(a)

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Terms Used In Tennessee Code 54-5-145

  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Department: means the department of transportation. See Tennessee Code 54-5-103
  • Highway: includes public bridges and may be held equivalent to the words "county way" "county road" or "state road". See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
  • Obligation: An order placed, contract awarded, service received, or similar transaction during a given period that will require payments during the same or a future period.
  • Person: includes a corporation, firm, company or association. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Property: includes both personal and real property. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Road: includes public bridges and may be held equivalent to the words "county way" "county road" or "state road". See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
  • Verdict: The decision of a petit jury or a judge.
  • written: includes printing, typewriting, engraving, lithography, and any other mode of representing words and letters. See Tennessee Code 1-3-105
(1) In this subsection (a), “driver under the influence” means a driver who was under the influence of any intoxicant, marijuana, narcotic drug, or drug producing stimulating effects on the central nervous system, or the alcohol concentration in such person‘s blood or breath was eight-hundredths of one percent (.08%) or more in violation of title 55, chapter 10, part 4.
(2) In a civil action for the death of or injury to a person, or for damage to property, against the department of transportation or its agents, consultants, or contractors for work performed on a highway, road, street, bridge, or other transportation facility when the death, injury, or damage resulted from a motor vehicle crash within a construction zone in which the driver of one (1) of the vehicles was under the influence as defined in subdivision (a)(1), or one (1) of the drivers was convicted of reckless driving in violation of § 55-10-205, and the driver’s reckless driving or driving under the influence was a cause in fact and proximate cause of the accident, then it is presumed that the department of transportation, its agents, consultants, or contractors, are not the cause in fact and proximate cause of the accident and any death, injury, or damage resulting from the accident. This presumption can only be overcome if the malicious, intentional, fraudulent or reckless misconduct of the department of transportation, or of its agents, consultants, or contractors, was a proximate cause of such person’s death, injury, or damage.
(b)

(1) A contractor who constructs, maintains, or repairs a highway, road, street, bridge, or other transportation facility for the department of transportation is not liable to a claimant for personal injury, property damage, or death arising from the performance of such construction, maintenance, or repair if, at the time of the personal injury, property damage, or death, the contractor was in compliance with contract documents material to the condition that was the proximate cause of the personal injury, property damage, or death.
(2) The limitation on liability contained in this subsection (b) does not apply when a proximate cause of the personal injury, property damage, or death is a latent condition, defect, error, or omission that was created by the contractor and not a defect, error, or omission in the contract documents; or when the proximate cause of the personal injury, property damage, or death was the contractor’s failure to perform, update, or comply with the maintenance of traffic safety plan as required by the contract documents.
(3) The contractor has a duty to provide the department of transportation with written notice of any apparent error or omission in the contract documents, and nothing in this subsection (b) shall be interpreted or construed as relieving the contractor of any obligation to provide the department of transportation with written notice of any apparent error or omission in the contract documents.
(4) Nothing in this subsection (b) shall be interpreted or construed to alter or affect any claim of the department of transportation against such contractor.
(5) This subsection (b) does not affect any claim of any entity against such contractor, which claim is associated with such entity’s facilities on or in department of transportation roads or other transportation facilities.
(c)

(1) In all cases involving personal injury, property damage, or death, a person or entity who contracts to prepare or provide engineering plans for the construction or repair of a highway, road, street, bridge, or other transportation facility for the department of transportation shall be presumed to have prepared such engineering plans using the degree of care and skill ordinarily exercised by other engineers in the field under similar conditions and in similar localities and with due regard for acceptable engineering standards and principles if the engineering plans conformed to the department of transportation’s design standards material to the condition or defect that was the proximate cause of the personal injury, property damage, or death.
(2) This presumption can be overcome only upon a showing of the person’s or entity’s gross negligence in the preparation of the engineering plans and shall not be interpreted or construed to alter or affect any claim of the department of transportation against such person or entity.
(3) The limitation on liability contained in this subsection (c) shall not apply to any hidden or undiscoverable condition created by the engineer.
(4) This subsection (c) does not affect any claim of any entity against such engineer or engineering firm, which claim is associated with such entity’s facilities on or in department of transportation roads or other transportation facilities.
(5) The engineer has a duty to provide the department of transportation with written notice of any apparent error or omission in the department of transportation’s design standards, and nothing in this subsection (c) shall be interpreted or construed as relieving the engineer of any obligation to provide the department of transportation with written notice of any apparent error or omission in the department of transportation’s design standards.
(6) Nothing in this subsection (c) shall be interpreted or construed to alter or affect any claim the department of transportation has against such engineer.
(d) In any civil action for death, injury, or damages against the department of transportation or its agents, consultants, engineers, or contractors for work performed on a highway, road, street, bridge, or other transportation facility, if the department, its agents, consultants, engineers, or contractors are immune from liability pursuant to this section or are not parties to the litigation, they may not be named on the jury verdict form or be found to be at fault or responsible for the injury, death, or damage that gave rise to the damages.
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