Knox County Chancellor John F. Weaver said Tuesday he will appoint a guardian ad litem to speak for two young children caught in an increasingly bitter fight over their late mother’s estate. The move lands in the middle of dueling lawsuits between the children’s father and their maternal grandparents, with both sides clashing over money, access, and lingering questions about how the children’s mother died in 2023.
Judge to name children’s advocate
From the probate bench, Weaver explained that he intends to select an independent advocate and enter a formal order naming a guardian ad litem to represent the children’s best interests, according to WBIR. During the hearing, lawyers sparred over who should control contact with the children and who should make estate-related decisions while the civil cases grind forward.
Grandparents’ lawsuit alleges wrongdoing
The children’s maternal grandparents, Carol Braun and Mark Clawson, filed a wrongful death lawsuit in February 2025 that claims Dr. Ryan Shanks bears responsibility for their daughter Sarah’s death and asks the court to remove him as administrator of her estate, as reported by Knox News. Their complaint accuses Dr. Shanks of controlling behavior and other conduct that they argue led up to the medical collapse that left Sarah on life support in January 2023.
Father’s separate suit and estate role
Dr. Shanks has rejected the grandparents’ allegations and has not been criminally charged. He has filed his own medical negligence lawsuit targeting first responders and hospital staff and he was previously appointed administrator ad litem for his wife’s estate, according to Scribd. Those court records show his complaint names Fort Sanders Regional Medical Center, Covenant Health, the City of Knoxville, and American Medical Response as defendants in malpractice claims.
Autopsy, investigation and prosecution
Knox County’s chief medical examiner ultimately ruled Sarah’s cause and manner of death as undetermined, noting that her organ donations and extended hospital stay complicated the forensic work, and prosecutors told detectives they could not bring criminal charges because the autopsy did not provide the scientific certainty needed for a case, previous reporting has shown. Knox News obtained and published a prosecutor’s memo that labeled the case “untenable” for prosecution even as it described the surrounding circumstances as “highly suspicious.”
What a guardian ad litem will do
A guardian ad litem is a court-appointed advocate whose job is to represent the best interests of minors in disputes over custody, visitation, and estates. In this case, the guardian is expected to investigate the family situation, interview relatives and others involved, and deliver recommendations directly to the judge. The order authorizing estate-related actions and related filings cites Tennessee statutes that permit such appointments, and they are available in the public dockets and on Scribd…