Tag: Motion to set aside

Memphis Grizzlies and Service of Process: A match made on Beale Street

I’m am a huge Memphis Grizzlies fan, but I haven’t had any reason to talk about them on this blog. Until now.

Here’s a photo from my seats when the Grizzlies played the 76ers on Marc Gasol retirement night on April 6, 2024. Side note: Melton did not file a motion to set aside while in town for this game.

Last week, the Tennessee Court Appeals issued an opinion, Werner, et al. v. De’Anthony Melton , No. W2025-00779-COA-R3-CV, 2026 WL 2654566 (Tenn. Ct. App. Sept. 9, 2026), involving a Grizzlies player and some interesting service of process issues.

On June 3, 2022, a neighbor sued De’Anthony Melton over an alleged dog bite that occurred on January 23, 2022. On June 24, 2022, Melton was traded to the 76ers (in a pretty dumb trade by the Grizzlies).

Not only did the trade frustrate me (Melton was a good player, on a great contract, and they got nothing for him), it made service of process especially difficult for the plaintiff.

First, they tried to serve him personally at his (former) Tennessee residence. Then, after the trade, an Alias Summons was issued, and they tried to serve him at the 76ers’ practice facility, but failed to serve him personally a number of times. On the third attempt in October 2022, the process server left the Summons with the team’s “Director of Executive Protection” “who purported to accept service on Mr. Melton’s behalf.” ….

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