Opinion ID: 1058215
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Sallee's Motion to Amend his Complaint

Text: Sallee filed his original complaint against Barrett on March 25, 2003. The discharge of Barrett's gun occurred on April 4, 2002. On May 19, 2003, when Sallee filed a response to Barrett's motion to dismiss, Sallee also filed a motion to amend his complaint to add the City of Clarksville as a defendant. The trial court denied this motion to amend as untimely and not relating back to the original complaint. Rule 15 of the Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure governs the amendment of pleadings. Rule 15.01 provides that leave to amend pleadings shall be freely given when justice so requires. However, the grant or denial of a motion to amend is regarded as being within the sound discretion of the trial court, see Doyle, 49 S.W.3d at 856, and trial courts are not required to grant such motions if the amendment would have been futile. Huntington Nat'l Bank v. Hooker, 840 S.W.2d 916, 923 (Tenn.Ct.App.1991). The trial court denied the motion to amend, saying that it was futile because the amendment would not relate back to the original cause of action, as the motion to amend was filed outside the one-year statute of limitations. Rule 15.03 of Tennessee Rules of Civil Procedure explains when an amendment changing a party relates back to the date of the original pleading: Whenever the claim or defense asserted in amended pleadings arose out of the conduct, transaction, or occurrence set forth ... in the original pleading, the amendment relates back to the date of the original pleading. An amendment changing the party or the naming of the party ... against whom a claim is asserted relates back if the foregoing provision is satisfied and if, within the period provided by law for commencing an action or within 120 days after commencement of the action, the party to be brought in by amendment (1) has received such notice of the institution of the action that the party will not be prejudiced in maintaining a defense on the merits, and (2) knew or should have known that, but for a mistake concerning the identity of the proper party, the action would have been brought against the party. (Emphasis added.) Thus, Rule 15.03 presents a two-pronged test which must be met in order for an amendment to change the party against whom the claim is asserted. First, the new party must have received sufficient notice of the action within the specified time-frame so that it will not be prejudiced in maintaining its defense. See Doyle, 49 S.W.3d at 856-57; Smith v. Southeastern Props. Ltd., 776 S.W.2d 106, 109 (Tenn.Ct.App.1989). It is reasonable to assume that the City of Clarksville was aware of the action brought by Sallee within the time-frame set forth in the rule because it was the City Attorney for the City of Clarksville that was representing Barrett in his defense of the suit against him. However, Rule 15.03 requires more than simply showing that the potential new defendant had been made sufficiently aware of the commencement of the action. The second requirement is that each potential new party must have known that but for a misnomer or mistake concerning his or her identity, the action would have been brought against him or her. Rainey Bros. Constr. Co. v. Memphis & Shelby County Bd. of Adjustment, 821 S.W.2d 938, 941 (Tenn.Ct.App.1991) (citing Lease v. Tipton, 722 S.W.2d 379, 380 (Tenn.1986)). A `mistake' within the meaning of this rule does not exist merely because a party who may be liable for conduct alleged in the original complaint was omitted as a party defendant. Smith, 776 S.W.2d at 109; see also Lease, 722 S.W.2d at 380 (holding that plaintiff's motion to amend her complaint to add her husband as a defendant did not relate back because her failure to sue her husband was not due to misnomer or mistake involving the identity of the proper party, but because the law at the time of the complaint did not allow one spouse to sue another in tort). It is the plaintiff that has the burden of showing that the failure to name the new defendant in the original complaint resulted from a mistake concerning the identity of the proper party. Rainey Bros. Constr. Co., 821 S.W.2d at 941 (citing Smith, 776 S.W.2d 106). The circumstances of the case before us do not satisfy the second requirement of Rule 15.03Sallee has failed to show that the failure to name the City of Clarksville in the original complaint resulted from a mistake concerning its identity. Therefore, the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying Sallee's motion to amend his complaint.