Stay current with legal news in Tennessee. This page features the latest news for and about the Tennessee legal community, either produced by the Tennessee Bar Association or collected from news sources.
The Knoxville Barristers will hold its annual Summer Party on Friday from 7 to 10 p.m. at the Sunsphere at World's Fair Park. Tickets are $15 each and include a BBQ dinner. Beer and wine will be available for purchase. RSVP here. Attendees are asked to list the name of each individual who will be attending in the special instructions section if registering online with a credit card.
National news outlets, including the Washington Post and Fox News, are reporting on early voting issues in Shelby County, which include distribution of incorrect ballots and a court challenge aimed at allowing voters to use library cards as official voter identification. State officials are closely monitoring the process, as is the U.S. Department of Justice. The department's Memphis division said today that assistant U.S. attorneys and FBI agents will be available this week to handle any complaints of election fraud and voter rights abuses.
Voters in Tennessee will go to the polls Thursday to vote on judicial races and party primaries for general assembly seats. A report compiled by the Tennessee Bar Association shows that while the number of lawyers serving in the legislature has declined over the last several years, more lawyers are candidates this year than in the last two election cycles. See a list of the 25 lawyers running for election this year. In related news, the Secretary of State’s office recently announced that 326,876 Tennesseans voted early – shattering the previous participation record set in 2008. The office also reminds voters that they now must present an ID containing their name and photograph to cast a ballot. For information about polling places or voting requirements visit www.GoVoteTN.com or call (877) 850-4959.
During what's been dubbed the first "social media" Olympics, the International Olympic Committee is encouraging athletes to share their experiences with the world. Its social media guidelines suggest that they communicate "in first-person, diary-type format." But the medal hopefuls will have to watch what they post, blog, and tweet because the IOC, as the owner of the Games (and author of the Olympic Charter), has set limits on what they can say. There are similar strict controls on related marketing and advertising. Amy Savela, associate general counsel for marketing at the U.S. Olympic Committee, says that she and the legal department there will be monitoring a running list of social media concerns ranging from the language that companies use to talk about athletes and the Games to what athletes themselves say. Law.com has the details
The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has sided with a Kentucky lawyer who challenged, with the help of the American Civil Liberties Union, a threatened legal ethics case concerning his criticism of the state Legislative Ethics Commission ruling that dismissed a case against a prominent politician. The comments made by attorney John M. Berry Jr. were either based on facts or expressions of his own opinion, the court explained. ABAJournal.com has more
U.S. Attorney Jerry Martin said his office will be working with the U.S. Department of Justice and the Federal Bureau of Investigation to handle allegations of fraud and abuse during this election. Two staff attorneys have been set aside to take calls while polls are open Thursday. “Every citizen must be able to vote without interference or discrimination at the poll and must enjoy the assurance that their vote will be counted,” Martin said in a statement released today. He also urged anyone with specific information about discrimination or election fraud to make that information available immediately to the U.S. Attorney’s Office and the FBI. The Tennessean has more
Sparta's jail, more than 40 years old, may soon be demolished but not before city officials obtain services of a company certified in asbestos abatement, according to The Expositor. The city purchased the property several years ago after the building had been vacated for the new White County Justice Center.
At least six people are eying the third General Session judge position in Washington County, including Ken Baldwin, assistant district attorney general for the First Judicial District; Douglas Carter, an attorney in Johnson City; Suzanne Cook, with Hunter, Smith & Davis; Bill Donaldson, assistant public defender for the First Judicial District; Janie Lindamood, an attorney in Johnson City; and Dan Smith, an attorney in Jonesborough. The Johnson City Press reports that county commissioners have voted to appoint an eight-member legal services committee to work out the process for filling the new post, which will help the court take on additional responsibilities, including environmental issues.
Nearly all states allow cameras in court; 44 permit them in criminal trials, although 10 of those on only a limited basis, this Washington Post writer reports. And when the alleged gunman in the recent Aurora, Colo., shootings appeared in court the first time, the nation was able to see his dazed look and pink-orange hair. But cameras were not permitted at James Holmes's court hearing today because of a request from his defense lawyers, which Judge William Sylvester granted and ordered the session closed to cameras. Today Holmes was charged with 142 counts, including 24 counts of first-degree murder, 116 counts of attempted murder, one count of possession of an explosive device and one count of a sentence enhancer for a crime of violence. The maximum punishment for the man suspected of killing 12 people and injuring 58 in the Aurora theater shooting is death. The minimum is life in prison without parole. Read more and see a drawing from the Denver Post
Lawyers from the Baker Donelson firm, representing the Shelby County Commission, have filed a subpoena in federal court asking for the identities of all those who commented on the Commercial Appeal's website about suburban areas trying to create their own school districts. Commercial Appeal editor Chris Peck and the newspaper's attorney, Lucian Pera, oppose the subpoena. Several members of the commission expressed surprise and anger after learning this, but other commissioners support the effort, saying it is aimed at finding out whether readers who made racially tinged comments also sought to influence lawmakers spearheading efforts to allow referendums on separate suburban school districts. The Commercial Appeal has the story
In the race for State House District 45, Rep. Debra Maggart included opponent Lt. Col. Courtney Rogers' unlisted home number in campaign materials -- and that has Rogers calling for an apology after receiving a call claiming the devil is going to get her and her family. Maggart defends publicizing the number, saying it was used on campaign documents that were filed with the state and therefore public record. Maggart sent out an email titled, "Why is Courtney Rogers lying to you," defending her stance on gun rights and ending with a phone number for Rogers. WSMV has the story
Tennessee Secretary of State Tre Hargett formally asked State Comptroller Justin Wilson on Friday to audit the administration of the Shelby County Election Commission and investigate election procedures and returns, where it is estimated that about 1,000 voters got the wrong ballot. State Senate Republican Leader Mark Norris of Collierville and Tennessee Democratic Party chairman Chip Forrester of Nashville called separately Thursday for a state review of election results in the county, the Memphis Daily Journal reports. “This is not a witch hunt. This is not finger pointing,” Norris said. “We need to know the process works.” Forrester called for the review because he said Republican political leaders “have failed over and over again to protect our voting rights.”
