltd. l)uys arod saRs all major lawbooks. state and federal, nationwide . For all your Iawbooks needs. phone ' .80042</.6686. MasterCard, VISA and Americat1 Express accepted. • RULES: Model Rules 01 Prof&SSionaJ Cor>diK:t. Paf'$O/'>itl copies available 10)/

$5 rondodes postage). Mail chee!< 10 P.O. Box 671. Montoomery, Alabama 36101. P"1-paymerol rgquired, • LAWBOOKS: Save 50 percem on your ~~, Call Nallonal Law Resource, Amefica's larll\lst I8wbooI< dealer. Huge ;'venlories . LCJ\'/est prices, Excellenl qualify. Satislaction g.... ranleed. Call uS 10 ..,11your unr>eeded books. Need shelving? We seU new, brand name, s~ and wood sr.elving !It d iscount prices . Fr" quotes. I·SOO-279·7799. National Law Resource. • LAWBooKS, Woliam S. Hein '" Co. , Inc .. serving the legal community 101 over 60 years. We 00)'. sell. appraise all iaWbooks. Send wamllsts 10: Fax (7 16) 883-<1100 01 phone 1-600-6287571. • LAWBooKS: AFTR 1-52; AFTR 2d 1· 53; T.... Court (P·H Ioo_al) 35-83; BTZ '" Tax Ct Memo 1-52: J Tax 197085. leave messall\l al (205) 677·4889 (day) 01 (205) 983·4972 (rtig~I). Michael Cresp oHouston County Courthouse, Oolr.an, Alabama 36303. • LAWBooK'S: Uni!9d Stales Coc:1o Annotaled. CUf"f8111 ttuoogh end ot 1992. Call James Marks, (205)3632435.

278 / JULY 1993

FOR RENT • OfFICE SPACE : B~mingham. SouthsicIo. 2.300 square fOOl. WiliiamsblJrg' style ctfice b1J ilding, beaulitully decorated, free parking. $8.95 per squa,e fool. Catpel. drapes. 11'10 privale resl · rooms, I<itt:!!oo ama, b1Jilt-jr> oak sI1e/ves and cabinats. Phone (205) 9391327.

POSITIONS OFFERED • ATIOANEY JOBS: National and f_,al Employment Aepon. Highly regarded monthly detailed lis~ng of anornoy and law·rotated jobs with the U.S. Gove<n· ment, other putlfi<:IprWata emplo~ In Wasl1ingron. D.C., th'OOOho\JI Ir.e U .S. and abroad. 500-600 new jobs each i~. $34 for thl89 months: S58 Ie< six mOll\hs. F_r.1 Ropons. 1010 Ve<monl Avenue. NW. I!408-AB, Wasl1ing· lOll. D.C 20005. Phone (202) 393-3311 . VISA and MaslerCa,d accepted. • LABOR/EMPLOYMENT ATIOANEV: Major Alabama law f~m . - . la.....".., fer departmenlln ils Birmingham, Alabama office. Ten)'flars er mom exper"""" in the atOaS <>f Iabcr and employmenllaw Is prelorted . Superior wriling and academic skills are required . The attorney wi~ ba axpeeled 10 provide leadership and wiD have immediale reSponsibility for lhis impor· lam area of lhe l irm's prodico ,"""esenting maMQOmont. SaJary commensurate with level of e>petie""". ContIdonlial reply 10 P.O. Bo.. 1986. Birmingham . Alabama 35201-1986, Montion : Hiring Attorney.

• EMPLOYEE BENEFITS ATTORNEY: New OrteaI"lS I~m seeks employ" ben· elits associate with 1·5 years' 01 ERISA experience er an LL M. in taxation. The firm'S practice encompasses all phases 01 employee banelits law, incIucIing advice and planning with mspeC1 to ,e tiremenl and Wililare plans, as well as a n acto.. ER ISA litigation practice. Ex· cellenl cr-"tials, communication and or9'lnizational skiUs ,equired. Res.poncI 10 Hiring Partne" 8008 Jeannette PIacfI. New Orleans, louisiana 701 1B.

SERVICES • DOCUMENT EXAMINER ; Examinalion ot Questioned Oocuments. C8ftjfiecf Forensic Handwriting 800 Oocumem E.amine<. TWIlt'Ity·six years experience in all Icroosic dowment problems. For· merf)', Chiel Ooosticnod Oocument Analyst. USA Criminal Investigation LaOoratcri6s. Diplomate (certifiodj-British FSS. Diplomate (certillod)--ABFOE. Member: ASODE : IAI ; SAFDE; NACDL Rosume and lee schedule u~ request. Hans Mayer Gidion. 21B MOffYmont Drive, Auousta, Georgia 30907. Phone (7061860-4267. ,PARALEGALS: AtI8t1tiorl attorneys and per$Or1nef direclors. The Nalional Academy fer Paralegal Sl ud .... has qualified pararogals in YOU' Io(;al area mad ~ 101 employment in law oNices and corporetions. OJr paralegal graduales are trained in a,eas 01 law. such as lamily, real estale. torts, criminal, probare, and corporate law. Studenl interns are a lso available. Them o,e no I..... for these services. for additional intcrmaticn. call the Placement Othoe al 1·800·285·3425. ext. 3041 .

