AMERICAN CIVIL LIBERTIES U. v. State of Tenn.

MEMORANDUM

WISEMAN, District Judge.

Plaintiffs bring suit under 42 U.S.C. § 1983 for declaratory and injunctive relief pursuant to 28 U.S.C. §§ 2201, 2202. Jurisdiction is based on 28 U.S.C. § 1343(3), the jurisdictional analogue to section 1983. This case is before the Court to determine the constitutionality of Tennessee’s “barratry” statute, T.C.A. §§ 39-3405 through 39-3410 (1975), which is set forth in the margin. 1 The Court conducted a hearing and heard arguments on this issue on July 11, 1980. In essence, this statute forbids one person from paying for the litigation expenses of…