Lisa A. McCall, Plaintiff-Appellant v. Edgar A. Wilder

Summary

The Tennessee Supreme Court held that a driver who suddenly loses control because of physical incapacitation from a known medical condition may be liable in negligence where the driver knows of the disorder and poses an unreasonable, foreseeable risk of harm by driving; conversely, a sudden loss of consciousness or physical capacity that is not reasonably foreseeable is a defense. Because the parties stipulated that the decedent had suffered prior seizures and knew his seizure disorder caused loss of consciousness, reasonable jurors could disagree on whether he acted prudently in driving, so summary judgment for the estate was improper. The Court further held that the sudden emergency doctrine has been subsumed into Tennessee's comparative fault scheme and cannot negate liability as a matter of law. The Court of Appeals' divided affirmance was reversed and the case remanded for trial.