James Howard Jarvis II

How Judge Jarvis rules, drawn from 20 signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.

Judge Jarvis no longer hears cases. This profile is preserved as a historical record of how they ruled.

Court
United States District Court for the Eastern District of Tennessee
Position
district
Status
Deceased
Served
1984–2007
Appointed by
Ronald Reagan (Republican)
Commissioned
1984-10-12
Education
University of Tennessee, B.A. (1958); University of Tennessee College of Law, J.D. (1960)
Signed orders read
20

How Judge Jarvis decides

Patterns drawn from this judge's own signed orders. Every observation links to the order it came from.

What persuades

In the sentencing-evidence ruling, Jarvis tied statutory interpretation to the point at which seized material became a marketable drug product rather than counting every part of an unprocessed plant.

“I am of the opinion that a ‘market-oriented’ approach necessarily assumes that the substance or mixture is one which is in some form that is readily marketable.”

Procedural preferences

Jarvis treated the Clean Air Act's pre-suit notice requirement as jurisdictional in the reviewed citizen-suit decision.

“To summarize, I conclude that the plaintiff has not complied with the notice requirements of the Clean Air Act, and this court therefore lacks subject matter jurisdiction.”

Cautions

In the disability case, Jarvis would not allow a litigant to contradict prior sworn statements without a persuasive explanation.

“Moreover, allowing plaintiff to assert a contrary position in these proceedings may serve to undermine the integrity of this court by encouraging ‘chameleonic litigants.’”

Signed rulings

A grounded sample of orders signed by this judge, with the verbatim dispositive language.

United States v. Miller
· 1988-02-16
Motion in limine (defendants) Granted

“Accordingly, defendants’ motion is GRANTED. The court will not consider the weight of plant ‘stalks’ and other substances not included with the definition of ‘marihuana’ in 21 U.S.C. § 802(16) if enhancement of sentence should prove necessary in this case.”

Carlson v. Highter
· 1985-05-21
Motions to dismiss (defendant University of Tennessee) Granted

“For the foregoing reasons, it is hereby ORDERED that defendant University of Tennessee’s Motion to Dismiss the claim be and the same hereby is GRANTED.”

Bishop v. Provident Life & Casualty Insurance Co.
· 1990-06-12
Motions to dismiss (defendant) Granted

“Accordingly, defendant’s motion to dismiss for failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted [Court File # 11] is granted, and this action is dismissed.”

Sharpe v. Ford Motor Credit Co. (In re Sharpe)
· 1991-01-02
Bankruptcy appeal (appellant Ford Motor Credit Company) Granted

“Therefore, the order of the Bankruptcy Court permitting that conversion is hereby REVERSED and this action REMANDED for an order maintaining FMCC’s claim as secured.”

Stanley v. Cobb
· 1986-01-07
Motion to withdraw as counsel (defense counsel) Denied

“Thus, Dunphy’s motion must be denied.”

Harper v. Lockheed Martin Energy Systems, Inc.
· 1999-09-30
Motions to dismiss (defendant United States) Granted

“Therefore, the defendant United States’ motion to dismiss plaintiffs amended complaint against it [Court File # 17] will be granted.”

Motion for temporary restraining order (plaintiff) Moot / procedural

“Plaintiffs motion for a temporary restraining order [Court File # 11] will be denied as moot;”

Motion for extension of time (joint) Granted

“The parties’ joint motion for an extension of time in which to respond to defendant’s motion to dismiss and reply to the same [Court File # 32] will be granted;”

Motion to file deposition in full (plaintiff) Granted

“Plaintiffs motion to file a deposition of Dr. Vince Adams in full [Court File # 36] will be granted.”

McConkey v. McGhan Medical Corp.
· 2000-07-06
Summary judgment (defendant 3M) Granted

“Plaintiffs’ claims against 3M must be dismissed because they lack one essential element: 3M did not design, manufacture, or sell the breast implants in question.”

Wilson v. Honda Motor Co., Ltd.
· 1991-09-04
Motion to quash service (defendant) Granted

“It is hereby ORDERED that service of process upon defendant Honda Motor Company, Ltd. is hereby QUASHED, and plaintiff will be afforded forty-five (45) days within which to properly serve defendant in compliance with the Hague Convention.”

National Parks Conservation Ass'n v. Tennessee Valley Authority
· 2001-11-26
Motion for extension of time (plaintiff) Granted

“plaintiffs motion for additional time to serve reply [Court File # 30] is GRANTED;”

Motions to dismiss (defendant TVA) Granted

“TVA’s motion to dismiss or, in the alternative, for summary judgment for lack of subject matter jurisdiction [Court File # 32] is GRANTED;”

Motion to withdraw rule 26 report (plaintiff) Granted

“plaintiffs motion to withdraw plaintiffs Rule 26(f) report [Court File # 35] is GRANTED;”

Motion for partial summary judgment (plaintiff) Moot / procedural

“NPCA’s motion for partial summary judgment to strike TVA’s sovereign immunity defense [Court File # 36] is DENIED AS MOOT;”

Motion to strike affidavits (defendant TVA) Moot / procedural

“TVA’s motion to strike portions for affidavits and declarations submitted by plaintiff on issue of standing [Court File # 50] is DENIED AS MOOT;”

Motion for extension of time (plaintiff) Granted

“NPCA’s unopposed motion for extension of time [Court File # 53] is GRANTED;”

Motion for continuance of trial (defendant TVA) Granted

“defendant TVA’s motion for continuance of trial [Court File # 54] is GRANTED;”

Motion to exclude expert testimony (plaintiff) Moot / procedural

“NPCA’s motion to exclude testimony from TVA’s experts [Court File # 58] is DENIED AS MOOT;”

Motion for extension of time (defendant TVA) Granted

“TVA’s unopposed motion for extension of time [Court File # 62] is GRANTED;”

Motion for partial summary judgment (plaintiff) Denied

“NPCA’s motion for partial summary judgment regarding central legal issues in case [Court File # 15] is DENIED;”

Motion for partial summary judgment (plaintiff) Denied

“NPCA’s motion for partial summary judgment on the issue of standing [Court File #18] is DENIED;”

Motion for partial summary judgment (plaintiff) Denied

“NPCA’s motion for partial summary judgment regarding TVA’s liability for opacity violations [Court File # 25] is DENIED;”

Taylor v. Chief of Police Keith
· 2001-08-30
Summary judgment (defendants) Granted

“For the reasons set forth in the Memorandum Opinion this day passed to the Clerk for filing, it is hereby ORDERED that defendants’ motion for summary judgment [Court File # 73] is GRANTED and this action is DISMISSED.”

Lance v. University of Tennessee
· 1999-01-29
Summary judgment (defendant) Denied

“For the reasons set forth in the Memorandum Opinion this day passed to the Clerk for filing, it is hereby ORDERED that defendant’s motion for summary judgment [Court File # 12] is DENIED.”

Alarcon v. Bill Rodgers Buick, Inc.
· 2000-07-19
Motions to dismiss (defendant) Denied

“In light of the foregoing, defendant’s motion to dismiss for lack of subject matter jurisdiction and failure to state a claim upon which relief can be granted will be denied.”

Caseload & timing

From public federal docket records for this judge.

The retrievable sampled case contained no electronic entry timeline, and four additional sampled cases could not be retrieved. The profile therefore makes no complete claim about motion timing, case duration, or Jarvis's overall caseload mix.

A historical record

Judge Jarvis no longer hears cases. This profile stays available as a record of how they ruled. If you're preparing for a matter, start from the court's current bench.