The Tennessee Supreme Court released its opinion in Thomas v. Oldfield, answering the question of whether information regarding a defendant's liability insurance is discoverable under Rule 26.02(1) of the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure. This was a case of first impression for the court. The holding:
In this case, the parties concede that information concerning the defendants’ liability insurance coverage would be inadmissible at trial pursuant to Tennessee Rule of Evidence 411. However, the plaintiff does not argue that discovery of this inadmissible evidence “appears reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence.” After a considered review, we are unable to conclude that discovery of this information appears reasonably calculated to lead to the discovery of admissible evidence. Therefore, the existence and extent of the defendants’ liability insurance is not subject to discovery in this case.
However, the court, via the opinion by Chief Justice Holder, noted a displeasure with the current rule and gave encouragement to future efforts to amend the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure to permit the discovery of insurance information:
While we are constrained by both the language and the history of current Rule 26.02 from holding that information concerning the defendants’ liability insurance coverage is subject to discovery, we are convinced that the time has come to align Tennessee with the rules in forty-eight states and the federal rule in allowing discovery of this information. Look for a push this year to amend the language of Rule 26 to permit the discovery of insurance information. Dan Berexa
Nashville, Tennessee
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