Bradley Arant Boult Cummings LLP will be among those honored by the American Bar Association’s Death Penalty Representation Project for its commitment to prisoners on death row, with the Exceptional Service Award. The firm, with offices in Nashville and six other Southeastern cities, has provided pro bono legal assistance for inmates on death row since 1988. In total, Bradley Arant lawyers have helped provide representation for 22 prisoners, nearly all of them from the extremely active death penalty jurisdiction of Alabama. The awards will be presented at the Project’s 2012 Volunteer Recognition & Awards Event this Friday during the ABA Annual Meeting in Chicago.
The spotlight has been on Chief Justice John Roberts this summer, but in this month's Tennessee Bar Journal you will see that the 17 occupants of his position have had a history of making history. Also, Taylor J. Phillips looks at how to respond to government procedures. TBA President Jackie Dixon urges you in her column to remember someone who helped you when you first started practicing law, and to do the same for a new lawyer now. Columnist Kathryn Reed Edge explains the different worries that bankers and bank lawyers have, Don Paine explains writ of error coram nobis, while Bill Haltom exposes the gaffes of news reporters who rushed to judgment when the Supreme Court went public with its recent Affordable Care Act decision. He also gives readers his secret on how to read an opinion quickly and correctly. Also in this issue, Dan W. Holbrook wraps up nearly 12 years as a TBJ columnist with information on how to manage gift tax. Holbrook passes the torch to his colleague, Knoxville lawyer Eddy R. Smith, who will begin writing the estate column this fall. Look for the August Journal in your mailbox, or read it online
Tennessee Gov. Bill Haslam today appointed a special Supreme Court to hear a case from which all five Tennessee Supreme Court justices have recused themselves. William M. Barker, Andree Sophia Blumstein, George H. Brown Jr., Robert L. Echols and W. Morris Kizer will hear the case, which is an appeal of Hooker et al. vs. Haslam et al., a lawsuit challenging the constitutionality of a Court of Criminal Appeals appointment by the governor.
Tennessee will receive approximately $2 million as part of a national agreement with one of the largest American drug distributors, McKesson Corp., for allegedly causing the government to overpay for prescription drugs, Attorney General Bob Cooper announced today. McKesson is alleged to have violated the Federal False Claims Act and various state false claims acts by reporting inflated pricing data for a large number of prescription drugs. As a result, state Medicaid programs such as TennCare had to overpay for a variety of drugs.
Sumner County lawyer Randy Paul Lucas received a public censure from the Board of Professional Responsibility of the Tennessee Supreme Court today. He represented to his clients on several occasions that he had secured a trial date, but he had not. He made material misrepresentations of fact to his clients and neglected his clients’ case. By these acts, Lucas violated Rules of Professional Conduct 1.3 (diligence); 1.4 (communication); 3.2 (expediting litigation); and 8.4 (misconduct). Download the BPR release
Memphis lawyer John Robert Hershberger was publicly censured by the Board of Professional Responsibility of the Tennessee Supreme Court today. In 2011, Hershberger presented the court with a Petition for Scire Facias and Citation for Contempt. The judge presiding over the case refused to sign the FIAT because Hershberger was represented by counsel. Hershberger researched the issue, decided that the judge’s conclusion was incorrect, and then presented the FIAT to a different judge. He did not inform the new judge that the previous judge had refused to sign the FIAT. Therefore he violated Tennessee Supreme Court Rule 8, Rules of Professional Conduct 3.3(a)(1)(candor toward tribunal). Download the BPR release
A confirmation vote scheduled for Monday could be a pivotal moment for how many appellate court bench spots the Senate will fill during the rest of this year, the Blog of Legal Times reports. Majority Leader Sen. Harry Reid, D-Nev., is forcing a vote Monday afternoon on Robert Bacharach of Oklahoma for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit, a nominee considered to be highly qualified and noncontroversial. The move is a direct challenge to Republicans who have leaked plans that they will block all circuit court judges for the rest of the presidential election year.
If Reid succeeds in getting enough Republican votes to overcome the filibuster, it could pave the way for other noncontroversial circuit court nominees awaiting confirmation this year, including William Kayatta Jr., of Maine for the U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, and Richard Taranto, nominated to the Federal Circuit. If Reid does not succeed, it would suggest Minority Leader Mitch McConnell, R-Ky., has party members in line to solidify a freeze on any circuit court confirmations until next Congress, nomination watchers say.
A single mother at age 15, Amanda Ray Jelks, has had a few roadblocks in her life. Now a Chattanooga attorney at 26, Jelks talks about the journey and those who encouraged her. “Growing up, going to college was never discussed,” she said. “I did not know any college graduates personally as a youth. My mom told me growing up I should be a lawyer because she said I could argue with a stop sign and convince it that it says go.” She graduated from the University of Memphis with her law degree at 24. During the summers she interned at Chambliss, Bahner and Stophel PC, where she now works full-time. Read her story in the Times Free Press
