A Davidson County circuit court judge has thrown out part of a suit filed against a former public guardian who was removed from her post following multiple questions about her billing practices, including charging attorney-level fees for accompanying wards on shopping trips or attending a concert.
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The ruling means that former Davidson County public guardian Jeanan Stuart is not liable for losses sustained by Ginger Franklin while Stuart was acting as Franklin’s conservator.
Circuit Judge Hamilton V. Gayden Jr. said in a letter to Franklin’s attorney that he had decided to grant Stuart’s motion for summary judgment.
Franklin, who lost her condo, car and all her belongings during the conservatorship, said she could not understand the decision.
“Everything I owned was gone,” she said. “It just doesn’t make sense.”
Gayden’s letter does not disclose the reasoning behind his decision, and a formal ruling has yet to be posted on the circuit court web site.
But the judge left the door open for Franklin to proceed with her case on a second charge.
Gayden said in his letter to attorney Michael Hoskins that he had not yet decided whether to reject a separate claim by Franklin relating to Stuart’s placement of Franklin in a group home, where Franklin has charged she was put to work taking care of other residents.
A Sumner County judge, in a separate suit filed by Franklin against the group home and its owner, ruled that Franklin and other residents at the group home were the victims of “egregious and intentional abuse” when they were put to work by the group home owner.
The judge in the case, C.L. Buck Rogers, died recently before a hearing could be held to determine the amount of punitive damages to which Franklin was entitled.
Full Article and Source:
Nashville Judge: Former Guardian Not Responsible for Ward's Losses![]()
Circuit Judge Hamilton V. Gayden Jr. said in a letter to Franklin’s attorney that he had decided to grant Stuart’s motion for summary judgment.
Franklin, who lost her condo, car and all her belongings during the conservatorship, said she could not understand the decision.
“Everything I owned was gone,” she said. “It just doesn’t make sense.”
Gayden’s letter does not disclose the reasoning behind his decision, and a formal ruling has yet to be posted on the circuit court web site.
But the judge left the door open for Franklin to proceed with her case on a second charge.
Gayden said in his letter to attorney Michael Hoskins that he had not yet decided whether to reject a separate claim by Franklin relating to Stuart’s placement of Franklin in a group home, where Franklin has charged she was put to work taking care of other residents.
A Sumner County judge, in a separate suit filed by Franklin against the group home and its owner, ruled that Franklin and other residents at the group home were the victims of “egregious and intentional abuse” when they were put to work by the group home owner.
The judge in the case, C.L. Buck Rogers, died recently before a hearing could be held to determine the amount of punitive damages to which Franklin was entitled.
Full Article and Source:
Nashville Judge: Former Guardian Not Responsible for Ward's Losses