THE AUJlAMA LAWYER

• EXPERT WITNESS : Tratlic&n!linoor. consuI\al1Vexper1 ..... itness. Graduate. regislered . prolessional etXlinoor. Forty years' e x.,er>er>ce. Highway and city roadway zoning . Wrile or can lor msumtt. l.... s. Jacl< W. ChambHss. 42t &llehufSl Drive. MOnlgomery, Alabama 36109. Phone (205) 2 72 -23~ .

lion. Publishod nationali)' and intefna'

tionali)'. Eighteen ~ears' trial experi· ence, Slalellederal CO<Jrts of Alabama. For98f)', aheratiorls and document authllfltic:lly examinations_Cri minal and non..:rim;"a1 ma"ers. American Academ1 of Forllflsic; Sciences. American Soard of Forensic: Dowmllflt Examin_ ers. American Sociei)' of Questioned Dowmem Examiners. Lamar Mille<. 3325 Lema Road, .2·316. P.O. So. 360999. Birm ingham. Alabama 352360999. Phone (205) 9811-41 58.

• RESEARCH : Legal r_arch help. Experienced .. nome1. member ot Alabama Slate Bar s.ince 1977_ Access 10 slate law libratY_WESTLAW ava'able_Prompt deadline seatches. Saran Kalr.yn Farnell. 1 12 Moora Building.

• MEDICAL EXPERT TEsnMONV : HCAI will evaluate 100' potential medicaV dental malpractice cases for me'~ a nd causation gratis _Hyour case has no merit or causation Is poot. we will provide a free writtOfl repon. Stale aHidavits are ava'abIe. ~ease see display ad on page 262. Heahh Aliditors. Inc .. 2 Corporale Drive, Clearwaler. Florida 34622. Phone (8 13) 579-8054. Fa. (813) 573-1333.

Montoomery . A labama 3f) 1()4_ Phono (205) 277-7937_ No '8fX9$8r1lation is ~ /ha l Ih<l qual'ty of 1h6/egaJ SMo-ioos 10 be p(Jtformed is 9'6atrH Ih6n !he qual'ty of /egaJ $IHVio8s ptHfotm9d by 01h6r 1a"Yl"$.

ca,,,

• DOCUMENT UAMINER: Certified For&rlSic: Dowment Exami"",. ChOrl <Iocument "xami"",. Alabama Departmoot of Forensic; Sciences. r.. ~r8d. a.s .. M.S. Gradual", un"'"rsil)'-based resident ~ in document " . emina-

• EXPERT WITNESS: ProlHsional engi. noor and aMrl'lEl1 with a practice 01

expert tes~mon ~ in conSlruction. saleI)'. hig hwa ~ and structura l design. Thirt)' ~e ars' experience in highwa~. rail,Gad. commercial bu ildings and power planl construction. Call or Wfite to, resume, fees: Lamar T. Hawkins . 601 Ves13"'a Parl<..... ~~, Birmingham. Alabama 35216. Phone (205) 823-3066. No '8fX05tHllaiorr is made Illat Ih6 quality of Ih6 ~al services to be performed Is gr<mter than the quality oI legal setvic8s performed by other lawyers.

• FORENSIC DOCUMENT EXAMINATION : Ha ndwritinog. typowriling. a~erod documents. Criminal and ci ..., maners. Medical ,ecords. wills. cont,acts, deeds, checks, aoonymOOs tene,s. Coort"<lu a l ~ ied . Twenl)'-eighl years' combined e . perieoce. ABFDE cortitied. Membe" American Academ1 of Forensic: Science , Arnericar> Society of Ooosticnod Dccument Examiners. Intemalional Association for klontifica· lion . Carney & Nelson ForOflSic: Dow · moot Labofatory. 5855 Jimnl)' CaIler Boolevar<l. Norcross (AUanta). Georgia 30071. Phone (4()4) 416-7690.

r-----------------------------------------------, ADDRESS CHANGES Complete th. form b<)ow ONLY if there are changes 10 your listing in the current Alabama Bar Directory. Due to changes in the statute goveming election of bar commissioners. we now are m!uired to lae memb<rs' office address... unltss none is available or a memb<r is prohibited from receiving stilte bar mail at the orriCO. Additionally. the Alobama /Jar Directorg is compiled from OUr mailing list and it is important to use bu.iness addresses for that reason. NOTE:)f we do not know of an add •• ss cha~. we cannot make the ne«ss..lfY changes on our records. so please notify us when )-'Our add1"«$ changos. ," ail form 10: Alico Jo H,ndrl:< . P.O. Box 671. Monlg<>mtry. AL 36 101. _____ Memb<' ldentir... lion (Social Secmil)') Numb<r COOo.< or..." Cl Mr.

Han.

"" "

~" ---

FuIiN.me _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __

Bu,i ... ss I'llone Numb<r _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __

____

_ _ Birthdalf _ _ _ _ _ __

Vu rofAdm i..""' _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ Finm _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __

Off". M.ili ngAdduss _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ Cil)' ____________

SI>!O

l IPCode _ _ _ _ _ Cooni}' _ _ _ _ __ _ _ __

Oflk. Slr..1AdUm> (il differenl lrom moiling odd, ... l _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ _ __

City

5 1.>10 _ _ l IPCodo

Coonly _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ _ __ __

L _______________________________________________ ~

THE ALABAMA LAWYER

JULY 1993 1279

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