Rogers v. Louisville Land Company

367 S.W.3d 196 (2012)

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Nature of the Case

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Facts

P's son was buried in D's cemetery. P purchased two adjacent burial plots in the cemetery. When she purchased the easements, she had some concerns about the maintenance of the cemetery. P asked a representative if the cemetery was regularly mowed and maintained, and was assured that it was. This was a lie. Grass was higher than the headstones in places, some of the headstones were overturned, the roads were not in good condition, and there was debris in the cemetery. P became very emotional and tearful when she visited her son's grave and saw the lack of cemetery maintenance. P sued D for outrageous conduct, fraudulent conduct, intentional infliction of emotional distress, breach of contract, gross and reckless misconduct, and wrongful business practices generally, as well as violations of the Tennessee statutes governing maintenance of cemeteries in Tennessee. The State also sued D. Eventually, D fixed the issues under State supervision. P’s legal action was tried in 2010. P considered the condition and appearance of the cemetery to be 'very degrading, it was disrespectful, to say the least.' She stated that the cemetery's condition caused her to be 'very emotional, very tearful.' The trial court granted D's motion to dismiss all of the claims except her claims for 'outrageous conduct' and breach of contract. The trial court awarded P a judgment of $250 for breach of contract, $45,000 in compensatory damages for 'outrageous conduct,' $250,000 in punitive damages, $37,306.25 in attorney's fees, and $556.42 in discretionary costs. D appealed. The Court of Appeals reversed the award of compensatory damages, in that P failed to present sufficient proof establishing that she had suffered a 'serious mental injury,' which was a required element of her claim. The Court also reversed the award of punitive damages, the award of attorney's fees, and the judgment against Mr. Williams personally. P appealed.