Cole Law Group Blog

You may have heard about Article 15 of the Uniform Code of Military Justice (“UCMJ”). Servicemembers experienced in the realm of military justice may reference Article 15 punishment under numerous terms: punishment by the commander, non-judicial punishment (“NJP”), getting ninja punched, captain’s mast, or admiral’s mast. Essentially an Article 15 proceeding is where a commanding…

What is the Limit of a “Small estate”? The Tennessee Small Estates Act is found in Tennessee Code Annotated § 30-4-101 et seq. Under this statute, “small estate” is defined to mean an estate in which the value of the property does not exceed $50,000. Additionally, as defined in the statute, “property” is limited to…

I stopped studying the German language in 1987 after making a somewhat embarrassing semantical error.  As my college major required a language competency, I chose to switch to the Scandinavian language of my forebears.  This decision, in turn, led me to schedule my junior year abroad at the University of Copenhagen, Denmark.  As part of…

This article addresses why you should draft a Last Will and Testament, the legal requirements for a valid will under Tennessee law, and different provisions to consider when drafting a will. It is commonly said that only two things are certain in life. One of those things is taxes, and you probably already know what…

For those of you who have read Paul’s blogs, worked with him on a case, or wish to retain him as your counsel regarding a military law matter, you may have noticed that he has recently been absent from the office. As noted in his attorney profile on our website, Paul attended the United States…

There are arguably no situations more pressing or serious than those involving the custody of your children. In the context of divorce, determining child custody is often the most contentious aspect of the entire lawsuit, and despite issues of property division and alimony often becoming hotly contested issues in their own right, both parents often…

When my daughter was very young, she went through a phase where she would create “clubs” that she would then ask friends and family members to join. These clubs were usually fan related, e.g. the “Hannah Montana Fan Club”, or cause related, e.g. the “Save the Sea Lions Club.”  The process of joining the club…

“Luke, I Am Your Father!” The famous, misquoted dialogue in Star Wars Episode 5 where Darth Vader reveals he is Luke’s Father would not be enough under Tennessee Law for Darth Vader to have any rights to parent Luke.1 Perhaps this is another example where the law is a bit more complicated than the movies.…

Analysis of Recent 6th Circuit Court Opinion in Fox v. Amazon The Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals recently decided a case involving an Amazon hoverboard that caused a fire resulting in various injuries and the destruction of the Plaintiffs’ home in Fox v. Amazon, Inc. (6th Cir. 2019).1  Plaintiffs claimed in their complaint that Amazon…

The Physical Disability Review Board was created by federal law with the passage of the Dignified Treatment of Wounded Warriors Act in 2008. The DTWWA made several significant changes to the care of wounded veterans. First, the law required the military branches to use the same disability determination rating scale as that used by the…