Kentucky Court of Justice
Court of Appeals to hear arguments in Fayette County appeal Jan. 10 in Louisville
FRANKFORT, Ky. -- The Kentucky Court of Appeals will hear oral arguments in a civil case on appeal from Fayette County when it convenes Monday, Jan. 10, at the Jefferson County Judicial Center in Louisville. Proceedings will begin at 1:15 p.m. EST in the Appellate Courtroom on the 10th floor of the judicial center, which is located at 700 W. Jefferson St. Proceedings will be open to the public.
A three-judge panel comprised of Court of Appeals Judges Glenn E. Acree, Donna L. Dixon and Michelle M. Keller will hear arguments in the appeal, which is styled Emmitt Ray Edwards v Dr. Richard W. Baehler.
The original case was a medical negligence lawsuit about a death and the diet drug Redux and was decided in 2008. In the appeal, the appellants claim the trial court misinterpreted a bar on multidistrict class actions. The appellees’ position is that the trial court properly dismissed all of the appellant’s claims.
LOUISVILLE DOCKET
Jan. 10, 2011
1:15 PM 2008CA000637 and 2008CA000838
EMMITT RAY EDWARDS v DR. RICHARD W. BAEHLER
Fayette County judge who ruled in the case – Judge James D. Ishmael
Appellant’s attorney: Jeffrey Blum
Appellee’s attorneys: Robert Duncan and Elizabeth Nicholas
COURT OF APPEALS PANEL
Judge Glenn E. Acree
Judge Glenn E. Acree was elected judge for the Kentucky Court of Appeals in November 2006 to serve Division 2 of the 5th Appellate District. He was appointed to that position in August 2006 to fill a vacancy created when Judge Julia K. Tackett retired June 30, 2006.
The 5th Appellate District is comprised of Anderson, Bourbon, Boyle, Clark, Fayette, Franklin, Jessamine, Madison, Mercer, Scott and Woodford counties.
Judge Acree resides in Lexington, where he has had a solo practice since 1997. Prior to 1997, he practiced law with Stidham & Acree from 1996 to 1997; with Thomas, Stidham & Acree from 1994 to 1996; and with McBrayer, McGinnis, Leslie & Kirkland from 1985 to 1994.
Before his appointment to the Court of Appeals, Judge Acree handled litigation and appeals in the areas of criminal law, administrative law, employment discrimination, civil procedure, insurance law, domestic relations, environmental law and construction law.
Judge Acree has a bachelor’s degree and juris doctor from the University of Kentucky. He also earned a master’s degree from the University of Maryland.
Judge Donna L. Dixon
Judge Dixon was appointed to the Kentucky Court of Appeals in July 2006 to represent the 1st Appellate District, Division 2. She was subsequently elected to the court in November 2007.
The 1st Appellate District is comprised of Allen, Ballard, Butler, Caldwell, Calloway, Carlisle, Christian, Crittenden, Edmonson, Fulton, Graves, Hickman, Hopkins, Livingston, Logan, Lyon, Marshall, McCracken, McLean, Muhlenberg, Simpson, Todd, Trigg and Webster counties.
Prior to her appointment to the Court of Appeals, Judge Dixon served as a McCracken County district judge for more than 10 years. She began her legal career as a staff attorney for Judge J. William Howerton during his tenure as chief judge of the Kentucky Court of Appeals. She also was an assistant commonwealth’s attorney for McCracken County and spent several years in private practice.
Judge Dixon graduated magna cum laude with a bachelor’s degree from Murray State University and cum laude with a juris doctor degree from the Southern Illinois University School of Law.
Judge Dixon previously served as president of the Paducah-McCracken County United Way, the McCracken County Young Lawyers Association and the Leadership Paducah Alumni Association. She has also served on the boards of the Paducah Rotary Club, the Childwatch Children’s Advocacy Center, the Paducah Rape Crisis Center and the McCracken County Juvenile Delinquency Prevention Council.
Judge Dixon is a native of Western Kentucky and resides in Paducah. She is a member of First Baptist Church of Paducah.
Judge Michelle M. Keller
Judge Michelle M. Keller was elected to the Kentucky Court of Appeals in November 2006 to serve as judge for Division 1 of the 6th Appellate District. She also serves as the Court of Appeals representative on the Judicial Conduct Commission.
The 6th Appellate District is comprised of Bath, Boone, Bracken, Campbell, Carroll, Fleming, Gallatin, Grant, Harrison, Henry, Kenton, Lewis, Mason, Nicholas, Oldham, Owen, Pendleton, Robertson, Shelby, Spencer and Trimble counties.
Prior to her election, Judge Keller practiced with Arnzen, Wentz, Molloy, Laber & Storm PSC in Covington. Her extensive legal experience includes representing clients in the area of criminal defense and serving as an assistant county prosecutor. Her work in litigation includes family law, personal injury and medical-negligence defense. She is experienced in administrative law and served the Kentucky Personnel Board as a hearing officer. She now serves as a board chairwoman emeritus. She is a member of the National Association of Administrative Law Judges and has represented numerous clients before state regulatory and licensure boards. She is also an adjunct professor at Xavier University, where she teaches medical/legal research, writing and forensics.
Judge Keller has been a licensed registered nurse in Kentucky since 1982. While working as an RN in critical care, Judge Keller earned her bachelor’s degree in psychology in 1985 from Northern Kentucky University, where she received the Charlotte Schmidlapp Scholarship. Judge Keller attended the evening division of Northern Kentucky University Salmon P. Chase College of Law while working full time. She was an Interest on Lawyers’ Trust Accounts scholar during law school and received her juris doctor in 1990.
Judge Keller has served the Northern Kentucky Bar Association as chairwoman of the Women Lawyers Section and as a member of numerous committees. She represented the 16th Judicial Circuit on the Kentucky Bar Association’s former House of Delegates.
In addition to her professional service, Judge Keller has a strong commitment to public service. She is a former chairwoman and board member for the Diocesan Catholic Children’s Home. She is a founding and current member of the Northern Kentucky Children’s Advocacy Center Advisory Council and has served the interests of children in court as a guardian ad litem. Judge Keller also volunteers with the Women’s Crisis Center and her local church and is an academic team coach at her daughters’ school.
Judge Keller is a lifelong Kentuckian and the oldest of five children.
Kentucky Court of Appeals
Nearly all cases heard by the Kentucky Court of Appeals come to it on appeal from a lower court. If a case is tried in Circuit Court or District Court and the losing parties involved are not satisfied with the outcome, they may ask for a higher court to review the correctness of the trial court’s decision. Some cases, such as criminal case acquittals and divorces, may not be appealed. In a divorce case, however, child custody and property rights decisions may be appealed. Cases are not retried in the Court of Appeals. Only the record of the original court trial is reviewed, with attorneys presenting the legal issues to the court for a decision.
Fourteen judges, two elected from seven appellate court districts, serve on the Court of Appeals. The judges are divided into panels of three to review and decide cases, with the majority determining the decision. The panels do not sit permanently in one location, but travel throughout the state to hear cases.
Administrative Office of the Courts
The Administrative Office of the Courts in Frankfort is the operations arm for the state court system. The AOC supports the activities of nearly 3,600 court system employees and 403 elected justices, judges and circuit court clerks. As the fiscal agent for the state court system, the AOC executes the Judicial Branch budget.